Pullups Are a Waste of Time/money for US

How is this different than any other differential parenting argument? They dno't work for you - great! Save the money and don't use them.

They worked for my kids and I used them. I don't care who else likes or doesn't like them. Just like I don't care who thought what about me co-sleeping, breastfeeding, and not using pacifiers or bottles past age 1. It's all good!

I used them for my son and they were great. I used them when he already knew what the potty was for but when he initially was still having accidents. It took him a day to learn to go poop on the potty but a couple weeks to perfect peeing. He would wait until the last minute and have an accident. I think I used pullups for a few weeks and that was it. Initially I also used swim diapers because he could still feel soiled but easier clean up for me. The problem is when people don't commit to potty training and use pullups as diapers.

Personal choice. I never used them for my kids. I also never used a potty chair when potty training. I felt it would be just one more step/habit to break. But, some people swear by pull-ups (and potty chairs). Whatever works!

Shrug, I used pull-ups. I don't mind at all that you don't like them.

It's all good.

:)

Why would you even bother to argue this with someone? Why do you care what someone else thinks works for her child or what she thinks works for yours? Why is this even a topic of discussion?

FWIW it sounds like your daugther isn't ready. When she's ready, she'll go. It's cruel to put her in a position where she holds it until she cries.

THANK GOD FOR PULL UPS!

All of my children were potty trained early, but they wet the bed until they were 5. Thank God we have night time pull ups, because I'll be darned if I'm going to wash the sheets every stinkin' solitary day because my children don't wake up to pee in the middle of the night. My husband and all of his siblings wet the bed until they were in the 6th and 7th grade, I certainly am not going to diaper my child until that age nor am I going to wash sheets and blankets every day so pull ups for us are a God send! If you don't want to use them or waste money on them, I don't care one bit. Likewise, you shouldn't care if I do.

IMO, pull-ups do have a use: when you are in the middle of potty training, and you have to go to the store and you don't want your child making a puddle on the store floor. Or you are going to a friend's house and you don't want your child ruining their couch.

ADDED: I totally missed the 'she holds it until she cries'. Poor baby. She's not ready. Put her back in diapers and try again later. At this point, she might be so upset about the whole thing it may take her even longer to be ready to try again. Potty training should be about positive reinforcement, not reducing her to tears!

Pull Ups worked for us!
We used them as a sort of "transitional" phase where we got DS into the habit of using the potty regularly. We would take him every hour and, if he went, he got an m&m.
It was great, because we were able get a good start to potty training. Without frustration for him or us, if he had an "accident."
After a month or two...once he had really gotten into the potty routine...we switched him to underwear...and aside from occasional accidents...he did great.
The PullUps laid the foundation...
I will be using them again with our next child for sure.

I actually disagree that a child needs to experience an accident as/before/during a part of training.

What they have to do is CONNECT the sensation of the URGE to go with the release of actually going. Having accidents is the CONSEQUENCE to not connecting the urge to go with all the physical activities that must occur before they can go on the potty. But they aren't a necessary part of the process.

In fact, if a child experiences TOO MANY accidents they will get scared of going because they don't want to have an accident - resulting the crying that you speak of when they are scared to release and are holding it.

As for your actual question - I also have my own feelings on pullups and if someone asks me I tell them what worked for me. But they are free to decide what will work for their child. Unless I'm going to go over there and potty train their kid for them it's my job to be a mom to my kid and let them parent their own kid their own way.

Well, not all kids.... pee in their diaper because pull ups are a diaper.
Some will even just pee in underwear.
Still.

For me and my 2 kids, I used a potty chair in the room they were in. Kept them naked on the bottom at home. Didn't nag them. And they would "acclimate" to it, in their own time.
My daughter at 2 years old, was ready.
My son at 3 years old, was only sort of... ready.
But with both kids, they potty trained in their own time without much battling. We never had battles with potty training with both my kids.
And it was fine.
I didn't use pee/poop accidents, as a way to leverage them or force them to become... potty trained.

