Today I went to a seminar about elimination communication at the local natural food market. I had been planning to start ‘EC’ with Archer after doing some reading and seeing a friend successfully go diaper free with her little girl. For us, it seems like a natural option. After the talk today, I decided that we are ready to start. Hearing this mother’s experience about going diaper free with her 3 children, helped me to realize that Archer and I have already been on our way to being diaper free. I’ve been picking up on his cues, and have now found other signs that I didn’t see as cues before, but now am aware. I have had the ‘phantom pee’ sensation, I have experienced him being fussy in the evenings and not becoming satisfied with eating, sleeping, rocking, walking, or anything, and I have also been experiencing a sort of ‘disturbed nursing’ where he nurses, stops, nurses some more, but never really settles down to enjoy his meal. All these signs have been Archer trying to tell me he needs to potty. So, tonight I successfully picked up on a few cues, and have pottied him 3 times already!

One thing that encouraged me today was when the speaker was talking about the 3 things that young babies do–eat, sleep, poop. So, if they aren’t satisfied with eating or sleeping, your next option is the potty. Babies are born with the ability to voluntarily eliminate, and they naturally do not enjoy sitting in their own pee and poop. What we do is train babies to get used to sitting in their pee, and then at the age society has chosen to be the time to start using the potty, we are essentially telling them to un-learn what we have been teaching them since they were born. I think it will be easier using EC than potty training my 2 year old. And, after becoming aware of the fact that babies can control their bowels and would prefer to not sit in them, I don’t feel right about letting Archer sit in his wet diaper. I would much rather respond to his needs by letting him potty somewhere other than in his pants.

In other cultures using EC is the norm. Our 3 and 4 year olds running around in pull-ups is ridiculous to mothers in many other counties. Of course, in third world countries this is what they do and have always done. They wear their babies and are close enough with them to pick up on their cues for when they need to eat or potty. Fortunately, I am able to stay at home with Archer. I’ll have the time to bond with him and respond to his elimination needs.

To me, this is just another way to give my son everything he needs to be happy and healthy.

1. Laurie Says:
   January 6th, 2010 at 6:43 pm

   Yay, so glad you attended the seminar! We used infant pottying (ec) with our third and enjoyed it very much, were delighted to start and finish sooner than we had with traditional delayed toilet learning. That was 30 years ago and now our grandchild is using infant poty training too :-))

   Here are a few links for anyone wanting to read up on the practice:
   http://www.TimL.com/ipt
   http://www.pottywhisperer.com

   Resources include the “Infant Potty Training” book and “Potty Whispering” DVD.

   Thanks for writing about this topic in your blog.

2. Mama Kate Says:
   January 7th, 2010 at 8:33 am

   Thanks for including those resources.

   We started out great with EC, but now that my son is almost 11 months and busier than ever, pottying has been the last thing he wants to do. So, we are back to diapers. I’ll still take him after naps and overnight, but while he’s up and moving around, he refuses the potty. It’s pretty discouraging, because I really wanted this to work for us, and I really felt strongly about avoiding diapers. But, when warmer weather comes back I plan to try the potty a bit more. It’s much easier to do EC with the warm weather. You don’t have to tear off so many clothes to go potty. Hopefully the time gap won’t be a big deal. We will have to see.

3. Laurie Says:
   January 12th, 2010 at 5:24 pm

   That’s what I call a potty pause and it is fairly common. He is busy learning and doing new things. His interest will return. In the meantime, continue to offer him the potty a few times a day, at the most likely times (like you have done), such as when he wakes up and/or in relation to meals. He won’t forget what he learned in the past. He just needs time to work on other things.

   You can also try using different locations, potties and a child’s toilet seat on the toilet. Perhaps he’ll be interested in the whole toileting routine (lift the lid, place the seat, “go” in toilet, flush, wash hands). Reserve a few favorite books and toys
   for potty time only.

   Cheers