Tag: Infant Potty Training

Elimination Communication, Potty Independence, Potty Training

Is EC A Lot Of Work?

ruthanndrummond

This is a common question I get. Isn’t practicing Elimination Communication really hard? Doesn’t it take a lot of time? Isn’t it exhausting? Doesn’t your whole life then revolve around your baby’s toileting needs?

First off, EC isn’t hard, parenting is! EC is just another tool in the parenting repertoire. It’s goal is to enhance the communication between parents and babies 0-18mth, specifically around toileting needs, but this enhanced communication and attentiveness tends to pour over into other interactions, and ECing parents often feel more attuned to their babies because of it. Being more in sync with your baby actually makes parenting a lot easier, in both the short and long term! Are there frustrating times when you practice EC? Yes. Will it always make sense? Nope. But once you establish an EC practice in your home and it becomes normalized as part of your life, it’s not hard, it’s just routine. And in the long run, it’s a routine that makes your life much easier!

In terms of the amount of time it takes, or the “extra work” it is, that’s all a matter of perspective. Does it take a lot of time to take a baby to the potty several times a day? Perhaps. But so does changing that same baby’s poopy diaper, and I can guarantee a potty success is more fun for both of you! Does an EC family spend more time doing toileting-related things? In the short-term, absolutely. But that same family is much less likely to be changing the diapers of their 3 year old when the time comes. They are also less likely to experience power struggles over potty training that can be emotionally taxing on everyone. And they are much more likely to have a toilet independent child between the ages of 18mth and 2.5years, eliminating a tonne of diaper waste, and/or drastically reducing the laundry for cloth diapers. When people tell me that they couldn’t even think about EC because it seems like so much work, my response is to say that I couldn’t think of having to change diapers on an older toddler or preschooler and going through a later-age potty training process because that THAT seems like a lot of work and completely exhausting. Give me a toddler out of diapers and an organic path to toilet independence without power struggles any day!

All parents do a lot of work. All parents do a lot of work surrounding toileting. It’s how we distribute that work that is different. All it is, is a shift in perspective.

Those who believe that EC takes over your life, and all you ever do is think about pottying are mistaken. EC can be practiced full-time, part-time or even casually, and the process is beneficial no matter which path you choose. In fact, it is often the case that families practicing part-time have toddlers out of diapers sooner than those practicing full-time, because they tend to give their kids more room to breathe in the process, which removes any [unintended] pressures. EC also doesn’t mean you have naked babies all the time who pee on the floor. Diaper free time every day has been shown to be beneficial to all babies, but ECing families almost always use a backup of some kind, and usually that’s a diaper. EC isn’t reserved for crazy people or toileting extremists – almost anyone can practice it within their life context without it becoming overwhelming, weird, or unsanitary!

Elimination Communication, Potty Independence, Potty Training

Beginning the Journey to a Potty Independent Child

ruthanndrummond

I am so excited to be in a position to helpEC at 4wks families embark on their own journeys to potty independence! My own family’s adventure began a little over three years ago, when my first son was 2 weeks old. I had stumbled across information on Elimination Communication while researching diaper consumption, and was instantly fascinated by the idea. Everyone I spoke to thought I was completely crazy when I would talk with enthusiasm about babies who used potties from birth, and when I became pregnant and was obviously determined to give it a try, I knew that they secretly thought I would fail and give it up.

Then, on my first day of trying it out, at only 2 weeks old, I caught our first pee, and was hooked! At 11mth we changed our last-ever poopy diaper, and at 14mth we packed away IMG_3144 pickdaytime diapers for good. Although we hit some pretty rough (so, so rough!) bumps on the road, our little guy was completely potty trained at 21mth.

I watched as my new mom friends struggled with the idea of potty training, especially at a young age. It was evident that societal pressure was telling them that it was “too early” to start, and that somehow their child (probably around 3 years old) would show magical “signs of readiness,” which would be their cue to start. Because of these inhibitions, I watched parents experience anxiety over whether or not their child would be potty trained in time for kindergarten, because they were being told their children weren’t “ready yet.” And frankly, it was awful to watch. It was awful for the children to be denied the opportunity to take control of their own hygiene needs, and it was awful for the parents to experience so much fear, anxiety, and guilt over the potty training process. I knew I had to help, and I completed the Go Diaper Free Certified Coach Training Program so that I would have the tools to do so.

Now I have worked with newborn babies beginning their Elimination Communication journey, with young toddlers who are potty training much earlier than the societal norm, and with preschoolers who didn’t start until after their third birthday. No matter the age, I am so proud to help babies and children (and their families) reach toilet independence.

So, when’s the right time to start? That depends entirely on potty indpendentyou! Your child is ready when you are ready, whether at 1 day old or at 3+yrs. No one’s journey is in any way invalid, and no one should ever experience guilt, fear, or anxiety over their child’s potty learning. Parenting is hard enough already, without adding on that stress!

In my [extremely biased!] opinion, I think the best time to start is NOW, whatever the age of your child. It is never too early (or too late!) to help a child to recognize their own bodily signals and to teach them to eliminate in potties and toilets, rather than soiling themselves. This can be done either through Elimination Communication (for babies 0-18mth), potty training (toddlers and preschoolers 18mth+), or a combination of both. If you, as a parent, are feeling ready (and no worries if you aren’t – there’s a lot of cultural conditioning that parents have to combat here!), this journey can start NOW!