I never used pull-ups. Pull-ups, leak. And they do not hold, much.
My kids were naked on the bottom at home.
With the potty chair nearby them in any room.
At night and per naps of course, they were, in diapers and with a waterproof bed pad, under them.
Sleep and nighttime dryness as you know, occurs much later (even until 7 years old), and is per organ development.

Once my kids... did have more control over their organs... and could "hold" it longer... then, when going out, I would have them in a padded training underwear. And I had a "car potty" in our car, too. And extra clothing in our car. For places that did not have, a toilet. ie: parks.

Everything, occurs in stages. And per the readiness of the child and per, organ/bladder/brain/myelin nerve sheath, development. For, toileting.

And, even if a child is already potty trained for daytime... a child will still have, accidents. It is childhood.
And per all of my daughter's teachers, from Preschool to Kindergarten to 1st grade... kids these ages, have accidents. Still.

Pull ups allow the child to learn how to use underwear and for the convenience of Mom so that the child isn't making puddles. Both of my grandchildren used pull ups and I believe it did not hamper being potty trained.

True, they don't feel being wet as much as they would with cloth underwear. I don't think feeling wet is as useful as some thing. Training is a matter of teaching the child to use the potty and we did that by taking them to the potty at short intervals. By doing this they learn to associate the urge that they feel before they pee with letting the pee out.

I suggest that for at least some kids they don't care if they feel wet. I know my grandchildren can be in soaking wet diapers and not care. Soaking wet to the point they've got to feel the wetness.

As others have said, if a child is physically ready to pee in the potty it doesn't take very long for them to be trained. Pull ups are for that extended period of time when one wants them to get used to underwear and the idea of potty training without going thru the frustration of having pee on the floor or furniture and the feces stain in the underwear. They're a convenience and certainly not necessary or even a drawback to potty training.

You do what works for you and tell this relative that you've listened, researched the idea and have decided to do it this way. If she continues to insist gently remind her that the decisions has been made and ask her to stop talking about it. After that repeat your answer in a calm manner.

Because you say she won't release in her undies or the potty, I suggest that you stop with the training. It sounds to me that it's become a power struggle or that she's not ready for training. Are you sure not releasing is happening or that she just isn't needing to pee. Babies can't pee on demand.

If she's actually crying because she's holding her pee, I suggest that something is medically wrong. I wonder if she's crying because you're insisting that she pee. Does she actually hold her pee for several hours? Then this is a much more important issue than whether or not to use pull ups.

Whether or not you use pullups is up to you and is your business...they worked for us...maybe it works for your other family member...each kid potty trains a little different..sometimes alot different...so why argue the point.........

Holding it in until she cries...that's a whole other issue....she's gonna cry alot more when she gets a UTI and then more she has to take antibiotics as a result...

Good luck

I used pullups for the transition from diaper to undies so my son could practice pulling pants up/down. Once he got that going, then we did undies. I do pull-ups at night because he's a hard sleeper and pees at night. Depends on how old your kiddo is and if she's all the way ready to potty.

IMO, I think pullups have their uses, but when I was serious about training DD to use the potty, I went straight to cloth underpants. They make absorbent training pants that still allow the child to feel wet.

So, it sounds like it's two fold here. That the child sees the pull ups as too much like diapers and whether or not the child is ready to use the potty/potty training.

I used pull ups for long car rides til recently. I have family that live several states away and DD would sleep in the car and wet herself. She still uses a pull up at night. But otherwise she is in regular undies and has been for about a year and change. I see them as a tool but not for potty training.

I find it amusing that some brands of diapers now say they have "pull on" diapers. How is a pull up different than a pull on diaper?

Anyway, bottom line is you control whether or not your child wears them and the family member (your mom?) can keep her comments to herself.

