My son was almost five before he was potty trained. When he started school and was around other kids and saw what they were doing he was totally potty trained in about 2 weeks. Maybe let him actually see the process. I know my son learns by seeing.

So sorry to hear all that. The same ped that missed her birth defect also told me time and again not to worry about my daughter's delays because all kids developed differently. He was gone one day and I spoke to the nurse practitioner instead, and she referred me to Early Childhood Intervention, a state program we have here in Texas. They made an appointment to come out and evaluate her. Low and behold she was delayed in all areas and needed PT, OT, and ST. It wasn't until I took her to a developmental ped that we got the official diagnosis. And in the midst of all this she was struggling with her feet which we later found out was related to her tethered cord. Never let anyone tell you what they think they know about your child. NO ONE knows your child like you do, and you will have to be your child's advocate for years to come - with doctors and school and other children and the list goes on. I don't even know you but I am SO MAD at your pediatrician! Hugs!

Mooncaller, thank you so very much for your response and congrats! Unfortunately, we have had our Jeremy in Head Start and day care for almost a year now and being around the other kids hasn't helped with the potty issues at all. He still refuses.

That is so terrible that he missed her marker. I can relate to your complaint though, my ped kept telling me my son's behaviors were "normal" and that I was being over-reactive to "normal" toddler issues! I really wish someone could tell me exactly what "normal" is?! I begged, argued, complained, whined and did everything I could for over 11 months before I finally got him to send us to a speech therapist. It was the SP that called him and said there were several red flags for autism present and something needed to be done. Suddenly I got called into the peds office for a developmental assessment! When I asked why now, I was told that the behaviors were still what he (the ped) considered "normal" but he (suddenly) wanted to be thorough.
Even after getting the assessment done by a child psychologist, which showed very high (90-97) T-Scores, I have had to fight and beg for a referral to a developmental ped. Luckily I finally got one and we go the day after my son's 4th birthday, next month. My son stopped talking at 30 months.

How horrible that you are limited to that ped because of Medicaid. I wish you had more options. My daughter's ped, who is one of the most highly recommended ped's in our area, completely disregarded my developmental concerns and MISSED a physical marker for her tethered spinal cord. It is so maddening when ped's don't listen to mothers or take our concerns seriously! At the end of the day, many doctors are ignorant about the MANY medical implications of autism, and it's up to the parents to advocate for our kids and be the squeaky wheel that gets the oil. Perhaps if you are insistent and tell him straight out you'd like the opinion of a specialist you could get a referral. A urologist may be more knowledgeable and helpful. Our urologist gave us al kinds of ideas for a potty training regimen and really partnered with us.