Potty Training Regression - Address, Overcome, and Prevent it!
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Jan 31, 2025
Potty training regression is a common issue that many parents face. But don't worry, there are ways to address and overcome it! In this video I'll share some helpful tips and information on how to handle potty training regression! What to Expect in Toddler Years https://amzn.to/3QduME2 Blog: www.themomresource.com
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has your potty trained toddler all of a
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sudden stop using the potty and revert
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it back to old ways if so do not worry
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you're not alone because in this video i
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am going to share some tips and tricks
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on how you can address and overcome
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potty training regressions
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[Music]
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hello and welcome to my vlog my name is
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heaven and i have for you guys another
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potty training video today we are going
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to be discussing potty training
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regression and what you can do about it
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potty training regression is when a
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completely potty trained toddler all of
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a sudden stops going to the potty starts
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having accidents again and revert back
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to old habits that they had before they
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were potty trained
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regression is actually pretty common
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it's one of those things that just may
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happen it's a part of the potty training
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process and if this is something that
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you or your toddler has experienced do
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not be discouraged because there are
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some things that we can do about it
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potty training regression and toddlers
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can be caused by a number of things
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whatever the cause for your child's
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potty training regression there are a
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number of things that you can do to get
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through this phase so that your toddler
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can be potty trained for good so stay
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tuned and let's jump right in so this
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may go without saying but the first
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thing you'll want to do if your child is
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experiencing potty training regression
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is figure out what the root cause of the
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regression is
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there are a number of things that can
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trigger it such as moving to a new house
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the birth of a new sibling day care or
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even something as simple as a change in
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routine i'm going to tell you what the
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top three causes of regression are and
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the most common triggers of regression
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the first very common cause of potty
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training regression is illness something
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that all toddlers are children and all
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people experience if your child is
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feeling unwell they may not want to use
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the potty or even have the energy or the
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strength or the motivation to do so if
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this is a possible cause of your child's
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potty training regression be sure to
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keep a close eye on them and their
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symptoms and be sure to provide them
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with plenty of fluids and rest to help
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them recover another very common cause
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of potty training regression is
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traveling when your family is on the go
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potty training can be very difficult if
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your child is used to go on potty mostly
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at home and within a specific routine
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traveling can completely throw off their
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schedule and lead to regression there
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are a few things that you can do to
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minimize potty training regression when
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you're traveling such as planning ahead
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and making sure that you're bringing
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adequate necessary potty training
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supplies the very most common cause of
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potty training regression is a life
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change what we may see as small can be a
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really big change in a toddler's life
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something such as the birth of a new
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sibling or starting preschool can very
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well lead to potty training regression
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especially if your child has not been
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potty trained for a very long time these
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changes can be very overwhelming for
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toddlers and may result in them feeling
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anxious or stressed those are the top
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three causes of potty training
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regressions illness traveling and life
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changes remember that illness is
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something that can occur
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at any moment in any time it could be
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something such as teething and it could
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also be something such as a cold or a
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fever
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either of those illnesses that your
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toddler experience doesn't always but
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very well could lead to potty training
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regression again traveling and that
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could be if you're going far away out of
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town or if you're just going somewhere
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that's an hour or two away anything that
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takes your toddler out of their comfort
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zone and out of a specific routine that
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they're used to following when it's time
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for them to go to the potty doesn't
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always but could also very well lead to
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potty training regression and again the
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third one was life changes the birth of
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a new sibling it could even be switching
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your toddler from a crib to a bigger bed
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it could be
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many different things anything that's a
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change in your toddler's routine could
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be big to them and it could lead to
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potty training regression aside from
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those three more common causes of pod
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training regression are distractions
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dieting not wanting to grow up too fast
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separation anxiety fear or anxiety
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associated with using the potty habit
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reversal
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wanting more attention from parents
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being too busy or not noticing the urge
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to go potty consider all of these common
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causes of potty training regressions and
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once you've determined the cause of your
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child's regression you can then take
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steps to address and overcome it in some
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cases early intervention can prevent
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potty training regression from occurring
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altogether or prevent it from becoming
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worse if you notice it soon enough there
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are a number of early intervention
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things that you can do to try and
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prevent potty training regression some
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things that you can do to try and
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prevent potty training regression are
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not being in a hurry to potty train your
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toddler making sure that they're ready
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and avoiding doing so too soon making
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sure that your toddler is fully potty
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trained before moving on to a new
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milestone continuing the use of praise
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and rewards even after your toddler has
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gotten really good at potty training
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regularly reminding your toddler to go
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to the party even if it seems that they
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may not have to just to be sure that
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they're not falling out of your routine
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so that they can continue doing
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something they enjoy like playing with a
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toy this also helps to establish a firm
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foundation that's like second nature for
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your toddler other things that you can
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do to prevent potty training regression
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or keeping a positive attitude about
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using the potty so that your toddler
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enjoys it and doesn't develop a negative
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association with going to the potty if
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your child is going to experience a
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lifestyle change help them process and
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adjust to the new change and keep a
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close eye on them during this time if
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your child is unwell monitor their
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symptoms and be sure that they are
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getting an adequate amount of fluids and
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hydration and if you're traveling with
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your child try to keep their schedule as
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close to normal as possible and be sure
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to bring along potty training supplies
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so now that you know of some common
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potty training regression and triggers
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and you know of some way that you can
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possibly try and avoid or prevent potty
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training regression altogether
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now we're going to discuss what do you
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do if potty training regression actually
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does occur and when it does occur
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i am going to share with you 10 tips on
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how you can address potty training
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regression if it does occur number one
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is to try and address the cause of the
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regression opposed to the regression
