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will immediately start to go then), simply cue her right away as she finishes. Repeated experiences cueing her while she is going will strengthen her associations among the sensation of going, the sound you make, and her position. It is particularly helpful during the newborn in-arms phase for you to hold your baby without actually fastening a diaper on her, especially at times you know she may be likely to go (such as after she wakes up or while nursing). If she is lying in your arms with a loose, unfastened disposable or cloth diaper underneath her bottom or tucked between her legs, you’ll immediately be able to tell when she is going to the bathroom and can cue her by making the cue sound you’ve chosen.

Parents Speak About Starting to EC a Newborn:

On the day my baby Helen was born, she lay in my arms all day wrapped in a receiving blanket with prefolds under her bottom. The prefolds were loosely in place, and if I ever thought she needed to potty or if she were going, I’d cue her with a sound while trying to get comfortable holding her in a good position.

—KEILA, MOM TO JANE, 27 MONTHS, AND HELEN, 8 MONTHS

We bought a few Tupperware bowls before she was born. Basically, we’d take her diaper off and put her over the pot right before a diaper change. We knew her patterns; she always pees right after she wakes up, so we often tried after naps.

—HEIDI, MOM TO RUBY, 5 WEEKS OLD

A two-week-old newborn held over a cloth diaper for an “observation” period. An open cloth or disposable diaper makes it easy to observe and quickly cue baby when she’s going to the bathroom.

We started with both children from birth. EC’ing such a small baby is just pure fun. Anybody who holds such a tiny being and sees it relax and pee and smile will experience that.

—BIRGIT, MOM TO JOSCH, 4, AND NELLY, 2

POSITIONING A NEWBORN

I really like to encourage parents to start off small, although I completely applaud those of you who are motivated to do this throughout the day as often as you can. Any degree of EC is a really wonderful thing for your baby. There are many different ways you can do this, and you can experiment with what works for your family. You can decide on periods of diaper-free time here or there, or you can hold your baby over a Potty Bowl, container, or toilet after a diaper change or before a bath. There are many parents who only use EC for bowel movements because they are so obvious. In fact, a lot of parents I’ve met only catch bowel movements throughout infancy, deciding that they will approach pee training later in a more conventional way.

If you are feeling awkward carrying out EC or if you are still trying to get the hang of it, you can always leave your baby diaperless (or loosely diapered) for ten minutes after one of his diaper changes, say, once a day or so. Figure out what positions he is comfortable in. Not all babies will be comfortable at first in the typical newborn EC holds, but keep checking back every few weeks. A position that your baby is not comfortable in at one point in his development might become a favorite later on when he’s older. By the same token, as his body changes and new abilities develop (such as the ability to hold his head up or to sit independently), he may outgrow his fondness for positions that might have been comfortable when he was younger. Be aware of these possibilities. Your baby may even have a preference for one position one day and another position the next. The one constant about babies is that they are constantly changing!

There are many positions you can use to EC a newborn, but one of the most common ones is the in-arms position over a toilet or even a sink (see photo). To do this over a toilet, you can squat in front of the bowl holding your diaper-free baby under her thighs. She will be completely enfolded in your arms so that she feels safe and comfortable. You can also straddle the toilet bowl yourself, facing backward, with baby in the same position. Baby can also be sideways and cradled in your arms while you do this, if she’s small enough. You can start cueing