Share how you got started ECing and EC tips

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[Sristi]

I started ec-ing when my dd was about two weeks old. I had heard about ec before I became pregnant and thought the idea made a lot of sense. Then I was in Nepal during my first trimester and saw lots and lots of babies without diapers, peeing and pooping on cue. I thought that was the neatest thing ever--it's still so amazing to me that babies can do that! Anyway, seeing all those ec babies in Nepal gave me the confidence to try it with my dd.
We're pretty laid-back; I started by taking her to the sink every time I changed her diaper. Soon she started peeing once in a while. If I really paid attention she could keep her diaper dry for most of the day. A couple weeks ago she started pooping once a day at the same time, and that made it really easy for me to catch it.
She's now eight weeks old and mostly poops on the potty (or rather in the sink!) and we're working on learning her pee cues so we can catch those too. EC has been fun for our family--I get most of her smiles when I'm holding her over the sink.

[Pantera25]

I gave EC a try during the first month mostly at night time as I noticed my baby would pee right after a feeding. I used a blanket that had a PUL layer underneath. Later I started using a wool blanket in case of any misses. I got more adventurous during the second month and have been practicing ever since.
Baby's signals have changed several times during the first year and I found good tips on ECing in the books.
It's been both fun and at times frustrating (when you have more misses then catches). I've been doing it full time and part time. I've tried stopping when baby started walking, but she's been showing more interest in it all by herself. DD (15 mo) learned to take her potty to the bathroom for a clean up. She'll also go to the potty and close the door on her way if she needs to poo-poo.
After reading "Once upon a potty", she starting waving bye bye to her pee and poo. So cute!
My husband didn't want to EC at first, but watching me and how easy it was, started picking up on the signals better then me and often takes DD on the potty himself.

[EcoConsciousMom]

I learned about Elimination Communication when taking classes to become a Preshool Teacher. We were told to write a review of an article and I found an article about a doctor in Africa. (Of course I can't find it now). He noticed that the women were standing in line for hours holding naked babies. The children never eliminated on their mother and he was curious so he asked a mother. The mother simply replied that she just knew when they had to go and stepped over to a nearby bush to let them.

This really inspired me. I was already into the idea of breast feeding and a more natural approach to parenting when I would become pregnant, this just fit right in.

I learned more about it and when I was pregnant I really got into research. After my daughter was born I tried to EC at 3 weeks and succeeded! I was really excited about catching a pee, it was my first time and my husband witnessed it. He was a little hesitant thinking it might not work. So I was double excited.

I just held her over a bowl and said "psst" for a cue to pee. It was when I was changing her diaper.

Then at 8 weeks we had to drive for over 2 hours in the car. She had us stop TWICE to pee! It was a little inconvenient, but loved it for bragging rights to our family.

Now she's 13 months old and rarely poops in her diaper, tells us with sign language when she needs to go and will use the toilet regularly. We are still a ways from not using diapers, but this really has helped.

Brianne

[catsndognbaby]

Originally Posted by checkyourbrakes I can't really have loads of accidents while we learn from each other, but I really want to start when she's born. I've been trying desperately to find a good cloth diaper option. I want one that will absorb a pee but let me know immediately that she's going. The CDs out these days are as absorbent as disposables and have covers built in to prevent leaks- but this would leave me clueless when she pees. I'm pretty sensitive, I plan to BW and offer her potty opportunities frequently, so I think we'll get into the flow fairly quickly, but I don't know what sort of diaper to buy in advance. The thing I don't like about prefolds is that they aren't at all fitted, and they seem like they'll be more work to get in and out of than the velcro or snap AIOs. I saw one contour that seemed like a possible solution. I wish I could just find cloth training pants that would fit a NB. I wouldn't mind buying multiple sizes. Nature Babycare looks great- too bad the smallest size won't fit till she's nearly 9mo old from what I'm reading. Any suggestions?

I have had this same question myself. I work part time and so I've had to do a mix of ECing and CDing with my 2 little ones. Here's the conclusion I've come to.... when you are around the house and are able to be watching/holding her frequently, I would go with prefolds or plain fitted diapers (Goodmama or Motherease one size are good examples of adjustable fitteds). Thinner fitteds and prefolds will allow you to feel when she is going, and they are good for one catch. The thing about plain fitteds is that they are not waterproof (they don't have a PUL outside like AIOs do.... so if you want to go with fitteds, then get yourself a couple covers (thirsties are good) for those times like car rides or if someone else is watching her. Or you could get a few pocket diapers that are more like disposables for those times when you're not able to watch her and you need her to stay dry.

