Forget About It! - The Potty Diary Paradox 😵💫💦
I'll tell you a secret: there's a difference between being "incontinent" and being "diaper dependent."
Incontinence is a twist of fate, usually brought on by an unwelcome medical condition. There are countless guides published online that promise to take away your bladder control, but the reality is that continence is physiological, not mental. A healthy person can't train themselves to be incontinent any more than they can train themselves to stop seeing the color orange.
Diaper dependence, however, is a mental state. It's your brain's understanding of where it's okay to void. Humans didn't co-evolve with the flush toilet. Even in the 21st century, different cultures have different rules on when and where to make tinkles. For your Little, the goal is to make that: anytime and everywhere.
So! You've watched your pamper packer romp around the house in just their t-shirt and diaper, crinkling to and fro, and the thought occurred: today is the day. They're just too adorable. I'll never let them wear anything else on their butt again. After the tears, the corrective spanking, and lots of cuddles, they'll come around to the idea. But in order for them to truly accept and embrace their diapers, you'll need to train them to be diaper dependent.
Get your leaky little lamb a cute journal (you can also install a bladder tracking app on their phone). Require your Little to record every single time they make lemonade in their diaper, and approximately how much they think they went. They should try to pee at least once every 30 minutes; no less than once an hour. If they wake up to flood their padding in the middle of the night, that should be recorded, too.
"But Miss Natalie," you say. "I'm trying to make my Little forget about their pee-pees! Now they'll be thinking about their bladder more than ever!"
True! And your kiddo will be hyper-aware of how much they're soaking those pampers for a while. But ask any incontinent person who's had to keep a bladder diary for their doctor: it's a lot of work and it's very annoying.
That's why it's going to be such a relief when, after a couple of months, you tell your Little:
What a relief! They can finally go tinkles without having to record it for you! They can saturate their bedtime diaper and just fall right back asleep! All of the RAM their tiny little brains were devoting to their bladder has been freed up for more important matters. And they'll find, to their amazement (and your amusement), that peeing without thinking has become a reward.
No, they won't lose their ability to hold it if they're concentrating. They won't stop feeling the urge to go. But you just tricked their brains into realizing that it's too much work to think about their bladder. They'll start having little accidents when they're distracted. They won't remember how many times they peed. And the idea of going a day without diapers will start making them very, very nervous.
It's not about losing control. It's about losing your mind 💛
Reposted from my deleted prettyprettypaci2 blog. This is my content.
