Potty training at 4 months? From TODAY Show...

[NCDisneyMom]

ITA with the general consensus here.

My ds started around 2 1/2, but wasn't completely potty trained until he was just over 3 (maybe 3 yr. 1 mo. or so).

Now, dd has always hated having a wet/soiled diaper. She just turned 2 in September, and just this weekend starting using the potty! We had not started potty training AT ALL! She was in the bathroom on Friday, and I went in to rescue her from whatever trouble she might have been getting into, and she was standing there nekkid from the waist down. So I thought "Why not give it a try"? Sure enough, she went potty! And, she's been going all weekend! No, she's not ready to go out in public with just undies on, but she certainly did this all on her own...and I'm still shocked!!

 

[leighe]

This is why the closer I get to having the baby the less attention I pay to stuff I hear and read. How on earth can you truly "potty train" someone who can't even walk to the potty? My mom told me that she started with my brother, sister and I when we were about 18 months and that my sister and I were a breeze but my brother was a nightmare! I can remember driving to Disney World one summer and stopping at what seemed like every exit because my brother would say he had to go. My dad looked like this when we finally got there.

 

[flminivanmama]

goofy4tink,

the child isn't being "potty trained" - the mom is just reading the baby's cues and holding them over a little potty. there are days with more misses than catches for sure. there's no "training" going on .... it's just communicating.

 

[coliebird]

I fail to understand the eagerness of today's society to deny our children their childhood. It's rush, rush, rush to get them to be more grown-up.

This is exactly what I was thinking as I was reading an article about this in People this weekend. Why the rush? Ok, yeah, diapers are expensive and I'm glad we don't use them anymore (at least for a few more months), but really, how hard is it to change a diaper? It's not like parents (at least most of them) are letting their babies sit around in spoiled diapers all day. I would rather not be chained to my house holding my baby over the potty a thousand times a day. I know that I miss the baby days and my daughter is only 3. I can't wait to do it again. It goes so fast, why not just enjoy the time?

 

[va32h]

There have been a bunch of articles/news reports about this lately. I think calling it "potty training" is probably a misnomer.

The folks behind it have an environmental aspect - keeping diapers out of landfills, and the idea is that "elimination communication" actually promotes a closer relationship with your baby - you become attuned to their needs and can anticipate when they need to go based on paying close attention to them.

Having said all that, I think those people are nuts! How on earth is a mother supposed to get anything else done, if she has to stare at her baby all day, looking for signs of an imminent pee?

I realize that other cultures do this - but it occurs to me that perhaps they do it because there are no other choices.

 

[JustAshe]

Can you imagine doing this if you had multiples? You'd never get anything else done.

Having had 3 in diapers at one time, I simply can NOT imagine trying to do this with everyone.

 

[In a hurry]

There have been a bunch of articles/news reports about this lately. I think calling it "potty training" is probably a misnomer.

The folks behind it have an environmental aspect - keeping diapers out of landfills, and the idea is that "elimination communication" actually promotes a closer relationship with your baby - you become attuned to their needs and can anticipate when they need to go based on paying close attention to them.

Having said all that, I think those people are nuts! How on earth is a mother supposed to get anything else done, if she has to stare at her baby all day, looking for signs of an imminent pee?

I realize that other cultures do this - but it occurs to me that perhaps they do it because there are no other choices.

I wonder if they have calculated the extra flushing and it's impact!

 

[DisneyPhD]

This is nuts. (but then a lot of parenting is.)

My DD was over 3 years old when she was potty trained, but once she got it and we took the pull ups away she was potty trained over night with no accidents. As long as we waited for her to be ready she was fine. I know many peole who started much earlier (just turned 2 years old) and are still dealing with weekly accidents now (4 years old)

Signs are very important, lanuage to express themselves, and most importantily interest and willingnes.

I do start early though, pre potty training. My DD is 14 months old. I can tell when she is "doing her job" and I tell that is what is happening (not in those words), I talk about what mommy, dady and big sister do. When I change her (if possible) I put what will in the toliet to show her where it goes and flush it. Just kind of "setting the stage." Just like I always talk to my babies and tell them what is happening (we are going to store, I am putting your coat on.) That way they learn as they grow and I don't have to remember to do it when they are old enough to understand, it just happens naturally.

I think when people put this much engery on this at that young of age they miss out on other things they can we working on, or just enjoying about their child.

Potty training isn't easy. There is a reason Frued put some much influance on it.

 

[grlpwrd]

Yes, many other cultures do this and have been doing this for ages. Just like babywearing - nothing new here.

It is not necessarily out of necessity or due to lack of resources. It could just be the standard due to societal values, such as cleanliness or bonding with baby like co-sleeping. We are comparing a natural way of life for many to what modern day folks have adopted. The standard for them is eliminating that way, not disposables or cloth diapers. I'm not comfortable with the comparison that they do it out of necessity because they don't have diapers or whatever - we're just too industrialized and diapers are not necessarily the standard for all people.

We can learn a lot from primitive, native, or non-industrialized people.

 

[BuzznBelle'smom]

Well, if this is how some moms want to spend their time, go for it. Not my thing, but everyone makes their own choices. It seems like 40 years ago, it was a source of pride how young your kid potty trained. But more recently, the diaper manufacturers came out with size 6 diapers because people were waiting longer for whatever reason. Personally, I never found diaper changing to be so totally horrible that I couldn't wait for it to end, although I don't miss it.

