I Can Poop On the Potty: A Gentle Potty Training Book for Toddlers Who are Scared to Poop or Hold it in (I Can Do New Things)

A fear of pooping is where potty training suffers most. And almost nobody warns you it's coming.

You know the look. They go quiet. They find a corner, or the space behind the couch, and turn their back. They fill the diaper they are already wearing, then let you change them, happy as anything.

They will not poop on the potty. Not for a minute. Not for a sticker. Not for you.

You've tried everything. The rewards. The chart. The little song. Sitting on the floor beside them at 7 a.m. Waiting it out. Maybe you've asked the pediatrician. And still, nothing.

And somewhere in the middle of it, you started wondering if you were the problem.

You're not.

Your toddler isn't behind. Your toddler is scared. Those are not the same thing.

Pooping means letting something go, and letting go is frightening when you're two. The diaper is warm and familiar and safe. The potty is big and cold and open, and it makes a noise, and things disappear into it.

So they squeeze. Holding it in makes it hurt. And hurting makes them even more afraid of the next time.

You cannot bribe a child out of being scared. You can only show them it's safe.

So this book doesn't start with the potty. It starts with the fear.
Ava doesn't want to go either. The potty looks too big. So she squeezes, and holds, and her tummy goes grumpy. Then her mommy kneels down beside her and teaches her the balloon breath.

With her stuffed bunny Bun beside her, Ava wobbles. She cries, I can't! And she tries again, because brave is not easy, but brave tries again.

THIS IS YOUR TODDLER IF THEY... Are scared of pooping, and always have been Go quiet, find a corner, and fill the diaper they are wearing Won't sit on the potty at all, or jump off the second they're on it Will sit to pee, but never to poop Say the potty is too big, or that it will hurt Go stiff and quiet and hold it in for days No gross-out humor. No shaming. No sticker charts. No pushy parent. Just soft, cozy pages, a mommy who never once rushes, and a stuffed bunny who is scared right alongside your child, and brave alongside them too.

Read it at bedtime. Read it on the bathroom floor. Read it on the days nothing works.

They aren't giving you a hard time. They're having a hard time. Give them something to hold onto.

A gentle picture book for toddlers ages 2 to 5. Scroll up and add it to your cart.