I started my potty adventures here and here when Josiah was about 2.5 year old. But it is only since last week when I finally declare him truly potty trained. It only took me like ONE YEAR!!!
Is this normal? Am I a failure? Well, I sure do feel like one especially since we were stuck with the whole poo problem for quite a while....
"Josiah can tell you when he needs a wee and has not had an accident; day or night. He can tell you when he needs a poo but refuses to use the toilet. Go figure!! Anyone with similar predicament out there, please, please help me out. My latest plan of hiding his supplies of nappies and telling him and showing him that we have run out of nappies ended in major disaster. Two days of holding it in, one screaming boy and one very painful exit was enough for me to lay this matter to rest for some time again. We both needed to chill out about it and erase the bad memories associated with it before trying out anything again. "
In theory, Josiah would be able to tell you that nappies were for "babies" and he is a "big boy" but when the time comes, with tears in his eyes, he'd say that he is a baby so he can have a nappy. We even upped the game by promising him blue scooter if he manages to do it in the potty for one week. For one whole month, he would correctly tell anyone that he would get a scooter if he poop in the potty. Yet, at the crucial moment, tears accompanies his pleas for a nappy. It was so frustrating for me especially since I could not establish what exactly he was afraid of. I tried asking him so many times but he could not verbalise his fears.
Then, one Tuesday morning, when he was about to go - I told him that he could have the nappy but he has to sit on the potty WITH the nappy. Or he could just sit on the potty without the nappy. His choice. He cried and protested, I repeated my terms hoping that at least I could get him to sit on potty whilst he was pooping in the nappy. Josiah surprised me by choosing to sit WITHOUT the nappy ??!! And just like that - he did it!!!
I gave him the whole kisses/praises/high fives/hugs and of course a promise to get his scooter. On Wednesday, we had an outing planned and I told Josiah that we could then give baby all of his nappies since he was a big boy now. He heartily agreed and it was done. I did not know it then but a more sinister twist to this whole potty business was just about to begin. Thereafter, Josiah refused to use the potty, choosing to hold it in and telling me that he has ALREADY used the potty ie in his head - he only has to use it ONCE.
I kept explaining to him that everyone needs to poo everyday...etc and having to repeat the whole "big boy" story again. Even threat to return his scooter did not help. He also refuses to use the nappy. At that point, he was holding it in for three.whole.days at a time!! My lowest point being one afternoon when Shaun and I spent 2 hours trying to persuade him to use the potty with no avail. He sat on the potty, he cried, he screamed, he was given more liquids, he sat and nothing. Nothing at all. He fell asleep on the sofa exhausted from the whole thing. When he woke, he jump up and went to the potty and did it. This horrible pattern continued for another week. He would hold it in as long as he could before literally jumping into the potty for 5 seconds. That night, I prayed to God to take away his fears and the following morning, he went on his own and have been going ever since.
Basically, he does not like to be told to poo. So now even when I see him doing the "holding-in dance", I just ignore it and hope that he chooses to go soon. Sometimes he does and sometimes he succeeds in holding it in and will only go when he cannot hold it anymore. My little stubborn boy!
Bye bye nappies!!!!
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| My big boy |
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