It sounds like you have issues with the caregiver (not just family member) and it may be time to look for alternative care that doesn't involve your family.

I didn't use them with my first child and am not using them with the second. Many people find t hem useful. Not a big deal.

My main thought is that it doesn't sound like your daughter is ready for toilet training. Maybe you should back off for a few months and try again when she isn't holding it until she cries.

They were a waste of money for us too. We found undies or those padded training undies to work the best. With the padded undies our children got instant feedback that they were wet and our floors got some extra protection against leekage. Not as much protection as a diaper or pullup would offer. But the child trains much faster so the amount of messes are minimal. I call that a good trade off.

My DD always wanted to run around naked. I got so tired of her stripping down and then having accidents that at the age of 2 I told her "No more naked time unless you are going to use the toilet." And from that day forward, she did! Ah, the advantages of raising toddlers in Florida!

IMHO, pullups are a recent invention by diaper companies looking to expand their product and profit line. Moms were training kids without them, succesfully, for hundreds of years prior.

I would agree. After having helped many, many kids toilet train, I did find that the ones in pull-ups had more challenges (even getting out of that damn pull-up in the morning and moving to underwear or diapers was hard...some didn't want to transition to the 'work' of going potty, even though they did it fine all day. ) That's why I call it magical underwear-- it has all the cool pictures on them, look like undies, but they don't actually have to hold it or feel the wet.

In short, pull-ups are just confusing. I'm disappointed but not surprised that the big diaper companies are now offering 'pull-ups' aimed at active children and calling them diapers. ugh.

If your daughter is having such a hard time on the potty and won't pee there, pull-ups won't help. She'll just use them like a diaper. Maybe time to talk to the pediatrician. I'm right there with you ES-- it's the 'feeling completely wet' thing that gets them to use the toilet appropriately. Pull-ups can be a great crutch. I'd work on identifying what exactly it is that is causing your girl to tense up on the toilet.

We didn't use them. We used potty-training undies and those worked for us.

We didn't use pull-ups for either of our boys. Worked for us. Do what works best for you and your family.

WOW, what a blanket statement.

First NOT YOUR KID
Second each has their own readiness and needs when it comes to toilet training
Third NOT YOUR KID
Fourth butt out unless she asks

Moral of the story - we all do things our own way, in our own time, and by spending our own money.

So, with out more actual information - from the mother or main person helping with the transition no additional advice can be distributed here.

ETA, okay, mayby your kid - so why are you listening to family members if you have it figured out for your family?

My son was not ready to train due to other needs and he needed Pull Ups as a transition. For one, diapers were not longer large enough for his needs and it gave him practice on the pulling up/down of underwear as he aged and developed the ability.

You still do not say how old or what other signs of readiness are there, so no one can help you decide if Pull Ups will be useful in your situation.

SO, is your question how to tell this person to back off or how to toilet train your child? If your child holds it until she finds what she considers a safe place to release maybe she is not ready.

I used pull ups with my oldest, and he didn't potty train until he was 3.5 I didn't use them as much with my 2nd son , and he was potty trained within a few weeks of turning 3. My 3rd son just turned 2, I've been putting him in underpants, and he seems to be grasping it quickly. I don't plan on spending a dime on Pull-Ups this time around. I think it slows down the process of learning to recognize wetness.

are you freaking kidding me? what is she in? boot camp! poor child! i feel sorry for you when you are dealing with UTI because you are making her hold it! SMH

I agree. Pull-ups are pretty much diapers and when my kids had them on, they still used them like diapers. We went straight to underwear (with all 4 of my boys) and just dealt with a couple days of accidents. They key is waiting until THEY are ready. If you try to train before they are ready, everyone will end up frustrated, whether they're in underwear or pull-ups.

Pullups are a waste of money for everyone. Potty train when the kids is completely ready, use underwear - it's done in 3 days.

