I have done something wonderful for my kids by accident. Two of my preemie twins have bladder reflux. A trip to a discount store entailed at least ten bathroom breaks between the two of them and their respective twin also needing to go the normal one time. My husband and I got so tired of carting four kids into a stall that we started scouting out places we could go with visible bathrooms and letting them go alone. They started going to public restrooms unattended at age four (mind you, I could see the door in and out of the restroom and the building at these places). One little twin whose very confident started at age 3. My kids were unaware I could see them, and an issue that could cause a decrease in confidence (constant urination and our frustration over it) instead became something that caused their confidence to soar. Now when they are six and seven, I find myself appalled to see adults attending a restroom with their eight and nine year old emotionally and intellectually healthy child. Aside from that, I have been too overwhelmed much of the time to hover, and that's a blessing since I have OCD and was gifted myself, so I could easily fixate and helicopter them.
