A lot of parents struggle with knowing when the best time is to start the potty training process using benchmarks (and perceived pressure) from friends and family more than taking their own child’s individual physical and emotional readiness into consideration.One secret to keeping the stress out of the equation is to know that there is absolutely no rush every child is different and when was the last time you saw a child headed off to college in diapers? It’s going to happen when it’s best for your individual child and to try to finesse or coerce the situation will do little more than complicate the situation.Our friends over at the Mayo Clinic have devised a set of questions to ask yourself in concert with your child:

• Does your child seem interested in the potty chair or toilet, or in wearing underwear?
• Can your child understand and follow basic directions?
• Can your child ask simple questions?
• Does your child stay dry for periods of two hours or longer during the day? Does he or she wake from naps dry?
• Does your child have fairly predictable bowel movements?
• Does your child tell you through words, facial expressions or posture when he or she needs to go?
• Is your child uncomfortable in wet or dirty diapers?
• Can your child pull down his or her pants and pull them up again?

According to the Mayo Clinic, if you “answered mostly yes, your child may be ready for potty training. If you answered mostly no, you may want to wait awhile especially if your child has recently or is about to face a major change, such as a move or the arrival of a new sibling.”Keep these questions close to you since you’ll be asking them of yourself often since a toddler who may not be quite ready today may start to show signs in as little as a few weeks. As we know with potty training (and as is true with most things in life), timing is everything!