How Early Can you Begin Potty Training?
I grew up like most of my fellow American moms, seeing potty training typically happen between the ages of 2 and 3 ½ years. Did you know that potty training is possible before this range as well? I didn’t know that until recently, but many kids can be potty trained as early as 18 months, which is amazing! We even know of some moms who potty-train their infants! Just how early can you begin potty training? The answer is generally just as soon as you (Mom) are ready. Early potty training does require an additional commitment to consistency and a component of training mom as well as baby. On the other hand older potty training requires months to years more diapers and navigating the budding young will of a toddler during the training process!
Motivation and timing are a big part of potty training.  Motivation means asking if my child interested in what I’m about to teach him, and if not, can I develop the interest? Also, am I motivated to stay the course and do whatever it takes to get this child potty-trained. Motivation is a more significant component of older potty training, and I discuss it in this article.
Timing means is my child ready for what I’m about to teach him? The reality is that your kiddo has to be physically, neurologically, and emotionally ready or else you are both headed for frustration. The good news is that many of the stages of potty training can be begun far before most of us as American moms have been taught to believe is possible.
Here is a list of some milestones you can expect if you choose to potty train early.
3 Months
When your baby is just a few months old, he is already recognizing when he pees or poops. You can tell by a baby’s facial expression that he knows something just happened. It’s quite incredible to actually see how clever your baby is.
7 Months
By 6-8 months, once your baby is able to sit up well, you can actually have him sit on a mini potty seat that fits on your adult toilet. You can play with him and of course hold him in position…all the while waiting for him to pee. If you time it well, at some point he will give you his first pee in the toilet and even his first poop! Once you get in the habit of setting baby on the potty, he will connect the dots quickly and simply pee or poop on demand.
10 Months
If you incorporate sign language into your potty training, your baby may just sign to you that he needs to go potty or that he is all done. These babies are way more clever than we give them credit for.
14 Months
If you started working with your baby around 8-10 months of age, it is very likely that your baby will have quite a few days where his diaper is dry. If you give him regular potty-times during the day, he will have learned where it all goes and will hold it for you. This means fewer diaper changes! By this phase, Aimee’s babies never pooped in their diaper unless they were sick. They just waited and pooped on the potty. For a detailed road map on how to get to this point, read Kerplunk: The Definitive Guide to Getting Your Baby In Undies by 18 Months.
18 Months
You could have a little one running around in cute, tiny Elmo undies by 18 months. At this stage, they are full potty-trained and are letting you know by tugging or grunting that they need to go. Some very verbal kids will use their words and tell you. They might still need a diaper at night, but day times are dry!
If this sounds exciting, you may be a prime candidate for early potty training! Aimee has potty trained all four of her girls by 20 months old. It’s possible for both working and stay at home moms! Kerplunk is Aimee’s easy to follow, detailed, step-by-step guide to early potty training.