We didn't use Pull-ups to potty train, for pretty much the same reasons you describe above. I did use them at night to transition from me putting a diaper on my kids, and them learning to put undies on at night, and therefore go to the potty at night as well. I did that ran out of the XL diapers, or whatever size was sold back then.

I guess it depends on how often you want to clean up pee and pooh off your floors. If you have wood or some other kind of flooring that is easy to clean it won't matter. Carpet or some sort of flooring that is not waterproof will only start to stink, get stained, have bacteria and residue on it....eeeeewwwwwweeeeee.

Plus the whole house will stink like pee and pooh. Then when you wash those items your washer will smell like it too and each garment you wash will have that odor in the fibers.

Also your furniture will have to be covered in plastic or something or you'll have to be cleaning it too.

To me the extra cost of doing all the extra cleaning and extra loads of laundry was way more expensive than pull-ups. I could easily spend double what a box of pull ups cost in laundry supplies alone. Then there's the extra cost of electricity, water, gas for the dryer and hot water heater....and you know what?

I have worth, I have value, I have a right to not follow a child around trying to catch them before they let it all go. I do not have to spend my day doing useless laundry and wearing out my equipment just so I can say "I didn't use pull-ups because "I" say NO WAY".

That's just arrogant on your part. If you want to spend your day doing that then have fun cleaning pooh off your floor all day.

As for me, I plan on having free time with the kids to interact with them and do fun things. I'd rather NOT spend the day mopping, scrubbing, and doing useless and harmful things to my own home.

If you want to not use pull ups then tell this other person to leave you alone about your choices. Stand up to them and don't let them interfere with your choices. Some of use see the value of a dollar and a value for our own time. Others see value in doing things in other ways.

I TOTALLY agree with you!
Do it at the right time, and not too early, and you can go straight to undies :)

I used pull-ups as back-up for when DD was finally potty-trained, but we had to go out and I couldn't be sure she would make it to a bathroom in time. We used them for overnights too. But they never worked as a training tool - they were too absorbent and DD had to just go cold turkey in underpants to finally realize what she was expected to do. But at the same time, DD did not hold it in to the point of crying - when I saw her starting to squirm and dance around, I just marched her over to the potty and made her sit on it. At first she cried and fussed, but after a few false alarms, she couldn't cry AND hold on to the pee, so it finally got released into the toilet. And when she got that first taste of success, she was finally off and running!

If someone you know insists otherwise, you are better off just letting them go - it's not worth getting frustrated over. It is their problem, not yours.

You do what works for you, but know that pull ups are for training and putting a child in them (or undies) will not magically train them. We used pull ups for a long time, we started with them as soon as our kids showed interest (18 months for our first, several months later with my second, so no set time for this of course) and then let them wear them until they were peeing in the potty about half the time and pooping in the potty almost 100% of the time, and then we went to undies. Even with that the first day in undies was still bad, with many accidents and our son asking for his pull ups back, but because of his time in pull ups he had already proven he could do it,so we were able to stand our ground and reassure him that he can do it because he has been doing it. By the second day in undies he only had 2 accidents, and had none on the third day. So, while pull ups may not be what you want to do, they most certainly are not a wast of time or money as far as I am concerned, with their use I was able to potty train both of my boys in only 3 days once we went to undies.

Once our son was trained (at 3 1/2) pullups were for night time (he wet the bed till he was 7 1/2, but once he could wake up dry for 2 solid weeks in a row we were done with them) and for long car trips.
He trained fairly quickly.
We had no constipation, no power struggles, no crying or anger or fear or frustration (for either of us), no shaming and very few accidents.
We never had to use reward charts or incentives either.
I just didn't want to deal with a wet bed all the time and he had absolutely no confusion when he switched between underwear or pullups.

