An Overview of Elimination Communication/Going Diaper Free
Ok so we're not exactly diaper free just yet but this is one of the terminologies used for elimination communication (EC) which eventually should allow us to go mainly diaper free with our baby.
I came across this concept in one of the zero waste forums and it made a lot of sense to me. Again I will break the post into parts as, as usual I have more to say than I thought and don't want to make one post a novel. Post will be in 2 parts:
What is EC - general overview
How we started and how it's going for us, starting with a 2 month old
What is Elimination Communication (EC)?
EC is:
observing your baby for when they typically go to the bathroom
making a designated noise when they pee or poop so they learn to associate that noise with releasing/eliminating (we use "pssss" for pee and "err err" for poop) and then
holding them over something (a training potty, the sink, a toilet, a tupperware container etc) at those times and making the designated noise you have chosen signalling to the baby that they can go
Here is our baby on his potty. He particularly likes being in front of a mirror.
It can be done part time or full time but usually results in baby being fully potty trained by 12-18 months.
This is not potty training, it is just giving your baby the opportunity to eliminate outside of their nappy at the times they would typically go anyway. Babies are born with sphincter control and can hold it if they know they will be given the chance to go outside the nappy. It's also more natural when you think of it, no animal wants to soil themselves or their nests. If using nappies, babies will get used to soiling themselves which is why it takes so much effort to potty train later on but if they never get used to it there is essentially no potty training needed.
This technique is used widely in non-industrialised places like parts of India and Africa.
How Does It Work?
Using Timing, Signals, Cueing and Intuition
After a few weeks (or even days) you will begin to notice a pattern (timing) in when your baby goes to the bathroom and how they signal they are going. You may not even be aware you are noticing the pattern until you start to trying EC.
You can start from birth but also at any stage up until potty training, though the techniques differ for older babies and toddlers so you will have to read up on that separately if you want to give it a try. Check out youtube or Andrea Olson's website/book/channel for guidance.
Observation
In terms of observation, all babies are different so you will need to observe your baby for their particular timings and signals, but there are some similarities. We are lucky in a way that our baby takes noisy poops so we usually get some audible signal he is starting to go, that way we didn't need to observe without a nappy on but if your baby is silent you may need to leave them without a nappy for a day or two on something waterproof or that can get soiled (cloth nappy inserts, incontinence pads, wipeable change pad) so you can log and observe their particular timings and signals. This will only take a day or two for you to find a pattern.
Timing
Our baby for example typically goes as soon as they wake up in the morning, during feeds, after naps and sometimes around 1 hour after a feed. While still using nappies keep an eye out for your baby's patterns. You can keep a log for a day or two if you are struggling to see one but I found that after I tracked for half a day it just confirmed what I thought from passively observing in the first 7 weeks.
Update: Timings can change over time, while the above was true for our baby in the first few weeks, they have since changed and baby no longer poops when he wakes or during feeds, he's also consolidating his pees so he does larger pees in the potty instead of many smaller pees in his nappy. Be flexible and adjust to new patterns as they arise. Now we just give the baby a chance to use the potty on transitions (from sleep to wake and at normal nappy changing times).
Signals
Signals include facial expressions, grunting, squirming etc. Most babies have a very similar "poo face" (pursed lips, blank stares into the distance) and squirming. I'm not sure if our baby always passed gas before going but part of me feels like since we started EC he is trying to hold it and passing gas is a warning sign that he needs the potty.
Cueing
Cueing is using the noises mentioned earlier to indicate to the baby that it's ok to release. It's amazing how quickly they catch on what you are trying to do. I felt like ours caught on after the 1st time I held him on the potty and definitely releases on cue more and more as we've continued. Now a few months in we just need to sit him on the potty - no noise necessary - and he will go in a few minutes.
Intuition
Intuition is when you use your instinct to sense when baby needs to go that might be outside of their normal timings and signals. For example baby may usually wake from a nap, feed and then go but sometimes your intuition may tell you they need to go as soon as they wake up before they feed. Just give it a go and if nothing happens try again after the feed as normal.
What Equipment Is Needed?
While you don't technically need anything (as you can hold baby over existing things like toilets/sinks/tupperware), I found that a training potty is really useful as you can sit the baby on it and save your arms, since sometimes it takes 15-20 minutes for baby to finish. This is also small enough that is can be brought in the car or to places you are visiting so you can do EC while on long car journey's or visits too.
The other thing I read about was EC friendly clothing like leg warmers and shirts instead of vests and sleepers as that way you just have to undo the nappy and it makes dressing and undressing easier since you will be doing it multiple times a day. While I bought these things I found I was constantly pulling the shirt down and leggings up through the rest of the day that the sleepers and vests weren't that big of a deal. Also we aren't bringing the baby to the bathroom much more than when we were just changing nappies so it's not that big of a difference. As time has gone on, getting to know when to try the baby on the potty has become easier, now that we have a sleep schedule in place it makes it that bit easier and more predicable for the baby as he knows he will be given a "potty-tunity" after every nap.
Part 2 will cover how we started and how we are getting on including positions and how we do EC when out and about.
What do you think? Would you try EC with your baby or let others know about the possibility?