 

[nliedel]

Well goodie for people who can do it but with my four I have never managed to accomplish it in less than 2.5 years. I just have other things I want to do with them when they are so young and precious. A diaper change is no big deal

 

[ZachnElli]

I was on a March baby board (another forum) and there were some ladies on there that starting doing it. I left the board. Not just because of that, but the whole philosophy they had on parenting and this was part of it. It is parent training, at least it was then at 2 months old! I thought they were nuts. I'm one of those "bad parents" who uses disposable diapers. I tried cloth for a whole year and hated it every single day I did it, one weekend out of town with disaposables and I was a changed mommy! They were another group that their way was the only way kinda thing, no thanks.

 

[va32h]

We can learn a lot from primitive, native, or non-industrialized people

mmm, well I'm not comfortable with terms like "primitive" or "native", myself.

It occurs to me though, that certain devices were invented/became popular for a reason - because people wanted them!

Certainly no harm, no foul, if some parents want to try this method.

But the elephant in the room here is that this method of pottying - like many other natural ideas - requires mom to be with baby round the clock - aka not at work.

I realize that I sound like a tinfoil hat wearing conspiracy theorist here - but whenever a trend like this pops up, I can't help but see a subtle "anti-working -mom" angle to it.

 

[Hillbeans]

Just my opinion here, but I think the whole idea of this is disturbing.

I just could never imagine doing this to a baby.

 

[ItsonlyExperiment626]

My question is how in the world do you go out of the house? It's hard enough when you are training a toddler and he/she says I have to go potty and you're in the middle of the highway getting from point A to point B.

 

[cheerbop]

You don't potty train a baby that young...you potty train the PARENT!!!

 

[minkydog]

mmm, well I'm not comfortable with terms like "primitive" or "native", myself.

It occurs to me though, that certain devices were invented/became popular for a reason - because people wanted them!

Certainly no harm, no foul, if some parents want to try this method.

But the elephant in the room here is that this method of pottying - like many other natural ideas - requires mom to be with baby round the clock - aka not at work.

I realize that I sound like a tinfoil hat wearing conspiracy theorist here - but whenever a trend like this pops up, I can't help but see a subtle "anti-working -mom" angle to it.

Point well taken. I had the same thought--if you have to put the baby on the potty every 2 hrs or less, you can't be at work. And good luck getting your daycare provider to do it for you

As an older mom I've had the chance to see fads come & go. When my oldest was born it was all about lamaze birth, breast-feeding (for the first 6wks!) convertible carseats,tummy sleeping, and finding the right daycare center so you could go back to work. When the last 2 were born, we lived in another part of the country where cloth diapers,homeschooling, home birthing, breastfeeding until preschool,organic cheese, grinding grain, and co-sleeping were big. Needless to say, no working allowed. In each situation I was made to feel abnormal for not fitting in with what that society believed to be the "right" way to raise children.

In my moms generation they made their own formula and started babies on cereal and OJ at 6wks! Every generation has their "compliance police" set on making moms feel like they can never do enough. I didn't really feel confindent in my mothering until I put down the parenting books and started listening to my babies.

Cathy--raised three breast-fed/bottle-fed,cloth diapered/ disposible diapered/co-sleeping/crib sleeping/homoeschool/public school/100% healthy kids while working part-time/full-time/weekends/ night shift/ staying at home

 

[Laugh O. Grams]

There was an article about this in the NYTimes Sunday edition. Some claim that trying to push your kids so young can lead to rebellion as the child gets older and you may have wetting problems later in the kid's life due to an unusual amount of unneeded stress.

 

[bajanswife]

I don't see how it hurts a baby to be held over a toilet vs do their business in a diaper - as long as there are no recriminations if the baby isn't "getting it" to the parents' satisfaction. As others have said, this is "parent training", and if a parent wants to do it, it is their call. I'd never in a million years want to do it myself, but I don't begrudge anyone else who does, as long as they don't put pressure on their baby to learn something they aren't capable of. If they are willing to learn their baby's cues and take them to the toilet instead of giving them a diaper to do their business in, and as long as they do not make the baby feel bad for "accidents", then IMO it's their business. Once they understand that the baby will not be able to adequately take over their own toileting until they are somewhere in toddlerhood, and until then the parent has to do all the work required to avoid "accidents".

 

[MrsNick]

mmm, well I'm not comfortable with terms like "primitive" or "native", myself.

It occurs to me though, that certain devices were invented/became popular for a reason - because people wanted them!

Certainly no harm, no foul, if some parents want to try this method.

But the elephant in the room here is that this method of pottying - like many other natural ideas - requires mom to be with baby round the clock - aka not at work.

I realize that I sound like a tinfoil hat wearing conspiracy theorist here - but whenever a trend like this pops up, I can't help but see a subtle "anti-working -mom" angle to it.

Man oh man, you took the words right out of my mouth. I was going to post something to this effect, but you said it quite well!

Oh, one more thought...But would this not also chain a SAHM to her home (not just working mothers?)? How would any mother (working or not) be able to leave her home for necessary errands (like food shopping, hitting the bank, etc) if she's holding her child over a toilet so frequently?