Bear with me for a minute…

It’s not really potty training. At least, I don’t think so. I have to admit that Elimination Communication is the only method I know anything about. I came across the idea while reading Real Food for Mother and Baby. Diaper Free was one of the books listed in the resources section. Naturally, I was intrigued. So I got the book and tore through it. It ended up making a lot of sense to me.

Basically, the idea is that it’s a gentle way of taking advantage of the fact that people are born continent. Years of diapering and getting used to sitting in poop and pee actually result in a disconnect from this basic function. As a result, potty training at the more typical age is harder and ends up being focused on holding it in. Elimination Communication (EC) is exactly what it sounds like: talking about going to the bathroom. It’s paying attention to the signals your baby is already giving you (it’s sometimes so obvious that “poop face” is a pretty commonly understood thing) and responding to them. It’s also communicating to your baby about using the toilet and teaching him how to pay attention to and become comfortable with his own body. The emphasis is on opportunities and cueing so that the baby learns to pee or poop when he wants to as opposed to when he has to. The immediate benefits are a closer bond between the two of you and knowing that your baby isn’t sitting in his own waste. The longer term benefits are a reduction in diaper use and possible earlier “toilet independence” (i.e. being toilet trained).

We’ve been at it for a few weeks now, and I’d say it’s going well. Abhi seems to really like it and is clearly more comfortable and sensitive to his bodily functions. I’ll keep you posted on how it goes. Who knows…maybe you’ll end up trying it yourself.