by Marcia Hinds

www.autismandtreatment.com

 

Toilet training is a challenge for any child, but when your kid has autism it can seem like it may never happen. All parents struggle with this. It is a good thing I had Megan first or I might not have known what to do with Ryan. I used the same methods to potty train my son as I had with my “typical” daughter:

  • First we read books together and watched videos about “the potty” long before we ever started the formal training. When Ryan was young, he never even hinted that he was ready to be toilet trained. That was different than all the clues my typical daughter gave me.
  • When Ryan was three and a half, I woke up one day decided this was the day we would start toilet training.
  • We jumped in the car and went to Target. I made a big deal out of picking out stickers. One kind of sticker was for “Pee Pee” and one for “Poopie.” We also picked out “big boy” underpants with things he liked on them. He seemed uninterested in all of this hoopla and oblivious to all my actions. He really wasn’t, he just couldn’t show me yet that he cared.
  • I taped a piece of construction paper on the wall of the bathroom with masking tape (nothing fancy). This was what we used for putting the stickers on when he used the toilet. I worried that he might never do that. But I didn’t know anything else to do.
  • We stayed home for two days. I put him in the underpants. (I didn’t use pull-ups since our kids hate the feeling of being wet.) We continued to read potty books and talk about peeing on the toilet. We talked about how proud Grandma would be if he peed in the toilet. My needs reminded me to put him on the toilet. I sat him on the potty after he watched me and each time I used the bathroom.

The first time Ryan went potty in the toilet, we danced around the house, called Dad, and were singing with delight this stupid song that our family always sings when something great happens. Within two days, he was trained for daytime. I didn’t even attempt nighttime until he woke up dry. That’s when I yanked off his diaper as soon as he was awake and put him on the toilet.

If you wait for signs that your child is ready to potty train, it may never happen. Part of the problem is our kids don’t know how to show you that they care. But they do. I never knew if he understood anything I said because he never showed me he was listening by looking at me or some other form of nonverbal communication. This affects language development also. Sometimes parents stop talking to their kids because they get no feedback, a smile or clue their children are hearing them.

 

NOTE FROM MARCIA HINDS – Ryan and Megan’s mom:

Ryan began to learn and act more typical only after he received proper medical treatment combined with behavioral and educational interventions. To preview “I KNOW YOU’RE IN THERE – Winning Our War Against Autism” go to Amazon or www.autismandtreatment.com.

 

ALONE there is little we can do about autism…
TOGETHER we will be unstoppable