Looking back, Nora (typical) was fairly easy to train. She watched me “go” and showed interest around 18months so we got a small potty and started introducing the idea.
One weekend I just put the training underwear on Nora and it just progressed from there. I can probably count her accidents on one hand.
Fast forward to Hannah (T21), age 2 (about a year ago). I knew there would be challenges solely based on her (assumed) lack of communication and developmental delays. Regardless, we started introducing her to the potty at age 2. She was starting to walk and had core strength, so why not?
We got into a routine of putting her on the toilet first thing in the AM, mid-morning, before nap, in the PM, and before bedtime. Every time Hannah voided (pee or poop) we would cheer like fools and reward her with a marshmallow.
Within the Ds community, I’d read that TT (Toilet Training) can take a very long time; the average age being anywhere between 3-6 years old. That’s a big window. I knew an intensive TT class was offered at Cincinnati Children’s and had been announced among the online Ds groups. I thought it was worth a shot.
The method was developed by the psychologists at Cincinnati Children’s Autism Center. They opened the class up to other developmental disabilities - such as Down syndrome. It was a two-day evening class this past summer. Most families there had sons with autism, whose average age was six - and not toilet trained. I almost felt guilty for being there for my 2-year-old daughter who has Ds!
This method is suggested - not required. We could do a scheduled method, which takes longer, but Tim and I work full time and can’t be with Hannah around the clock to set on the toilet. The intensive method has backed research and proof of it working.
In a nutshell, you prep by pumping your kid full of liquids and taking away their reward a few days out. The program starts by setting the child on the toilet for 30 minutes (yes, long). If they go, reward them and they get a break out of the restroom. Once they go three times on the toilet, the sitting time decreases and the break time increases.
The child stays pantless. Meals can be eaten either on breaks or in the restroom. Yup.
Once they are up to accident-free breaks of 15/20 minutes, you move to Initiation Training. Here, they sit on a chair in the bathroom and need to communicate or move to the toilet on their own. Once they are far from the restroom and initiate that they need to void, you’ve basically made the end goal: The child attends to the physical urge.
You have to set aside 3-6 days which sounded daunting and hard as two full-time working parents. Christmas break it was!
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