Question
Hello. I wrote the question entitled 21 month old Refuses To Sit on Potty. In response to my question, it was suggested that I could place his potty on top of the closed toilet, so that he would stay on the potty and grow used to sitting on his potty. I did try this. My son did learn how to empty his bladder into the potty (up on a perch). However, I was unsuccessful in weaning him off the potty perch.
In the fifth week of potty training, we decided to "gait him". We are using the approach outlined by Sarah Hamaker in response to the question entitled 23 month old Potty Training. I am now in my ninth day of using the gait. I am in the sixth week of potty training. My son is still uncooperative, though I know he knows what to do.
Take today, for example. Twice when I put him behind the gait, he stood at the gait and peed on it. Other times today, he has thrown the toilet and the couple of toys I've given him over the gait. Sometimes he screams behind the gait. Other times he plays nicely. Before lunch, though, he noticed his older siblings coming to the table. He sat down on his potty, peed, and started saying "Eat, eat." He knew that he could come out as soon as he had peed in the potty.
I read in Toilet Training without Tantrums that I could use the "Doctor's authority". My son would not know what this means. We have seen the doctor so infrequently, that he does not know what a doctor is. My son also does not respect the "potty bell's authority." He has often acknowledged it going off, but he does not comply with it, in general. I do know that he knows what it means though. Yesterday he heard the potty bell go off and went and sat on the potty by himself and filled it. (That is the only time he has responded to the potty bell correctly.)
I am going to persevere. I am certainly weary. Do you have any words of advice?
