Elimination Communication: The Diaper Free Baby, Part 1

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Back in December, I ran a giveaway for the book The Diaper Free Baby, by Christine Gross-Loh. Since Clark was born I’ve been putting him over the potty and allowing diaper free time at different times of the day. We are only doing it part time as we also use Bum Genius cloth diapers especially at night (which is the area we haven’t tackled). I have quite a few chux pads left over from birth so I’ve been using those as a shield when Clark is diaper free. I’m learning Clark’s cues and it’s very satisfying when we catch him expelling. Clark enjoys his diaper free time – he seems to be much happier and comfortable when he is.

Tristan is learning to use the potty and is very intrigued watching his baby brother use the potty. I think it gives him inspiration. Tristan has cloth trainers and wears them when he’s not nude. I’ve enjoyed ECing with Clark and Tristan so far and am looking forward to the day we are no longer reliant on diapers!!! I plan to share our experience along the way but for now I give you an interview from the author who writes about elimination communication.

Christine Gross-Loh, is the author of The Diaper Free Baby- The Natural Toilet Training Alternative. She is a mother of 3 EC’d children and blogs at: http://origamimommy.typepad.com

La Mama Naturale asks:

What advice do you have for a new mom who wants to try EC’ing?

Just give it a try. If you find the idea of EC daunting, take baby
steps. Aim to get in tune with your baby and to get to know his
rhythms, rather than to try to get every catch in a potty or toilet.
Depending on age, there are some predictable times of day when a baby
might eliminate, such as soon after awakening from sleep or during or
right after a nursing session. Take the diaper off or lay your baby in
an open diaper, observe your baby’s patterns, and go from there.
Don’t fret about misses. Whenever I had a miss with one of my babies,
I thought of it as a learning experience – an opportunity to learn
more about my little one. EC is about so much more than just
elimination. Babies are growing and changing quickly; I think EC helps
parents to tune in to their babies and sharpen their ability to stay
flexible and connected – important skills that stay with them as their
children grow older.

What are the benefits of EC?

There are ever so many! First of all, there are many practical
benefits. The most obvious is being able to use fewer diapers (if
any). This saves you money if you are using disposables and reduces
laundry for cloth diaper users. Also, many parents actually find clean-
up easier if baby eliminates in a potty or toilet instead of a diaper.

There are health benefits too – your baby stays clean and dry, you
have fewer incidences of diaper rash, and the transition to full
toilet independence is usually smoother because your baby has remained
aware of his bodily functions; using the toilet is something he takes
for granted.

Finally, there are emotional benefits – parents love knowing they are
able to read their baby’s cues about elimination in the same way that
they learn to read his cues about hunger or fatigue, and baby learns
to trust that his parents will respond to his nonverbal cues in this
way.

What tips do you have to EC a toddler?

If you are new to EC, your baby needs to regain physical awareness of
his bodily functions – you can have him go diaper-free for a short
time daily so he can learn what it feels like to eliminate outside of
a diaper. If your baby has been EC’ed since infancy, the transition to
toilet independence is a lot of fun. You can expect that you may run
into some “potty pauses” (times when your baby is less interested in
using the potty) when your baby is going through a milestone. But at
the same time a toddler’s new abilities to stand, walk, communicate
more clearly, and to sit down on a potty by himself get him excited
about pottying. Toddlers are keenly interested in what they see older
kids and adults doing, so communicating about toileting and letting
them imitate you is very helpful. Get them involved as much as they
can – they love using toilet paper and washing hands.

Visit DiaperFreeBaby at http://www.diaperfreebaby.org

Stay tuned for Part 2!