bowel movements

My granddaughter has been peeing in the toilet for 5 months now. She will not have a bowel movement in the toilet. She is 31/2. She will hold it at one point she was so constipated from holding it that we had to go to the ER. She will not go in her big girl panties so will actually go get a pull up and change into it to have a BM. We have tried putting her on the toilet as soon as she says she has to go but all she does is cry and scream and will not go.We haven't pushed the issue as much as to take away the pull ups because we were afraid she would get constipated again but this is getting old.

[Kevin Kennedy, Ph.D.]

Please be patient and supportive. It sounds like you are putting too much pressure on her. She's avoiding what she imagines will be a painful experience and this will take time to resolve itself. She might require a regimen of stool softener, but don't do that on your own - confer with her pediatrician about it. She's not far from completing toilet trainig but needs abit more time.