Honestly, the prefolds are not really that much work- get yourself one of those prefold bands or make one (it looks like a giant scrunchie) to put around baby's waist. Then when she needs to go, you just pull the prefold down and let her go and then tuck it back into place. And if there's an accident, you're still ok.... just change the prefold. If you get some inserts, they can work in a similar way- just put the elastic prefold band around her to hold it in place. For those first few months before she becomes mobile, I would get some waterproof mats or large changing pads (you can usually find them for fairly cheap at thrift stores/ yardsales. Lay her down on one of those with a prefold underneath her. If you have a miss, it's ok- just change the prefold. Also get some extra containers to have handy, so you're not having to rush all over the house with a baby that has to go, hunting for the little potty.

I have a friend who ECs her babies too... and she made herself some training panties for when they were about a year old... you can just get some extra absorbancy material and sew it into regular 2T panties.... the extra cushion ends up making the panties seem smaller than 2T.... I'm sure you could do the same with 12 mo panties if you could find them. There may be some available online too. idk.

Hope this helps. There's no right or wrong way of doing EC... just stay relaxed and find a groove that works for you. You may have friends or family that don't understand why you are ECing, but the reward comes in those precious moments when you connect with your baby. Good luck!

[Mom2jandb]

I've found Tinkle Traps (a prefold converted to a fitted, similar to a contour) work well for knowing right away if there's been an "accident", just leave out the optional soaker. You can get them with no closure (use a snappi) or with snaps or aplix. I find them to be quick and easy on/off. And they are affordable too

[Indiana Mom]

Thanks for sharing! I did the same thing starting around 3 months. Now at 10 months he uses the potty a bulk of the time...hence, we go through less diapers per day and therefor lest laundry!

[Bosky]

I'd heard of EC but with all the intensity of the first few weeks, didn't really look into it until DD was a couple of months old. We really started right around 3 mths, when she had a terrible diaper "rash" (turned out to be a reaction to our laundry detergent) that was so painful she screamed when I tried to put on her diaper. Good time for going diaper-free lol. It took a couple of days but then I figured out she liked to go while standing up -- I cue'd her halfheartedly while she was standing in my lap over a towel, and she went! I was giddy. I think she was, too. Like, yeah mom, you finally get it!

From near the beginning I caught most of her poo's. Pee's were harder, she didn't really signal at all that I could see, but I started to get a sense of when she had to go. (No "psychic pees" yet, but I did learn that I should trust my intuition, not the clock.)

Even after switching to a clean-rinsing detergent and learning that dairy was off-limits (another rash trigger) she still had trouble with diaper rashes, especially at nights, even doing changes at night. If she sat in a wet diaper for even a few minutes her skin would start to turn red. So at 5 mths I figured I could do away with diapers at night, just lay her on a prefold with a layer of waterproof fabric beneath, and if she pee'd, she pee'd, and if she didn't, I thought I could cue her while she lay there. Well, she didn't want any of that, she didn't want to pee laying down, cued or not. I took to holding her over the edge of the diaper pail by the bed and cueing her -- it worked! I had a 5 mth old who went all night w/o diapers. The only times she wet the bed were on rare occasions when she'd had an especially hard day or wasn't feeling well. Mornings were still hard, though, because she'd have to go several (some days 5 +) times in the space of the first hour or so after waking... It's just hard to catch all those pees!

And we had kind of a rough patch between oh 6-8 mths or so. Previously she would hold it for at least a few moments and fuss a bit before going in the carriers, or in my lap. But for several weeks it was pretty, well, "hit or miss." I'd offer the potty all the time but she's squawk at me sometimes for doing it, then go five minutes later. (Laugh it off!) She'd go wherever she happened to be, without any warning. We learned to laugh it off and keep a prefold diaper under her as much as possible. I still didn't like putting diapers ON her and pretty much saved that for out of the house. Just kept her naked-bottomed but over a prefold most of the rest of the time.

Then right around the 8 mth mark, it's like something clicked for her. All of a sudden she was holding it, and fussing when she needed to go. If I put her on the potty and she squawked at me or squirmed to get off, it was because she really didn't have to go. Even the early morning pee-fests came under control. She's past 9 mths now and we go days and days without "misses" at all, and when they do happen it's usually because she was clearly letting me know but I didn't listen. I don't bother to diaper her out of the house any more, there's really no use, she hates going in the diaper, and with the hot weather we've been having she started to get red skin even in a DRY diaper. We went all day at a local historical attraction recently. She still doesn't do public restrooms well (who does?!) so I bring a little potty with us everywhere. *shrug* It's better than diapers!

Tips: Chill out. Get peed on and laugh at it. If you're feeling pressured or frustrated, you're doing it wrong and need to take a step back and gain some objectivity. Really, that's the ONLY way to do it wrong. So long as there's no pressure, everything else will sort itself out if you just keep trying. Second tip: Go ahead and try it if you're still on the fence. If you follow tip #1, there is absolutely no harm that can come from trying it, and I promise it's easier and less intimidating than it seems. I wish I'd got started sooner, just to have avoided those nasty rashes I put her through.

