I started potty training my now toddler ever since she started solids– (elimination communication) but I had to stop at the age of 9 months because of some circumstances. That was my biggest mistake ever. 

My daughter got used to diapers again and she refused to go to the potty when I was ready to start over. She knew what potty was and she would let me know every time she did a wee or a poo in her nappy, but she didn’t want to sit on the potty. 

She eventually went to the big toilet after I took some time to focus on potty training her. But I decided that for my second baby I would use the Elimination Communication method again and stick to it. 

What is Elimination Communication?

 Elimination Communication or EC as it’s referred to is basically potty training a baby from a young age by learning about your baby’s body signs and cues to eliminate waste. Some people like to do it from birth but I preferred doing it when my baby started solids at 6 months. 

You might feel surprised to learn that you can potty train your baby from such a young age. but the fact is, people have been doing it for ages. And some cultures are still doing it now because it’s the norm for them.

 Before disposable diapers became a thing, people would potty train their babies as soon as they could sit to reduce the workload of washing cloth diapers. 

So how on earth would a baby know how to go to the toilet? It’s easy. Babies resist having a dirty nappy and if you look closely at your baby, you’ll notice that she starts crying as soon as she wets her nappy. 

Babies can communicate their needs with us from a young age. Just take a moment to observe your baby. Have you noticed that your baby can let you know when she’s hungry? Or when she’s ready for a nap? Or when she’s teething or having a growth spurt? Exactly!

 How did you learn about all of this? By observing her behavior and building that connection between you and her. Someone else wouldn’t know what’s happening to your baby. but as her mother, you know exactly what’s going on. You can confidently say: “she just needs a nap” or “she just wants her milk” right? 

It’s the same thing when it comes to Elimination Communication, you’re building that connection and you’re learning your baby’s language. Or, you are teaching her how to talk by teaching her sign language. Yes that’s right! You can use sign language to talk to your baby. And guess what? She’ll respond by signing back. How cool! 

Some families choose to do EC full time which means that they even potty during the night time and they go diaper free. And some families still use diapers and don’t potty at night. You choose what’s best for your family. I personally still use cloth diapers during the day alongside EC and I don’t do EC during nighttime. 

How do you start with Elimination Communication?

To start off with EC elimination communication you need:

•   the equipment: 

A potty(choose a small size potty, they’re widely available online or in-store)

, a waterproof mat and some tiny undies ( if you’re going diaper-free).  

• Observe your baby

Lay your baby diaper free on a mat and observe her cues. Learn her facial expressions when she does her wee or poo. Babies often eliminate shortly after they wake up or have a feed. Take advantage of those moments and take her to the potty.

• Introduce your signs 

 When she starts peeing or pooping, use your sign that you created or simply use baby sign language for potty. When she gets used to that sign she will start using it too. This is the sign that I used for my baby just to give you an idea. 

(Insert video)

 And you can also make a sound like “psssss” for pee or “a-ah” for poop so that she can associate the sound with peeing and pooping whenever you take her potty. And she will also start using those sounds to let you know she needs to go once she starts talking. 

• Keep the potty nearby

Choose a specific place around the house to place the potty and make it you baby’s “toilet station” if you’re not planning to do EC full time.if you’re planning to do EC elimination communication full time, then I recommend that you place a potty in every room that you know you use quite often. That way, there’s always a potty available closeby. 

  ECing in public spaces:

How to respond when someone comments negativity about EC

Will I have to buy diapers at all when I do EC elimination communication?

It really depends on if you’re planning on doing elimination communication full-time or part-time. If you’re going to do EC full time then you might not need to buy diapers quite often. 

I do recommend that you keep some diapers available at your house in case of an emergency. Cloth diapers are often a great option if you want to go to zero waste. But if you’re planning on doing elimination communication part-time, then you’ll need to either use cloth diapers or purchase disposable diapers to use when your baby goes to sleep or when you’re outside. 

What are the advantages of EC elimination communication?

Elimination Communication has so many benefits some of them are: 

• It’s better for the planet

Elimination Communication is a great way to reduce pollution. And it’s also good for your wallet. 

• It’s better for you and them in the long run

Potty training a baby is much easier than potty training a toddler. Because they can’t move as much, you’re in control of the situation. And also because they will get used to going to the potty at such a young age, they won’t mind going when they’re older. Because that’s what they have been doing they’re whole life. 

• It’s a great way to bond

Creating a way to communicate with your child is such a great experience and such a great opportunity to bond and establish a strong relationship between you two. 

• It’s cleaner

Your baby won’t have to sit on her dirt which means fewer chances of developing diaper rash. 

• It boosts your baby’s confidence

Your baby will gain self-esteem when she knows that she can communicate her basic needs and gets a response. She’ll feel valued and able to talk to her parents at such a young age which I think is amazing.

What are the disadvantages of EC elimination communication?

Some of the elimination communication disadvantages are:

• It can be time consuming

When you start with Elimination Communication, it can take a big chunk of your time until you get used to your baby’s waste elimination pattern. 

• It can be messy at first

as you and your baby start elimination communication you’ll be having some accidents. But once you get the hang of it, it’ll become much more manageable.

• It can feel lonely

Because elimination communication isn’t welcomed by so many people, you may face criticism from family and friends. People will try to discourage you and put you down. But you can always join EC communities on Facebook groups and get the support you need and deserve. 

What other moms have to say about EC elimination communication.

Nancy said:

EC was probably the best parenting decision I’ve made in the first year. (Take that with a grain of salt — there aren’t too many parenting decisions to be made in the baby’s first year:)) 

Besides the fact that it saved us a ton in diaper costs, it normalized communicating with the kiddo early on, so we all (both us and the baby) learned a lot of nonverbal communication techniques.

The result of EC for us was early potty training. DD became completely potty trained at 13 months. DS took longer, about 18-20 months, and even then it was mostly pee accidents. So by the time they reached their horrible twos and rebellious threes they were already out of diapers. Considering just how difficult my kids were during their toddlerhood, we totally dodged a bullet there:D

Another mom shared her opinion and said

It was frustrating at first because I didn’t know what I was doing, and I didn’t know how to communicate with my baby about elimination.  Oddly enough, after I gave up, I started seeing her cues.  I just hadn’t realized what they were because I hadn’t really known what to look for before.  I had a really hard time making heads or tails of the written instructions I read online, but seeing videos of other people pottying their babies was really helpful, and in a moment I could suddenly see lots of things I was doing wrong.  Anyway, in the end my baby was mostly out of diapers by 14 months, and fully out of daytime diapers by 22 months (daycare really dragged their feet on allowing her to ditch diapers even though she didn’t wear them at home), and while that wasn’t as early as some of the stories you read about, it was very gratifying to communicate with her about this when she was little, and to help her learn to be independent as she grew.  It was truly one of my favourite parts of that age (started at 5 months, was mostly done at home at 18 months).  I am really looking forward to ECing my next baby.  I think it will be a lot easier the second time around since I’ll know what I am doing this time.  I was even able to potty my friend’s baby when he was 2 weeks old and she let me babysit him… even though he was an unfamiliar baby to me, I knew what to do and what to expect, and for babies, EC is really instinctual.  (Some mamas experience EC as being instinctual too, but I sure didn’t.  I don’t know if I was overthinking it or what, but I figured it out eventually anyway.)