It's My Poop and You Can't Have It

About the Book

“It’s My Poop ... “ is a quick simple read that provides parents and others a look into the mind of the potty-training toddler or preschooler and their thoughts about being hurried to reach a milestone in which they may be unprepared. Dr. Brightwell witnessed in anguish over a thirty-year period as hundreds of little ones were pushed into potty-training when they were clearly not ready which resulted in this project . The purpose of the book is not to create an argument about the best time to potty train, but rather to encourage parents to allow their children to train at their own pace instead of the time table of someone else’s. The potty-training process should be an exciting period of growth for all involved, not that which is frustrating and time consuming. The hope is that parents will create a fun and creative approach to potty training their little angels.

About the Author

Dr. Attallah Brightwell is and Early Educational Psychologist and Behavioral Specialist. The owner/operator of several child development centers, Dr. Brightwell has been the voice of young children since 1991. Her first center provided services to at risk preschoolers including those with behavioral and developmental challenges along with typically developing children. Her work with autistic children during this time placed her as a pioneer in the field, as she created a style of teaching that promoted learning for this specific population of preschoolers long before many in the medical and psychological communities were familiar with the condition. Dr. Brightwell’s graduate school thesis published in 1995 was an operational research study that followed and documented the cognitive growth of an autistic preschooler over a period of two years (5 years prior to the child being officially diagnosed by a team of psychologists). As an advocate for individualism, Dr. Brightwell’s approach to assisting in the development of the young is based upon the belief that most children are educable if enrolled in a child care program that is loving, clean, safe and stimulating where each child has the opportunity to develop at his/her own pace, the same ideology adopted for potty-training. Dr. Brightwell’s experience coupled with her formal educational training is unmatched in the child care industry allowing her to develop the most effective approach to assisting young children to maximize their fullest potential, regardless of race, gender, socio-economic status or developmental challenges. Yasmeen Rose Brightwell is the youngest child and only daughter of Dr. BrightwelL A high school high scholar/ athlete and former student volunteer at her mother’s child development center, Yasmeen encouraged her mom to put her potty—training experience and expertise into text by writing this book. She too wanted to contribute her observation as a volunteer and friend to the children. Her job as a storyteller, activities director and circle-time leader exposed her to the miserable truth of how awful some toddlers and preschoolers feel when they are forced to potty-trained when unprepared to do so. She observed the struggle that both her mother and the teachers encountered with parents who pushed their toddlers into training when they were not ready, not to mention how horrible she felt watching the frustration of the little ones. Yasmeen created a reward system for all of the children who willingly attempted to go with the teacher to the potty whether they were successful once in the potty room or not. Yasmeen believed that all of the children should feel like winners. She is a self—taught artist and the illustrator of “It’s My Poop and You Can’t Have It”.