Modern parents no longer know how to raise a child without using diapers. They are always interested in what age and how to act to wean an infant from wearing absorbent diapers. At a certain stage, all moms and dads try to gradually teach the baby to sleep without a diaper.
The kid sleeps without a diaper
Benefits of a useful invention
In the 19th and 20th centuries, diapers were usually made from cotton and washed after use. It was only in the 40s of the last century that the fabric began to be replaced with other, more absorbent materials such as cellulose, which significantly improved the quality of life for children and saved many of the parents' hassle.
Interesting! The first disposable diapers were created in Sweden and exported to the United States at exorbitant prices. It was the Americans who guessed to make the outer side of the diaper out of plastic and effectively fix it around the edges so that urine and feces do not flow out. This is how the first model of modern disposable diapers was created.
Baby in diaper
The model of manufacture and the chemical composition of diapers, regardless of brand, are the same:
- outer layer - high density porous polyethylene;
- the interior is a mixture of chemically treated chlorine bleached wood pulp with sodium polyacrylate (a highly absorbent chemical that converts moisture to gel) and a waterproof insert;
- Artificial fragrances and dyes are often added to create colorful appliqués.
The use of disposable diapers has undeniable advantages:
- Parents save a lot of time in caring for their baby. The diapers do not need to be washed and dried, they are thrown away immediately and the baby is put on clean. The freed hours of the mother can be used to communicate with the baby and other useful activities;
- The baby enjoys dryness and comfort. During a night's sleep or on a walk, using diapers is especially convenient, since a much longer period of time can be dispensed with without changing a diaper.
When it's time to sleep without a diaper
Sometimes parents feel psychological pressure, forcing them to quickly teach their baby to sleep without a disposable diaper. This happens when they talk to other mums, dads or grandmothers and find out that their children of the same age or younger can already spend nights without diapers.
Important! Do not give in to the pressure of the environment and accelerate the natural process, the end result of which is achieved by all healthy children.
Usually, babies begin to control urination first during the day and then at night. The child must be ready:
- Physically. The infant should have adequate bladder volume and developed muscles that control excretion. This readiness is achieved between 2 and 4 years, but it is worth remembering that each child develops at its own pace;
- Mentally. The kid should be aware of the physiological processes of his body, understand what he is doing and why;
- Emotionally. This is a step towards independence for a child, saying goodbye to a certain stage of life. He must emotionally mature for this decision. The external environment (the appearance of a brother or sister, a change of residence, a visit to kindergarten) can affect the emotional readiness of the baby.
Once the baby is able to control the urination process during the day, it is time to try to put him to bed without a diaper. It is believed that it is advisable to take off the diaper at night when the baby wakes up with a dry diaper for a week in a row. However, it is better to extend the observation time of the child to 10 days and even up to 2 weeks.
Another sign that it's time to try to remove the diaper is when babies get uncomfortable if the diaper is wet or dirty.
Trying to remove a wet diaper
The child's conscious readiness to sleep without a diaper can be signaled by his ability to express his desire to go to the potty with words or sounds. Sometimes, especially if a child is rarely put on a diaper during the day, he himself may reject using a diaper at night and refuse to put it on.
Teaching Methods
There are several tried and tested ways to teach your baby to sleep without a diaper at night:
- An hour before bedtime, do not give the baby to drink liquid. If absolutely necessary, let him drink, but very little. The easiest method is to give fluid without restriction during the day, at lunchtime and in the afternoon, so that the child is not thirsty late in the evening;
- Introduce potting as an evening ritual. Thus, you can teach your child to empty his bladder before bedtime.
- Place the pot next to the baby's crib. So there is a high probability that he will use it. During the day, you need to take off your child's panties and put them on the pot, and before going to bed, gently remind him, without exerting pressure, that if he wants to empty his bladder, he can wake up his mother;
Potty kid
- Children often wake up intuitively when they need to urinate. If the baby wakes up, but does not talk about his desires, the mother can put him on the pot, which will most often be filled;
- When your baby urinates several times during the night unconsciously, you can wake him up and let his bladder empty once in a controlled manner. Don't be afraid of disturbed sleep. Children usually fall asleep easily again;
- If the baby has wetted the bed, there is no need to punish, scold and ridicule him. This will not teach him to ask for a pot. On the contrary, it is necessary to show faith in the child. Support, kisses, hugs are the best solution;
- The worst thing to do after trying to get your toddler to sleep without a diaper is to put it back on if it fails. If the decision to remove the diaper at night came in a timely manner (the child is already able to control physiological needs during the day and wakes up with a dry diaper for several nights in a row), then this is the best period to teach the baby to sleep in one pajamas. You need to do everything consistently and not be afraid of difficulties;
Important! Returning to night diapers after several failures will lead to the fact that all efforts become meaningless, and the next time it will be even more difficult to teach the baby.
- Parents often focus on failures and place more emphasis on failures than successes. Praise your baby after every dry night.
Before you teach your child to sleep without a diaper for the first time, you should prepare:
- put waterproof underlays in bed;
Waterproof diapers
- prepare some sheets and at least two sets of pajamas (they should be easy to put on and take off);
- if the baby sleeps alone in the room, you need to turn on the night light there, which will show him the way to the pot.
Possible difficulties
Situations are very difficult for moms and dads when a child, having a pot in front of him, urinates and defecates in a diaper or pants, or after a long and ineffectual sitting on a pot, gets up and immediately stains them. It’s hard to stay calm and not let your anger escape during these moments. However, this behavior in children is a normal stage of learning. The baby should repeatedly check the strength of his sphincter in order to clearly distinguish the signals that his body sends in the future.
Using a pot is not an easy time for a child who is just starting to do it. He must concentrate and be attentive. It happens that the baby, who seems to have already mastered the handling of the pot, again starts to wet and stain panties. In such a situation, you must first check the child for inflammation or urinary tract infection.
Important! If the baby is healthy, then you need to be patient. Moments of returning to urinating outside the pot usually occur when the infant begins to develop some other important skill and is unable to capture all of the signals from the body.
At the stage of getting them to sleep without diapers, children are very sensitive to their parents' reactions to their behavior. Babies who hear criticism or unfavorable comments may feel ashamed or guilty, which can affect their psychological development.
Not all babies are trained to sleep without a diaper at the same time. One child will need a week, another 2-3 months. The main helpers for parents during the training period are patience and a positive attitude.
