Top questions about potty learning, answered
My toddler will pee in the potty but seems really afraid to poop. How can I help?
Physiologically, your child will have bowel control before they have bladder control. Still, it’s common for some children to consistently pee in the potty while preferring to poop in a diaper. They may be fearful of things like the sound of flushing or even worry that they’re losing a part of themselves when they poop. Children who feel pressured to poop in the potty may also exert their own power and control by refusing.
Whatever your child’s reason, you can help them learn by continuing to explore pooping in the potty in a low-key way.
Acknowledge poopy diapers or misses in a neutral way. For example, you could say, “Oh! You pooped in your diaper. Let’s flush the poop down the toilet and wash our hands.”
Read books about pooping. Books like “Ready to Go: Poop”—available in The Realist Play Kit Book Bundle or available as an add-on with the Lovevery Potty Learning Course Pack—can help normalize the potty process.
Visit the potty on your child’s schedule. Try to notice when your child is most likely to poop during the day and coordinate visits to the potty around those times.
Play the “Ready to Go Potty” Song. Lovevery’s potty song can encourage your child to tune into their body’s signals and normalize the process of using the toilet. Listen here or find it on Spotify, Apple Music, or Amazon Music.