Disability & Toilet Teaching
Resources
How can people with disabilities participate in toileting and continence?
Parents of children with disabilities sometimes wonder if their child will ever be “potty trained”. Depending on your child’s skills, challenges, and diagnoses, toileting may look different for them than other children.
We encourage people to think of all of the ways that a person can participate in toileting and continence.
Does your child learn best by watching, listening, feeling, doing? Do they need to see something many times to understand it? Start by finding the things that will bring your child’s attention to toileting.
Does your child need extra support to stand, walk or sit? They will probably need support when they sit on the toilet, too. Continence requires lots of motor skills, and it is easier for bodies to learn when they are well-supported.
Also, bodies who move differently are even more prone to constipation! Make sure and check out our Pee and Poop Accidents page for more information about this topic.
Our culture’s thinking about continence is generally all or nothing. Work with your child’s support team to develop a plan that matches your child’s skills and challenges.
Additional resources about Disability & Continence
