The Diaper-Free Baby_ The Natural Toilet Training Alternative - Christine Gross-Loh [75]
When Felix was older and I realized his current (institutional) day care was not working for him, I began to seriously research home day-cares as an alternative. I wanted to find someone who would EC with him because I wanted him to feel that his caregiver was attentive and responsive to his communication. I phone screened about fifteen different providers and found one who seemed genuinely interested and supportive. At thirteen months, I switched him to this new provider, who has cared for him ever since. She very quickly got the hang of EC’ing him, which I think earned his trust and helped him to adjust.
—KAREN, MOM TO FELIX, 17 MONTHS
* * *
One Working Mom’s EC Tips
Laura Hamilton, mother of Julian, twenty-two months, has written a primer on combining work and EC. Here are a few of her tips and strategies:
I pottied my baby upon first waking in the morning, and thereafter as frequently as I thought he might have to go until I had to leave for work. (Use diaper-free time on weekends to get a good estimate of how often your baby usually has to eliminate.)
When we arrived at the day care, I took my son to the toilet one last time before leaving. I would also potty him very first thing at the day care upon arriving to pick him up (this can save you a wet diaper on the way home!). My son never got confused by this. He seemed to accept and understand that Mama would take him potty, but the caregivers at day care would not.
Apart from wake-up pees, I would offer “pottytunities” at every diaper change when my baby was already diaper-free. This is a great habit to get into for part-timers using diaper backup. It helps you avoid the common problems of being peed or pooped on at the changing table or having your baby immediately go to the bathroom in a fresh diaper.
It’s also a good idea to have baby in a cloth diaper without a cover (or training pants or underwear) at home. That way you can tell very quickly when your baby has peed. The baby will also get physical feedback from a pee. I used disposables as a backup, but I stopped at around one year old. I realized that I tended to ignore my son’s potty signals when he was diapered in a disposable. However, do whatever makes you most comfortable and relaxed in the process! Feel free to use a diaper backup. Just keep taking the diaper off to offer the potty on a regular basis.
Dress your baby in loose sweatpants or something easy to take off for ease of pottying—no one-piece outfits with snaps. They make it such a pain to get the clothes off that you tend to just leave your baby in the diaper until it’s full.
That’s it! EC is easy and anyone can do it. It’s not an all-or-nothing practice. Why not give pottying a try tomorrow morning at diaper change time and see what happens?
* * *
EC AND THE PREMATURE BABY
DiaperFreeBaby Mentors often get requests from parents of premature infants who are wondering if EC is feasible for them. It certainly is; the most common rule of thumb is not to begin until the baby comes home from the hospital or is at or past her adjusted due date. Because preterm babies often spend the first period of their lives in an NICU, it’s difficult and unnecessary for parents to spend time trying to keep their infants diaper-free before they come home. When ready, proceed according to the other sections of the book, depending on when you decide to begin.
One Indian friend told me that many Indians start EC as soon as a baby can hold her head up on her own, so that is what we did with our premature baby (born at twenty-six weeks). She was developmentally about two months when we started EC. In other words, she was two months, adjusted (two months past the date she was supposed to have been due).
—ASMIRA, MOM TO VEDA, 16 MONTHS
EC AND MULTIPLES
We often get requests from parents of multiples who are hoping to keep the channels of communication open between themselves and