I have a question for the parents of more than one kiddos out there. Lily has recently (the last about 10 days or so) been having accidents. She's been FULLY potty trained for a long time now and would have, at most, 2 peepee accidents a month. Now, she's having at least one peepee accident every day and sometimes two. I know that it's probably just part of the whole "new baby on the way" syndrome but I'm not sure how to deal with it. She's also been very emotional--not naughty, just emotional. We've dealt with that by playing with her more, spending more one on one time and being sure to reinforce that being a big girl is way cooler and more fun than being a baby. So far, that has seemed to help with her emotionality.
The reason I'm finally asking for some advice is because today she had a poop accident in her panties (and it's not like she had diarrhea). Thus far we've dealt with the accidents by saying that it's important to be sure to go potty as soon as you feel like you need to. And if you go quickly you won't miss anything. Today, I told her I was very disappointed that she went potty in her panties. That it's gross and not a big girl thing to do. She agreed and I'm hoping it won't happen again (at this point it's soooo nasty to clean up!).
So, I suppose my question is: Am I handling this right? Should she be getting in trouble for her accidents? Has anyone else dealt with this in the time right before or just after a new baby? How long does it last? Will she continue to regress?!
Hi Alicia,
ReplyDeleteWell....you do remember that I tend to be a bit harsh, but having said that, as long as you are sure she doesn't have a UTI or something medical. I would be VERY unhappy with her and make her clean it up herself. Which is tons more work for you, since she'll make a worse mess trying to fix things, and you'll have to clean it up in the end.
Or, I would ask her if she needs to 'potty-train' again, and go back to putting her on the pot at regular intervals (this should NOT be fun) and I would talk about how good "it used to be" when she was a big girl.
I would continue to spend lots of attention on her in-between times and come up with anything new (however small) that she can do as a 'big girl'.
Also remember that I don't really know Lily and you know her best, and that is a great advantage is working on this issue.
Ruby
Ruby, Thanks for the advice! Fortunately I haven't had to use it since the pooping accident the other day! I made a really big deal about how gross it was and how big girls don't potty in diapers or panties. She agreed and we're going on 6 days of no accidents!! Yay! If it happens again I'll definitely be having her clean it up though.
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