I was interested the other day, and asked in a Facebook, Sling and Parenting group not long ago, if they knew what Elimination Communication (EC) was, if they would try if, and why would they or not. The results were so interesting and pushed me to want to write this article even more!
I want to start out saying, I don't think everyone needs to do EC, or that it is for everyone, but with the misinformation, partially because it seems only one style is ever spoken about, I thought it would be nice, just to share, what I think EC is, and how many different ways, I see EC being done out there.
EC- is sometimes called Early Infant Potty Learning, but really, it is the simple idea, that you can build communication, through the simple act of offering your infant the toilet, from a very early age, even day 1.
EC can range from never using any nappies at all, or only offering the toilet for poos, as requested. There is a very wide range of how this can be done. And in my next article, I hope to touch on many of those different takes on EC.
EC historically would have been the norm. I say this because many parents, when questioned, seemed to think of this as a new idea, and one with flaws. But most cultures probably started with variations of EC from the start. Washing endless strips of cloth would have been hard and tedious work, back in the earlier days. Parents instead would have worked to manage the waste in the easiest manner, that involved the least amount of work. More then likely regularly offering small chamber pots in the home and on the road side or as needed when outside. This was the norm in most cultures until the modern era.
Though in many warmer climates, you still see variations of this offering of the toilet to infants even today. In many areas of China, Indonesia and other countries, you can find split crotch trousers for infants, and parents offering the toilet to their children, from a very young age as the norm.
EC can lead to younger potty training, but for all that is not the goal. But, will say that with the steady increase in the average toilet training age rising more and more, since the invention of disposable nappies and wall to wall carpet, it seems like a younger age, even though, it is much closer to the average age from just a few generations ago.
A few things EC is not;
EC is not the same as any other form of Toddler aged Potty Training. The methods are very different, due to the ages of the children, the expectations of the parents in each case, the time taken, is very different, as EC is more of a marathon idea, instead of the standard sprint with Toddler Potty Training and often in the case of the toddler, you are reverse modeling, to partially undo the habit or previous training of nappy use for toileting.
But, I think it is hard for some parents at first to see that the models are different, so when picturing EC, you must leave this idea behind as, that often makes parents, see EC as more forceful and even cruel, when the models really, share very little in common. It is age based, to follow what works for infants, not toddler based ideas, put on infants.
EC does not mean constant trips to the toilet, or wasted time asking constantly if your baby needs to toilet. Most parents, start with a simple "schedule" based on when parents observe, their child typically toliets, and then expanding that, until signs, begin to be observed. Also, most parents have a back up for "misses".
EC does not mean bear bums, all the time and baby weeing all over. First, not all parents chose, to go nappy free, many parents, probably the majority, mix nappy free time with regular nappy use. Just like many parents doing nappy free time, who don't EC, you can lay them on water proof mats, when small, and you tend to watch them as they get more mobile, and try to keep them in the garden. LOL!
EC, is not one way, it has so many methods. It is not about force, or pushing, its about following your child's lead, to hopefully lead to more confident potty usage when they are ready.
I hope to branch off into a more full example of several styles of EC, and how parents approach it, but hope that, this helps to start explain to you, what EC is. In a nut shell, its offering an infant the option of using a toilet to void the bowels, instead of a nappy. How that comes about, is on each family, but that is the one truth for all those who practice EC, really.
