The fastest way to potty train girls and boys

What is the fastest way to potty train a child (girl or boy)?

What is the fastest way to potty train a child- a boy or a girl?

Potty training is one of the first major milestones for both parent and child alike. After a parent determines it is time to start potty training, the next important step is to determine what potty training method to use. There are several potty training methods discussed in The Comprehensive Guide to Potty Training and in The Comprehensive Guide to Potty Training Methods and each method has it's own advantages and disadvantages. 

What is the fastest way to potty train a child, boy or girl?

The two most popular methods discussed in the guides above are also the fastest methods to potty train any child, girl or a boy. The Azrin and Fox Potty Training Method aims to complete potty training in under 24 hours, while The Three Day Potty Training Method takes just a couple of days longer, as it aims to potty train in just 3 consecutive days. Both methods are intensive for both parent and child, and require parents absolute focus and attention on their child's potty training efforts for the entirety of each program. Since both methods attempt to complete the toilet training process in extremely short periods of time, they are extremely demanding and can be too stressful and too much pressure for some parents and children. 

 

What is The Child-led Potty Training Method?

The Azrin Fox Method and the 3 Day Potty Training Method can be intense, placing significant pressure on both the parent and the child. This high-pressure approach isn't suitable for every family. Some children benefit from a slower, more gradual method, like the Child-Led Method, which allows the child to set the pace of potty training.

 

What is stress-free potty training?

While The Child-led Potty Training Method is less demanding and less stressful than most methods, it’s important to recognize that no potty training method is entirely stress-free. Potty training is a significant developmental milestone, requiring children to master and coordinate several new skills, including recognizing and controlling their bladder and bowels for the first time. This makes it a naturally challenging and sometimes stressful experience, regardless of the approach used.

What is the 3 Day Potty Training Method?

The 3 Day Potty Training Method, is a book by Loren Jensen that is currently the most popular potty training method.  The program is also available in a PDF file at: The 3 Day Potty Training Method by Lora Jensen PDF.  The book, PDF and e-book are all three the same information in different formats. The 3 Day Potty-training Method is an intensive program that aims to train children at 22 months of age for 3 consecutive days. The program appeals to working mothers as the author suggests the use of a long weekend with a grandparent starting on a Friday or finishing on a Monday while the parent handles the weekend.

 

How does The 3 Day Potty Training Method work?

This intensive method requires parents to throw away all of the diapers in the house and for the child to remain in a shirt and underwear. For 3 consecutive days the parent keeps the child next to them the entire time. The parent focuses all of their attention and energy on the child and potty training and constantly tells the child to let the parent know if they need to go to the bathroom. When the child starts going in their underwear at any point, the parent rushes them into the bathroom and sits them on the toilet. The parent must ensure the child finishes on the toilet each time and offers extensive praise for the child using the potty. Parents can also use a reward chart with stickers and offer small rewards for the child's successes.

What happens after day 3 and no progress has been made?

Author Lora Jensen insists that if parents follow her method, most children potty train successfully by the third day. However, if there is no progress at the end of day 3 Jensen offers some additional advice:

  1. Stick to the Routine: If your child hasn’t made significant progress by the end of the third day, Jensen advises that you should continue following the same routine. Consistency is key in reinforcing the potty training habits you’ve been teaching.

  2. Take a Break if Needed: If you find that despite your best efforts, your child is still not making progress, Jensen suggests taking a short break before resuming potty training. This can help reduce any stress or pressure on your child and allow them to come back to the process with a fresh perspective.

 

Does The 3 Day Potty Training Method really work?

Based on feedback from parents on Reddit, it seems that the method often falls short when used with children as young as 22 months, which is the age Jensen recommends starting training.The general consensus is that this age is simply too early for most kids, and success is more likely when the child is closer to 36 months. 

How successful is The 3 Day Potty Training Method?

Here's what parents on Reddit are saying: Out of dozens of families who tried the method with toddlers under 30 months, only one reported a successful three-day potty training experience. However, even this lone success story experienced some accidents after the initial three days. Most parents found that the method worked much better when their children were older and more ready, usually around 36 months.

So, if you're thinking about using The 3 Day Potty Training Method, it might be worth waiting until your child is closer to three years old. Many parents found that patience and timing were key to making the method successful.

