How to Potty Train Your Toddler in 3 Days

So, you just figured out the first part of parenting and think, ok, I’m getting this! Then you realize your toddler is beyond ready to potty train.

This was terrifying! I felt like my daughter was ready, but I just wasn’t! What if she doesn’t get it? What if she’s in diapers until she’s 18 years old? Am I a bad parent if this doesn’t work out?

Nowadays there is a lot of pressure to potty train your child as early as possible. If your child is in daycare or goes to preschool at 3, they need to be potty trained by then. Yikes!!

Well, we tried the 3-day method and it worked! It was definitely a challenge but the end result was a success!

Here’s how to potty train using the 3-day method:

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Make Sure They Are Ready

So, my child was more than ready to start potty training. I was really hoping my child would wake up one day and be completely potty trained with no effort. Yea, this didn’t happen to us.

Your child will need to be ready for potty training so they can be trained in 3 days. Here are the signs that show your toddler may be ready:

• Your toddler will show an interest in the potty (they may even follow you into the bathroom and watch you go).

• They start taking their own diaper off.

• They are staying dry for longer.

• They’ll let you know when they have a dirty or wet diaper (by telling you or using body language).

• They can follow simple instructions.

Every child is different here. Some children are ready by 18 months, others may not be ready until they are 3. It is important to wait until they are ready to avoid extra stress on you and your toddler.

Pick a Good Time

In order for this to work, you have to be at home for 3 whole days! No going out.  Not even to run errands or go to the grocery store. This does suck as you will feel like you’re in lockdown again, but it is worth it and I strongly believe this works.

Timing is everything. Pick 3 days that you are free and have nothing to do (as you will be constantly focused on potty training). You will always be asking them if they need to go or you’ll be cleaning up their accidents (yes, they will have a lot of accidents during this stage!).

It’s always best to wait until you have the time so you can fully focus on potty training.

Prepare Your Toddler

Before we started the process, we talked about potty training a lot! I mentioned at every diaper change that we will not be using diapers anymore as “you’re becoming a big girl, so you are ready to learn how to use the potty now!”.

By consistently talking about what you plan to do, they will be ready to take on the challenge. If you surprise them, they typically won’t understand what is happening and it will make the potty training process much harder.

This is a big change, and they need to be prepared and understand why they are being potty trained.

I read a potty training book before bed (a free book that came with Pull-Ups) and we talked about doing this ourselves. I made it sound exciting and that she was ready.

When the day of potty training started, I was terrified, but my daughter was excited that she was going to learn how to use the potty by herself. Preparing my toddler really helped!

Get the Equipment You Need

This was the fun part for both me and my daughter! We went to the store to buy everything we needed for potty training.

I took my daughter with me so she could choose what she wanted which added to the excitement of potty training. She picked out a potty, stickers, and panties. We also bought extra pants or shorts as we expected to have accidents to begin with.

Getting what you need for potty training is another way to help prepare your child. It is an exciting step to take. Just make sure you have everything you need so you don’t have to leave the house.

Ditch the Training Pants and Diapers

Pull-ups are a great start but they feel like diapers so your child may struggle to learn the need to go (as they won’t have that “wet” feeling).

You may get lucky here and your child may be very careful not to wet their pull-up. From experience, I know a lot of children struggle using training pants to potty train. Using regular panties or underpants is the best way to train your toddler as they know when they’ve had an accident. They then try to understand “that feeling” of when they need to go to the potty so they can keep dry.

My daughter hated feeling wet so this was the best way for her to learn. You will go through a lot of clothes and panties!

Being consistent is important. That’s why it’s best to stay in and not get tempted to go out. Once you put a pull-up on, they can get confused and think it’s ok to go in their training pants instead of using the potty.

Be Encouraging

I wish potty training was easy. You tell them to use the potty, they do it straight away. Perfect! Now, I’ve heard some moms say that they didn’t have to train their toddlers, they just started asking to use the potty right away. Although this can happen, it’s not very common as most toddlers will need a little work and encouragement and that’s ok.

They are learning a new skill and it takes work and effort. If they have an accident, tell them it’s ok. It happens.

They can feel really discouraged when they have an accident and scolding them isn’t going to help. It takes patience.

Showing excitement when they successfully use the potty can really help them. It can make them feel good and can encourage them to consistently use the potty.

Use Reward Charts

My daughter loved this a lot! I printed a free chart and stuck it to the bathroom cabinet.

Every time she went with no accidents, she got a sticker on the chart. We actually continued using the chart after the 3 days, but we changed it to where she would get a sticker if she was dry the whole day.

This really helped her learn as she got rewarded for her successes. After 5 stickers, she would get some candy!

When she was fully potty trained, she was able to pick a toy she wanted as a reward. We mentioned this reward throughout our potty training journey so she was motivated to stay dry all day.

Give Them Reminders

I did struggle with this one! I was the mom that asked her every 10 minutes! It was so often; she was starting to get annoyed. Ask every 30 minutes instead. Set a timer on your phone and remind them to use the potty.

I was always late on this at first! I would be ready to ask her and oh no…too late!!  Reminders help. It gets them to think if they need to go!

Be Patient

It can take time and sometimes you will feel like giving up. I’ve been there. I felt like it wasn’t working and I was tempted to just throw in the towel and try again another time. I kept thinking “Maybe she just isn’t ready”.

I did expect there to be improvements after days 1 and 2, but it felt like it wasn’t working. Instead of giving up, I decided to keep on encouraging her and persevering with it.

Day 3 came and I wasn’t sure if the “3-day method” would work as I didn’t see much of an improvement. I kept at it and by lunchtime she got it! It was crazy! I couldn’t believe it!

We were both happy and excited! She did have accidents here and there, but she did great! She didn’t have any accidents at preschool either so I was super happy for her!

Potty training can be a lot of work and you will need a lot of patience but it is so worth it!!

Even if you feel discouraged or feel that it may not be working, keep at it. They will get it. Some toddlers will get it right away, others need a bit more time and that’s ok. It’s an amazing feeling for both you and your child when they are finally potty trained.

Good luck mama! You got this!!