Child only using the potty when naked? Heres what to do.

Starting potty training with your child bottomless is one of the most effective ways to potty train kids.

However, for some kids, the minute they are put back into clothing they begin to make mistakes and it feels like you have two different children - a bottomless child who can pee on the potty at home, and a clothed child who doesn't understand what a potty even is!

So what is going on here?

And how do you transition your child back into clothing and without making the same level of mistakes?

THE EFFECTIVENESS OF BOTTOMLESS TIME

Prior to potty training, when children wear diapers they have had no real reason to listen to their body's signals and become very comfortable to just sit in their wetness.

When you remove a diaper and clothing, the air on your child's bottom helps to heighten their senses of needing to go potty. When they make a mistake, instead of a diaper catching their pee or poop, it goes down their legs and onto the floor. It is at this point where your child is able to understand what the feeling of wetness means and what will happen if they listen to or ignore their body's signals.

This process is extremely effective in teaching your child about their bodys signals and to learn how to respond to them. However, sometimes when kids are kept bottomless for too long, or even some kids who are only bottomless for a short period of time, it becomes a difficult transition back into clothing.

LIMIT THE AMOUNT OF TIME BOTTOMLESS

If you haven't yet started potty training, limit the amount of time that you keep your child bottomless to 1-3 days. Any more days than this can make your child too used to the feeling of being bottomless and the minute clothing comes back on, the feeling of underwear or clothing can trigger your child to go back to old habits. 

SIZE UP YOUR CHILD'S UNDERWEAR

For some kids, the feeling of underwear can resemble the same snug feeling as a diaper.

To get around this, make sure your child's underwear is a size up from their usual size. This helps to prevent that same snug feeling.

TRY COMMANDO 

Often the bridge between bottomless time and underwear can be simply trying some time commando.

Commando is dressing your child in pants with no underwear underneath. This is effective because your child is again clothed but does not have underwear acting as a barrier for their pee and poop to go down their legs. 

I recommend trying this between 5-10 days before putting your child into underwear.