Once you start to potty train your child in the day you also need to make a plan for how to get to the dry nights. There are several different methods for night time potty training and which one you will go for depends on your child, your energy levels and what you think is right. It can be hard enough to get through the mess of the day so if you feel that changing sheets and clothes in the night is more than what you need to deal with right now, you can always wait a bit with the night training.
When to Start Nights without Diapers
Some will tell you that it is time to quite the diapers for the night when your baby wakes up dry in the morning. If your child wakes up dry you can certainly go for it and simply switch to underwear and night training sheets. If your child is still waking up with a soaked diaper it is not necessarily an indication of the child not being ready for dry nights. If the child is keeping dry days it is certainly possible to get rid of diapers in the night as well!
Pull-Up Diapers
Pull-up diapers are meant to look and feel like underwear and they can come in handy when it is time for night time potty training. They are also an excellent choice in the beginning of the day time training when you want to take the child for a long car ride without risking a soaked car seat. The thing with pull-up diapers is that they are usually very expensive. You can expect a price 2-4 times what you normally pay for regular diapers. This is reason enough to ask if you can night train without the pull-up diapers.
Yes, You Can!
You can absolutely save the pull-up diapers for car travel, plane rides and other times when this sort of support comes in handy. In the nights, in your home, you can choose to be brave and use regular underwear just like in the day. It is smart to start sleeping without diapers during nap time. If your child naps at home this is an excellent opportunity for night time training to begin. Make sure to go right before sleep but don’t make an issue of it. If your child says that there is nothing there you should trust it and let them go to sleep without a toilet visit.
Expect Busy Nights
When your child starts to sleep without diapers you should be attentive and understand that if he or she wakes up and complains it is most likely because of nr 2. If you ask if this is it they will most likely tell you “no” but be smart and just take the child to the toilet without discussions.
Remember positive re-enforcement and tell your child that he or she is being a really big kid and does so good. This is very important in all potty training and especially for the night part. Keep cheering for every step forward and don’t get angry with the mess-ups. Soon you will see dry days and dry nights!