Potty training a toddler girl can be a difficult experience for parent and child alike. A toddler being asked to use the potty instead of her diaper when she has to go to the bathroom may feel as much frustration over being asked to do this as her parent feels when she refuses to used the toilet. Parents with an older male child may find that techniques used to potty train their son may not necessarily work for their daughter.
The differences in anatomy between boys and girls means girls may need to be trained a bit differently than boys, especially if boys were taught to urinate standing up. There are a number of tips parents can utilize in order to help their little girl achieve potty training success.
Pick an Appropriate Potty
Some children enjoy having their own special potty chair that only they are allowed to go to the bathroom in. Potty chairs range from simple seats to elaborate little toilets that sing and light up when a child goes to the bathroom. In some children potty seats that light up and sing provide positive reinforcement for appropriate potty actions. Other children may find these types of mini-toilets to be overstimulating and decide the potty chair is more of a toy than an actual place they are supposed to go to the bathroom.
When picking out a potty chair it is important to take the child's personality into consideration. As a parent, if you know your little girl will be distracted by fancy lights and sounds then a plainer chair is probably best.
Consider a Tiny Toilet Seat
When I was potty training my own daughter she had absolutely no interest in going to the bathroom in a special potty chair. She saw how her parents and her big brother went to the bathroom on the big potty and wanted to do so as well. In order to meet her needs and help move potty training along I bought a special toddler toilet seat that fits right over the normal size toilet seat. After switching to the big potty from the potty chair my daughter basically day trained herself.
Kids can be picky and even at a young age they know what they want and do not want. If a child is fighting using a special potty chair but is showing an interest in using the grown up potty, a toddler toilet seat may be the best solution to the problem.
Assist in Post Potty Clean Up
Little girls are extremely vulnerable to urinary tract infections. It is important that a toddler's tiny bottom is cleaned thoroughly after using the bathroom. Girls should be reminded to wipe front to back after urinating, and in the early stages encouraged to ask for help cleaning up after going poop. If bacteria from fecal matter enters the urinary tract painful infection could develop and a little girl should have help wiping until they are old enough to clean themselves effectively and safely.
Teach Proper Toilet Sitting
Boys are not the only ones who can have a problem with spraying while potty training. Initially a child should be encouraged to go to the bathroom in a potty any way she can. After she learns when she has to pee and can make it to the bathroom in time, she should then be taught the best way to sit to avoid getting pee on the floor. A little girl should be encouraged to sit up straight rather than lean forward, and to keep her knees together when going to the bathroom.
Reward With Praise
When a little girl first starts using the potty she should be praised each time she goes to the bathroom. Parents can sing a special potty song, clap for her, dance with her, or do anything that makes her realize that going to the bathroom like a big kid is a very big deal. Not only will this instill a sense of pride and accomplishment in the toddler, but it will make her want to go to the bathroom again.
Potty training does not happen instantly, but instead is a process. Parents need to be patient with their daughters and remember that accidents happen. A child who does well at home may still need to wear training pants when going on shopping trips. Also, a child who is day trained may still need to wear a diaper or training pants to bed for a while. Parents can rest assured that there will come a day when they will see the end of diapers, and most kids are capable of using the bathroom by themselves by the time they start school.
