So, you have been practicing elimination communication in a limited way for a while and you are ready to take the plunge and get your baby out of diapers completely.  Perhaps your baby has sensitive skin that’s prone to diaper rash and you need to end that.  How do you accomplish it?

The first step is more of a mental step than anything.  You have to determine your comfort level with having a bare-bottomed baby who could “go” at anytime, anywhere.  You will be catching a lot of pees and poops, but you’ll still miss some and you need to be OK with that.  The main reason babies are diapered is so that the messes are contained and relatively easy to clean up.  This means that the baby often sits in the mess for a while and that does seem unfair to the baby.  However, if you’re good at changing baby right away, that’s preferable in the long run to being nervous about baby’s elimination.  If you are the sort who gets neurotic about every spot, you may not be comfortable with going completely diaper-less.  You can still do Elimination Communication with diapers.

You have to consider your home and the ramifications of baby eliminating on the floor, the furniture, or you.  There may be limited areas in your home that are easier to clean up than others.  The easiest is a lawn-grass yard, which involves no cleanup for pees and limited cleanup for poops.  Next is a tile or linoleum floor that only needs to be wiped with a rag.  For that kind of floor, immediate cleanup is important for a walking baby so he or she doesn’t slip in a puddle of pee.  A carpeted floor is harder to clean up but it can be done with a rag and a natural cleaner.  Regular mild cleaners work pretty well, though you’ll need to use elbow grease for poop.  Pet cleaners work well, though they’re not the most natural choice.  Considering and being prepared for the inevitable cleanup will go a long way towards making you more comfortable.  Even if you’re going the traditional toddler potty learning route, there will come a point where it’s time to take off the diaper.

Once you have accepted the worst case scenario, the next step is to simply take your baby’s diaper off and go about your business.  It’s important to be as relaxed as you would be with the diaper on.  If you find yourself getting too nervous, it’s time to back off and maybe put the diaper back on.  You should pay attention to your baby’s cues and take him or her to the potty when he or she indicates a need to go.  Or, you can just take them regularly and see if they will go on cue.  As you keep working with your baby, you will catch more pees and poops and miss fewer.  However, it will vary greatly from day to day.  It takes patience.

As your baby gets older and learns new skills he or she will be more distracted and may forget to signal the need to eliminate.  Who wants to take the time to go to the bathroom when toys are waiting?  You should take those days in stride and keep at it.  There may also be times when baby has a potty strike.  When that happens, you can back off of Elimination Communication (EC) and use diapers for a few days, before trying again.  If you like to sign with your older baby, you can teach him a sign for going potty.

With a lot of patience and persistence you may be able to have your baby out of diapers early and eliminating in the potty most of the time.  It’s important to always keep in mind that EC is a journey, and it should be fun for you and your baby.  If at any time it’s not fun for either one of you, it’s best to back off for a while, then try it again when you’re both more relaxed.  Stick to it!

This entry was posted on Monday, July 13th, 2009 at 7:31 pm and is filed under Natural Parenting. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.