Monday, June 14, 2010

Should we just give up on this whole toilet training thing for a while????

We got back from our US holiday on 16th May. In those whole two weeks, including over 35 hours on planes, M had only two memorable toileting accidents - while at Little League, and then at the airport on the last night before catching our flight. Since we got home, however, it's been a WHOLE different story. It got much colder at home over those two weeks, and we're definitely into Winter weather, Brisbane style. Matilda went back to daycare on the Monday, and a gastro bug was going through the place - by later that week, we realised she probably had caught the gastro bug. Fun times. Some more indications of a gastro bug over the next two weeks, and her body seems to have forgotten ALL memories of wees or poos on the loo, silver or gold stars on the calendar, or even recognising the urge to go. We haven't had to bolt from the supermarket to the loos at all, whereas that would normally occur at least twice per shopping trip. I understood that during the gastro bug stage, she probably couldn't realise she needed to go to the loo, but I'm pretty sure the gastro bug is over now ... !!!!
I can usually get by with just washing clothes on the weekend - last week I did two mid-week loads because of the number of poo and wee accidents. I also went out and bought about 20 more pairs of undies and three or four more pairs of tracky dacks/leggings/trousers so we can cope with an average of 3 accidents/day.

Any thoughts on whether we should just give up, put her back into pullups and not even attempt toileting? I know travel can throw kids out of routine, and I think the combination of travel, colder weather when we got home, and the gastro bug has thrown my wee girl around. And I think having two parents (and possibly also the carers at daycare) getting so fed up with the accidents that we are making disparaging remarks really isn't going to support and encourage M to get to the loo.
Shall we take a step back about a year, go back to pullups and forget about the whole toilet training thing for a while?
More celebrations of successful toileting? Escalate beyond stars on the calendar to something more rewarding?

3 comments:

Anne Gentle said...

Yeah, my vote would be to go back to diapers for a week or two. We had a bit of regressing after bringing home a baby brother, and it was just easier on everyone, including the potty trainee. :)

Sarah O'Keefe said...

I think back to pullups is a reasonable short-term option. Another possibility would be to institute an hourly (or whatever) pottying schedule to try to get M back on track. Put her on the potty and have her count to 20 and try to go.

Then back to playtime.

I would probably TRY to be very matter-of-fact about this.

Will also mention that she may still have aftereffects of the gastro bug, but that only explains the Problem with Poo (is that a book??)...it should not have affecting her ability to hold the pee.

Keep in mind that there's a slight possibility of a UTI.

Paul P said...

Do what your instinct tells you to do. If it is causing additional stress to do potty training right now, and M would feel less pressure, go back to the pullups for a while.

Watch her signals, and do it in her timing. When she's ready, she'll let you know, if you're watching.

You can't make her potty train until she wants to. Forcing it before she is ready will only make things more frustrating for both of you.