 

What is the Azrin-Foxx Potty Training Method or Potty Training in less than a Day?

The Azrin-Foxx Method is named after the two psychologist Dr. Nathan Azrin and Dr. Richard Foxx who wrote the book, Toilet Training in Less Than a Day in 1974. The method has helped train millions of children over the years. The method is intensive toilet training for an entire day that starts with a doll that parents use to demonstrate potty training and have the child imitate their efforts with the doll. The second part of the method seeks to have the child mimic the doll and praises their efforts and rewards success and corrects the child's accidents and has the child continue to repeat the proper events over and over the entire day. It requires frequent "potty sits"practice sitting on the potty over and over every 15 minutes and when there is an accident corrective practice over and over. There are still going to be accidents after the first day but the repetition ensures the child knows the procedure. 

 

How long does it realistically take to potty train?

Potty training can take anywhere from a few days to more than a year. Contrary to what the two methods above maintain, it is unlikely that most children will be completely trained in one or three days without still having some accidents. One of the reasons potty training takes longer than a few days is nighttime training does not occur simultaneously with daytime training. Night training requires higher levels of ADH or antidiuretic hormone than day training. It takes time for children's brain to produce higher levels of ADH required for night training.

In a madeformums.com survey, parents reported 2 to 3 weeks as the most frequent response to the length of time it took to potty train their child. However, 78% of parents reported that it took more than one attempt at potty training before they were successful. Which means the 2 to 3 weeks reported by parents likely underestimates the actual time it took to potty train most children. 

According to University of California Davis Health, it takes 6 months on average for a child to be potty trained, though there is great variability individually with some children taking days and others more than a year to complete potty training.   

How long does it take to be fully potty trained (for the night time)? 

On average, it takes about 10 months after daytime training for nighttime training to be completed. In the US, on average girls potty train at 35 months and boys at 39 months for the daytime and girls at 45 months and boys at 49 months for the night time. On average American children potty train at around 3 years for the daytime and 4 years for the night time.

How long does it take to fully potty train a child- boy or girl

 

At what age should parents worry about a child not being potty trained?

Parents should get the advice of a medical professional if a child is not potty trained by the age of 4 to investigate the possibility of other medical conditions that cause bladder and bowel problems. There are a small number of children who are outliers and potty train at an older age but are completely normal, without any medical or psychological problems.

 

What about a 2.5 year old, 3 year old, 3.5 year old, 4 year old, or 5 year old who refuses and is not potty trained?

There are a small percentage of children who are outliers and potty train later than their peers. The number gets smaller and smaller as age increases, but it is normal for a small number of children to not be potty trained at ages up through 5 years of age and even later for night time potty training. The chart below shows the frequency of bedwetting or nocturnal enuresis at each age group:

 

 

When should you give up and take a break from potty training?

If your child is not making any progress after a week then it's wise to take a break of at least 30 days and up to 2 or 3 months if circumstances in your household are stable,  assuming your child is showing the potty training readiness signs such the checklist below:

Signs of potty training readiness
If a child is not showing signs of potty training readiness, it's imperative to wait until the readiness signs are present to initiate potty training. Without the presence of readiness signs, efforts will likely be unsuccessful again.
 

What can parents expect after a day or three days of potty training with the 1 and 3 Day Methods?

There will be varying degrees of success with each method, and it is very unlikely that a child will be entirely free of accidents in just one or three days of training, though it is not impossible. However, parents should expect some accidents will still occur and bedwetting will persist for another 10 months.

 

What is the hardest day of potty training?

All children are unique and each child has a different potty training experience. For most children the first day is the most difficult day of potty training regardless of method. However, the second day is the most challenging for other children as they regress and forget the new skills they acquired the previous day. Children sometimes regress intentionally in fear of change and a desire to remain in diapers. Other children have random days that are the worse especially if there are other circumstances that affect their potty training habits.

Conclusion

Parents that are in a position that they need to potty train a child quickly are best served following one of the above methods. The 24 Hour Potty Training Method and the Three Day Method both have many successful accounts attributed to them. These two methods are as likely as any to work for a child. However, always keep in mind that every child is different and will have their own unique potty training experience. Stay calm, be consistent, be positive, and be flexible, willing to adapt your strategy based on what best fits your child's situation.

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