Keep your trips to a minimum, and when you do go out, make your trips short and sweet so you’ll be home in time to go potty in a familiar place when the urge comes up again. However, this is really avoiding the problem of public restrooms instead of trying to solve it. This may be necessary if the problem is severe and causing your child to refuse to go to the potty at all. But otherwise, try some of these suggestions so you can gradually help your child become more comfortable with using the potty away from home. Pop in to wash your hands and take them along. This gives them a chance to check things out without any pressure or power struggle. Familiarity brings comfort, so it can lead your child to be less apprehensive about going potty in public.
Carrying earmuffs or kid-sized headphones with you.Avoiding restrooms with lots of stalls. Look for a family restroom if there is one; this is usually a smaller room with just a toilet and sink, more like your bathroom at home.Covering the sensor on an automatic flush toilet so that it doesn’t take your child by surprise. You can use your hand or a sticky piece of paper.Letting your child wait by the sink while you flush.Bringing your own paper towels or hand towels so you won’t need to use hand dryers.
A huge obstacle for some kids is the fear of falling into the potty. If this has already happened to your child and they fear it is going to happen again, an insert can be a lifesaver and help avoid a potty training backslide. Another option is to have your child sit sideways or to sit with them. Hop on the toilet far enough back to leave some room for your child. Get them situated and hold on while they go. To address this, crumble up some toilet paper and drop it in the toilet before your child goes so that the poop will have a bit of a landing pad. So pick somewhere your child loves to go (a store, restaurant, or even a special destination like a children’s museum) and see if it relaxes them or distracts them enough to try the public potty. Beforehand, talk about all the fun things they like to do there. Once there, be very matter-of-fact and tell them they need to potty before they play. (This is also a good strategy if they hate interrupting play to go potty.) If they refuse, tell them that you’ll have to go home because they can’t poop or pee on the playground equipment. Give them a chance to change their mind, but if they still refuse to go—and this is the most important part—follow through and go back home. If you don’t, this tactic won’t work. Then try using the bathroom at your place of worship or a sibling’s school. Work up to trying the bathroom at a small, cozy bookstore or coffee shop. Even if your child is only making a little progress—such as being willing to stand in the stall while you go, but not ready to try to go yet, for example—keep practicing and being positive. Praise each effort. Make sure they know this is their job ahead of time. This is not just a lesson in independence and responsibility, but a deterrent for future accidents. If kids are ready for and capable of potty training, then they are ready to clean up their own messes. But don’t treat it like a punishment. It’s just part of life. It’s one thing to be safe and cautious, but it’s another to be fearful and paranoid. Of course you want your kids to follow proper sanitary procedures, but for now, try to put aside any noticeable fear that might be affecting their comfort level with public restrooms.