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itself in other words find out the cause
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and fix that first for example if your
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child is overwhelmed by a new life
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change help them to adjust to that in a
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way that's comfortable with them
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likewise if your child is unwell help
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them to feel better before you begin
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trying to fix the regression once your
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child is feeling better and once your
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child has adjusted to whatever new life
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change they have
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then you can get back into a regularly
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scheduled program of going to the patty
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and reinforcing potty training success
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number two is to stay positive and
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supportive forcing your child to use the
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potty and get back to their potty
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routine if they're not feeling well or
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if they're having a difficult time in
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life can only make matters worse and
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lead to frustration for both you and the
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toddler it's very important to stay
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positive and supportive during this time
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and even let your child take the lead if
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necessary number three is to re-evaluate
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your potty training routine for example
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if your child is experiencing potty
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training regression due to going to a
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new school or moving into a new house
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then try to recreate a potty schedule
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that fits around their new schedule one
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that they're going to be comfortable
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with
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and one that again if possible is very
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close to what they're normally used to
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number four is to make sure that your
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child is receiving adequate hydration
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and fluids dehydration is also a very
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common cause of potty training
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regression especially if they're unwell
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so make sure that your child is
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receiving an adequate amount of fluids
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and hydration throughout the day on a
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normal daily basis
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number five decreasing distractions if
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the cause of your child's potty training
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regression is due to too many
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distractions then try to limit those
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distractions as much as possible this
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may mean having fewer toys around during
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potty training sessions or only allowing
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your child to play with a certain amount
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of or specific types of toys during
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potty training times
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number six increase supervision if your
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child is experiencing potty training
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regression because they're forgetting to
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go to the potty pay attention to their
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cues so that you can remind them to go
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to the restroom and this is also helpful
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for toddlers who may be experiencing
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regression due to wanting more attention
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from the parents so if the cause of
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their regression was just a cry for
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attention then you can fix that
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by increasing the attention and the
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supervision number seven is to utilize a
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sticker chart if you used one before
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when you were potty training your
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toddler and then once they figured it
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out you put the sticker chart away and
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then all of a sudden they started to
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revert back to old potty training habits
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then it may be time to pull the sticker
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chart and the rewards and the praise
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back out because this is helpful in
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keeping your toddler motivated so that
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they will actually want to use the potty
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and it'll associate it with a positive
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experience and something to look forward
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to
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similarly number eight is to reintroduce
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rewards so just like the sticker chart
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you may want to reintroduce a reward
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system such as a new favorite toy or
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offering to take your child to one of
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their favorite indoor play areas again
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this is a way just to
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re-spark the motivation and the
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enjoyment in the potty training process
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so that they will be more likely to have
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continued success number nine is to try
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a different potty training method
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if you feel that your child's potty
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training regression is because they're
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struggling with the current method of
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potty training that you're using
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consider adopting and trying a new potty
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training method there are several
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different methods and ways to potty
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train your child it's really just all
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about tailoring it to you and your
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child's individual needs
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and number 10
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is to take a break if your child is
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having a difficult time in life that's
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causing them to experience some type of
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stress or anxiety and they're
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associating this stress and anxiety with
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potty training as well then it may be
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necessary to just take a break in doing
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so you can re-evaluate your potty
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training methods you can figure out
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what's really the cause and the reason
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for your child's regression and you can
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take some time to really work through it
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so that once you're ready to get back
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into the potty training you'll know that
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the next time around it will be a more
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strong foundation because you've
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eliminated the cause of the regression
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and hope that it will not be hindering
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to you in the future as well if
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something is causing your child stress
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and anxiety by forcing them and
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expressing your disappointment towards
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them about their potty training
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regression it may cause them to feel
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even more overwhelmed and experience
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more stress and anxiety so sometimes
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taking a break isn't just helpful but it
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may even be necessary in some instances
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it is completely normal for toddlers to
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regress in their potty training progress
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from time to time in fact according to
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the book what to expect in toddler years
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most toddlers will experience potty
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training regression if you have not read
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that book or any of them what to expect
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but i highly recommend you check it out
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i will leave a link in the description
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box below they have a few different
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volumes starting from what to expect
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during pregnancy and what to expect in
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the first year what to expect in the top
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four years and it pretty much covers a
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lot of things that parents and toddlers
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or babies or pregnant women experience
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so i highly recommend that book
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and i will leave it in the description
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box below since i did reference it most
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importantly i hope you'll understand
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that you and your child are not in this
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process alone and that regression is a
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common issue that parents of toddlers
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face you may find it beneficial to speak
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with other parents who have also
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experienced potty training regression
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and give their support perspective and
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advice
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sometimes it can just help to know and
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see and feel that you're not in this
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alone and it could give you the
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confidence needed to address it so again
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stay positive and supportive decrease
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distractions increase supervision use a
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sticker chart reintroduce a reward
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system
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make sure your child is drinking enough
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fluids try a different potty training
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method take a break consult with other
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parents and if necessary seek guidance
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from professional or talk with your
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child's pediatrician if you have other
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concerns try following some of these
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tips to help your toddler make progress
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in their potty training and to help them
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overcome any regression they may
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experience
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i hope this video has been helpful for
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you and your child's potty training
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regression if so please give it a thumbs
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up and be sure to subscribe for more
13:45
content just like this as well as more
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helpful information and resources thanks
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for watching
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[Music]