Search Results for: blog potty training and the special needs child

Potty Training Our Son Part X

Posted on by

My mid morning and late evening premonitions were haunted by visions of our son peeing in his pants in the middle of the industrial linoleum floors of our local grocery store. I did not even want to imagine how I would deal with such an event. So to save myself from what was ensured to be a mortifying experience, I continued to put our son in diapers when we went out of the house. Needless to say our son had his very own thoughts on the matter of wearing diapers in public. By the second week of potty training he … Continue reading →

Potty Training Our Son Part III

As I was peeling his wet underwear and pants off of him, I told him to tell me when he had to pee and I would help him go on the toilet. I put a clean pair of underwear and pants on him and he went back to playing. Less than fifteen minutes later he looks up at me while he was playing with his drums. His face was part disbelief and part sadness, he did not like the feeling of his peeing in his underwear clad pants. Once again I took his urine soaked underwear and pants off and … Continue reading →

Potty Training 101

Potty training isn’t one of those “one size fits all” kind of things. Every child is unique, they develop at different rates. One child may be ready to be completely potty trained at 18 months and another may still be struggling at 4. You may have to try several different strategies before you find one that works for you and your child. Don’t get discouraged if it takes a while, most kids aren’t potty trained in a day. The first and most important thing when it comes to potty training is knowing when your child is ready. Can she stay … Continue reading →

Finally Potty Training, Part 1

Today’s the day. I’m so tired of diapers on the toddler. Today is the day that we are going to actively and aggressively potty train. Jessie’s been showing signs of readiness. I am optimistic that we could be in diapers only at night after today. I am so ready for today. I have our day planned. We’re going to be casual and hang out in our jammies watching cartoons. At 9:00 we’ll change clothes and put on big girl panties instead of diapers. The plan is to drink a lot. I was supposed to get a special drink she doesn’t … Continue reading →

Rewards

Do bribes work? Would they work on you? Have you used bribes with your children? Is offering cash or items for a behavior or grades a bribe or a reward? I love the bribe system. My parents used it a lot. I loved that I got stuff out of it and didn’t really have to change my behavior at all. Sorry Mom and Dad. When I was about six my neighbor, who was my sister’s age, stood in her kitchen and taught me how to burp on purpose. I embraced this talent and used it all the time. I used … Continue reading →

Memo to New Moms: You Can’t Get it All Right

New parenthood is filled with expectations, ideas, and theories. I know–I was there once. I, after all had been a teacher. I learned what not to do with my own children by watching others’ serious mistakes. None of us ever plan for a rebellious child or a disabled child. We have images of successes upon successes when we hold that perfect little bundle of joy in our hands. Even when we know that there may be something wrong. . .that baby is still perfect to us. Trying to get it all right. . .causes us moms a lot of angst. … Continue reading →

8 Difficult Autistic Behaviors (And Why They Happen)

Children with autism have numerous challenging behaviors for parents to deal with. Sometimes the behaviors seem to make no sense whatsoever. The child might seem unreachable, temperamental, and impossible to deal with. However, when we take a look at the underlying deficits that contribute to the problems, we can gain a better understanding. And with a little understanding, we are better equipped to find ways to help. The following is a list of eight typical behaviors of an autistic child, and their likely causes. This is not an exhaustive list of all autism symptoms, and some autistic children will only … Continue reading →

Six Steps to Potty Train Your Special Needs Child

More than eight years ago, my family was at a San Diego Padres game, and my son had soiled his diaper. I took him by the hand and we walked up the stairs of the stadium toward the closest restroom. Inside, I lifted his heavy body onto the courtesy changing table. His feet dangled off the edge. “Isn’t your kid a bit old?” Women entering the bathroom eyed me with a bit of scorn. They seemed to say, “Isn’t your kid a bit old for diapers?” Especially since there is no characteristic “look” that distinguishes an autistic child, Kyle appeared … Continue reading →

Remembering to Reward Good Behavior

As a parent it is easy to focus on the negative behaviors that our children exhibit, making sure that proper consequences are enforced when rules are broken. It is harder to recognize and appreciate the positive behaviors that our children show. As parents we even less often reward good behavior. As a teacher I was taught that for every negative comment you should make at least two positive comments. So the number of positives to negatives is two to one. As a parent I find myself focusing on the behavior that I don’t want my children to be doing more … Continue reading →