Tip #3: Prefolds. Well, they worked really, really well for me, anyway. Prefolds in the bottom of the carriers, prefolds on our laps. One thing that for us was a prefold in the bottom of the potty when spills are a concern -- prefold soaks up the mess, no spills. (You can even use them for multiple pees so you don't have to clean the potty out every single time. Yeah, I did that, and I don't feel ashamed... At least she wasn't SITTING IN IT!) Prefolds everywhere. Love them.

[Mom2jandb]

Originally Posted by Bosky I'd heard of EC but with all the intensity of the first few weeks, didn't really look into it until DD was a couple of months old. We really started right around 3 mths, when she had a terrible diaper "rash" (turned out to be a reaction to our laundry detergent) that was so painful she screamed when I tried to put on her diaper. Good time for going diaper-free lol. It took a couple of days but then I figured out she liked to go while standing up -- I cue'd her halfheartedly while she was standing in my lap over a towel, and she went! I was giddy. I think she was, too. Like, yeah mom, you finally get it! From near the beginning I caught most of her poo's. Pee's were harder, she didn't really signal at all that I could see, but I started to get a sense of when she had to go. (No "psychic pees" yet, but I did learn that I should trust my intuition, not the clock.) Even after switching to a clean-rinsing detergent and learning that dairy was off-limits (another rash trigger) she still had trouble with diaper rashes, especially at nights, even doing changes at night. If she sat in a wet diaper for even a few minutes her skin would start to turn red. So at 5 mths I figured I could do away with diapers at night, just lay her on a prefold with a layer of waterproof fabric beneath, and if she pee'd, she pee'd, and if she didn't, I thought I could cue her while she lay there. Well, she didn't want any of that, she didn't want to pee laying down, cued or not. I took to holding her over the edge of the diaper pail by the bed and cueing her -- it worked! I had a 5 mth old who went all night w/o diapers. The only times she wet the bed were on rare occasions when she'd had an especially hard day or wasn't feeling well. Mornings were still hard, though, because she'd have to go several (some days 5 +) times in the space of the first hour or so after waking... It's just hard to catch all those pees! And we had kind of a rough patch between oh 6-8 mths or so. Previously she would hold it for at least a few moments and fuss a bit before going in the carriers, or in my lap. But for several weeks it was pretty, well, "hit or miss." I'd offer the potty all the time but she's squawk at me sometimes for doing it, then go five minutes later. (Laugh it off!) She'd go wherever she happened to be, without any warning. We learned to laugh it off and keep a prefold diaper under her as much as possible. I still didn't like putting diapers ON her and pretty much saved that for out of the house. Just kept her naked-bottomed but over a prefold most of the rest of the time. Then right around the 8 mth mark, it's like something clicked for her. All of a sudden she was holding it, and fussing when she needed to go. If I put her on the potty and she squawked at me or squirmed to get off, it was because she really didn't have to go. Even the early morning pee-fests came under control. She's past 9 mths now and we go days and days without "misses" at all, and when they do happen it's usually because she was clearly letting me know but I didn't listen. I don't bother to diaper her out of the house any more, there's really no use, she hates going in the diaper, and with the hot weather we've been having she started to get red skin even in a DRY diaper. We went all day at a local historical attraction recently. She still doesn't do public restrooms well (who does?!) so I bring a little potty with us everywhere. *shrug* It's better than diapers! Tips: Chill out. Get peed on and laugh at it. If you're feeling pressured or frustrated, you're doing it wrong and need to take a step back and gain some objectivity. Really, that's the ONLY way to do it wrong. So long as there's no pressure, everything else will sort itself out if you just keep trying. Second tip: Go ahead and try it if you're still on the fence. If you follow tip #1, there is absolutely no harm that can come from trying it, and I promise it's easier and less intimidating than it seems. I wish I'd got started sooner, just to have avoided those nasty rashes I put her through. Tip #3: Prefolds. Well, they worked really, really well for me, anyway. Prefolds in the bottom of the carriers, prefolds on our laps. One thing that for us was a prefold in the bottom of the potty when spills are a concern -- prefold soaks up the mess, no spills. (You can even use them for multiple pees so you don't have to clean the potty out every single time. Yeah, I did that, and I don't feel ashamed... At least she wasn't SITTING IN IT!) Prefolds everywhere. Love them.

Great post! Right on with the tips too

[strongwoman]

Washing diapers every other day has driven me to EC! Spending $ on diapers, both disposable and cloth, has driven me to EC! Don't get me wrong, I love cloth diapers, especially the cotton fitteds, but I'm just tired of having to wash diapers all the time, especially since I still have another toddler (20 months) still in diapers. I just started EC-ing with my almost 1 month old and it's been going pretty well so far. Most of the time I can predict his bo-bo (poops) time and sometimes I can catch his pee-pees but it's a little rough since I have two other little ones running about. Best time for me to catch is in the middle of the night, when no one is there to call on me I like the minimalist approach of using pre-folds- cheap and easy to clean. I'm hoping that things get easier in time for us! And looking forward to hearing about other people's successes and tips in this forum!