A few toddlers starting time using the potty and never await dorsum. For near, though, accidents happen. Immature kids often learn in spurts and stalls. Sometimes, they even regress, or lose skills they've recently acquired — including using the toilet.

Every bit a parent, it's natural to feel frustrated and even upset when your potty-trained kid has an blow. Know that, in many cases, regression is actually a healthy emotional response to feelings your child isn't withal able to limited. So your all-time bet to handling a potty training setback is to remain positive and accept steps to help your child get back on rails.

What's the difference between potty training accidents and potty grooming regression?

Potty training accidents happen as your child first learns to use the toilet — it is a learning process, after all. Regression, however, is when a kid who has been seemingly potty trained all of a sudden has accidents and/or wants to go back to wearing diapers. The expert news: In well-nigh cases of regression, your child should pick right upwards where she left off in a few days or weeks.

Common causes of potty-grooming regression

Dealing with the causes of accidents is the key to putting potty preparation back on track, so exist on the lookout for common triggers, which may include:

  • Lack of readiness. If the timing isn't right, fifty-fifty the best toilet training tactics won't foreclose setbacks. Almost toddlers prove signs of potty training readiness between 20 and thirty months, though some volition show these signs earlier or subsequently.

  • Stress. Whatever new situation, such as a new sibling, a new sitter, a new daycare, changes to your child's regular routine or a family disharmonize may be stressful enough to trigger a regression in potty training.

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  • Fatigue. Feeling tired or sluggish tin can prevent your toddler from reaching the potty in fourth dimension to use it.

  • Parental force per unit area. Pushing a toddler who isn't ready or interested in using the toilet is likely to backlash. Information technology'due south important to be patient, supportive, encouraging and reassuring during the potty preparation process. It's likewise essential to let your child set up the pace.

  • Distraction. If your child is busy playing or engrossed in another activeness, she may not notice the urge to go to the potty until it's besides late, or she may choose to avoid going simply because she doesn't want to stop what she's doing.

  • Excitement. For tots who are new to the toilet, even just being excited tin can trigger an accident — they may forget to go or ignore the urge, resulting in an accident.

  • Inability to communicate. Your child may not take the power to express in words whatsoever fear or feet she'south experiencing around using the toilet or whatever concrete discomfort she may be feeling, and it may cause her to try to avoid the potty.

8 tips for handling potty training setbacks

Cleaning up puddles of pee is particularly frustrating when y'all thought you had already achieved this developmental milestone. But have faith that information technology's but a phase and your trivial ane will motility past it. These tips tin aid:

  1. Be comforting. Your child may be upset after having an accident, and so be sensitive. ("You had an accident, but that's okay. Lots of kids have accidents. Possibly adjacent time you'll make it to the potty in time.") Never scold, criticize or punish your kid for having a setback.

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  2. Remember the process varies for all kids. While near kids are potty trained by virtually 3 years one-time, all kids develop at different rates and some might need more than time. So be sure your child is quondam enough and has been showing signs of readiness.

  3. Troubleshoot. Does your child seem stressed or tired? Broken-hearted? Talk to your kid about possible triggers for the setback. ("Are you nervous about moving to our new firm?" or "Has information technology been different with your new blood brother at domicile?") And then effort to aid her communicate her feelings virtually what'south upsetting her. You tin then offer reassurance to assist build confidence. ("It's normal to feel scared well-nigh your new daycare. But those feelings volition go away.")

  4. Go back to potty training nuts. Be clear about when and how to use the potty. Advise regular bathroom breaks at key times, such as first affair in the morning, after meals and snacks, before a ride in the automobile and before bed, but effort not to nag. Consider employing (or re-activating) a reward system with stickers.

  5. Improve your child'due south chances for success. Keep the potty in a strategic place, and dress your child in easy-on, like shooting fish in a barrel-off bottoms.

  6. Endeavour training pants. If you're potty training on the before side, training pants can brand potty training less messy and help teach wetness sensation with beautiful graphics that fade when they get wet. If your child is potty training afterwards, you lot may want to stick with pull-ups when accidents would be inconvenient (such as when you're away from home), and use cotton underwear for at-home grooming sessions.

  7. Offer praise every stride of the mode. Help motivate your kid past playing upwards the "big kid" bending. Focus on positive reinforcement and enthusiastic praise when she does successfully use the potty.

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  8. Give information technology a residue. If you've ruled out other underlying causes and your child's regression lasts longer than a month, she may simply not be ready. In that case, give potty preparation a break for a little while. Merely go back on track as soon as your child does seem to be showing signs of readiness, since consistency is essential to success.

When to call the doctor about potty training regression or accidents

Accidents are part of the potty preparation procedure, only frequent accidents over a prolonged period could be a sign that there's an underlying medical condition that requires treatment. See your pediatrician if your toddler experiences any of these symptoms:

  • Constant wetness
  • Wetness post-obit laughter
  • A weak urine stream
  • Painful urination or defecation
  • Chronic constipation
  • Blood in the urine or stool

Your pediatrician tin can help identify any physical or not-physical problems your toddler may exist experiencing, as well as offering guidance if medications, beliefs modifications or other types of handling are necessary.

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