You know what's best for your child.
She'll get there eventually no matter what you do.
For me, I preferred the least stress as possible.
Good luck!

yup.. we went straight to cotton training pants.. kids need to have accidents and have pee run down their legs.. yucky..

however...if you are training in cotton undies..this is serious potty training.. the kids should be in cotton full time from morning to night. take them to the potty every 30 minutes.. do not ask if they want to or need to go.. just take them...

both of my kids were trained in 3 days..

Some kids do find going from diapers to undies. My boys did not.

I agree and your DD is not stupid. Pull-ups are glorified diapers. The ONLY difference is the way they are put on.

I didn't use them. My daughter went from cloth diapers to terry training pants to underwear.
To me, Pullups are just glorified disposable diapers and I am convinced that they actually hinder the training process.

Yeah, pull ups didn't work for us either. My daughter would use them like diapers. Then, one day she asked to wear underwear and that was it. She never had another accident. Not even at night. But that was the key, as others have said. She was ready.
Good luck!

We never even bothered to purchase them. They are a waste of time and money- no need to "transition". Either your child is toilet trained or she isn't. We didn't have "transitional" undies when we were learning how to use the bathroom.

Don't waste your money on them. Just use a tried-and-true method for learning to use the bathroom and you'll be fine! My son was completely day trained just before his 3rd birthday and night trained within a month of turning 3. Consistency and follow-through... not expensive "transitional undies".

If she's holding it until she cries and won't use the potty then she's not ready to train. Just let her wear a pull up before the poor kid gets a UTI then it hurts all the time to go. Nothing like it hurting to go to set back potty training.

pullups are a waste of time/money FOR ONE & ALL.

potty training occurs quicker & with better success with diapers/regular undies. For my daycare kids, I request plastic pants for the 1st month.

been doing this for years, & I truly believe pullups delay effective potty training. :)

#1 KEY to successful, quick potty training: waiting until the child has self-awareness....the ability to identify the need to pee before the event occurs. This cannot be based on age, sex, nor parents' desires. :)

I didn't use pull ups with my first two kids, and I doubt I will use them with my third. I bought gerber trainers to catch pees. Best way to learn about wet vs dry is to feel it!

I also use cloth diapers, so my kids train early.

I am not a huge fan of them either. We only used them at night...Maybe she's just not ready yet?

Yeah I just used pull-ups as diapers. What I liked about pull-ups was the stage where your toddler does not want to lay down for a diaper change. I just grab them from behind. Pull off the dirty pull-up and have them step into a new one. Never worked for a training pant for us either - too absorbent.

I don't know many people that believe Pull Ups are a type of potty training.
They are a convenience and are used for allowing a child to get used to the idea of pulling underwear up and down, as needed.
Can you imagine going from conventional diapers to the toilet?
Just an aside, we used them with my son and I guess you could say he never had a. "Hard core" messy "accident" and he potty trained just fine...
I think whoever is responsible for training AND clean up duty makes their best decision.

I don't like pullups either, for the very reason you have pointed out (they are absorbent and are akin to diapers which kids know they can go to the bathroom in). They ARE easier for potty training than diapers (although they do tend to leak it is still better than having a huge accident in underwear). I really only liked them for car rides when potty training. We still tried to stop but sometimes you just can't get to a bathroom quick enough when on the road with a little one who waited until the last minute to say she had to go. Without them, everything including the car seat becomes a soaking wet, stinky, mess.

It's better if you just say flat out it's your kid - certainly less complicated.

Regardless of whether or not you like pull-ups, your caregiver should do what you want because it's YOUR child, not theirs. If that caregiver is not willing to go by your wishes, you should get another caregiver.

That being said, I too feel that pull-ups hinder the potty training process. My kids' ped even told me that.

For night training, when a child grows out of the largest diapers and is still bedwetting, it makes sense to use the pull-ups. And yes, there are kids who bedwet for a long time, but that's a different circumstance.

For day training, if a child keeps wetting through their big kid undies, then they probably aren't ready to potty train and diapers should be used for a while, and then go back to the drawing board and start training over again.