Elimination Communication
How to get your child in underwear by 12 months!
I started infant potty training Jade when she was five months. A friend asked me ” Have you ever heard of elimination communication?” and I looked it up and read, read, and read. At that time I was using disposables. I was having a hard time cleaning her poopy diapers because the poop would get out the diaper and go up her back and stain her shirts. I always wondered how people did it back in the day when disposables and cloth diapers did not exist, there had to be a way. I have always been into the natural route and keeping a kid in diapers for three years seemed unsanitary and unnatural. So when she was five months I went green and bought cloth diapers, a diaper sprayer, and a potty. Here are the diapers I use now- see my video on how I cloth diapered for 100.00
When my potty arrived some of my family members saw it and thought I was crazy to be putting a 5 month old to the potty! I got so much criticism, some even said it was abuse….to me abuse is leaving a kid sitting in urine for hours!
I got the potty with a backing on it called baby bjorn
I tried to learn Jades elimination cues by setting her on a prefold for two hours and watching her body language and sounds right before she eliminated and during. I learned she cleared her throat before she peed and she wiggled and made a particular face when she wanted to poop.
Jade already had back support so I just sat her here every two hours and made a “ssss” sound to associate elimination with this cue sound. The first two days I think she peed in the potty once . The third day she peed and pooped and I was excited so I took it from there! I could always catch her poops because to me it was so obvious when she needed to poop- the face and the wiggling made it obvious to me. She stopped pooping in her diaper at 8 months. I never missed poops. I was also only missing about 3 pees a day at this point. I was saving money, time and water. I noticed clean up was a breeze. Her poop would not be all over her bum, it was just be one small spot and I was done. People think infant potty training is time consuming but in my experience it was easier. Infant potty training keeps the bums clean- which will prevent diaper rashes.
When I went out with Jade I took my Toilet Insert. I had it in a cloth bag and I used it in restaurants, shopping centers, supermarkets, relative/friends houses. By 12 months she was in full time underwear. She still had about one accident a day. By 20 months she was potty trained and rarely had accidents. She was in full time underwear, she took herself to the potty, put her underwear down , used the potty on her own and then wiped on her own(not the poop, I took care of that). I saw regressions when she was sick or just not feeling well and I was very understanding with her at all times.
I forgot to mention I taught Jade the sign language sign for potty I started when she was five months. Everytime I put her on the potty I would make the sign along with the cue sound “ssss”. By seven months she was signing when she wanted to use the potty. I taught her four sign language signs- help sign, potty sign, all done sign and milk sign. She was using the signs up until 14 months. She became very vocal and started to say what she wanted.
The process:
Start by observing your child’s body language when they eliminate.
All children give signs right before they eliminate, during and after. Leave the child without a diaper for two hours or so and observe what body language and sounds they make right before eliminating and while eliminating. You can do this on top of a diaper or prefold. Once you have an idea put your child to the potty every two hours and make a cue sound “SSSSS” so that they associate this sound with elimination. Once they associate this sound with elimination all you have to do is put them on the potty consistently and make the cue sound. They will use it! you will be surprised. Jade elimination sign is that she clears her throat before she eliminates since she was a baby that has been her cue. She still does that and she is 16 months old. I know when she makes that sound to put her on the potty.
Please keep in mind it is very important there is No shaming, punishment, negativity, coercion, and no forcing. If you put them on the potty and they get fuzzy or just don’t want to go try again later. If the child pees on the floor or in his/her clothes simply remind the child to use the potty. Use a firm voice but make sure you are not shaming them or making them feel bad.
Try to leave the child diaper free as much as possible if you are home. It was not until I put Jade in underwear that I saw real progress. I put her in underwear at 9 months when she started walking for sometime during the day. She had some mistakes on the floor. It was important for her to see and feel the mistakes. After two weeks of full time underwear the accidents got significantly less. By 12 months she was in full time underwear with about one accident a day. The most important thing is to put them in underwear even if you think they are not ready! start slow a couple of hours a day, until they are full time. When they see and feel the accidents they learn a great deal..
If you see your child pooping take the diaper off and sit them in the potty its that easy. Even if they have already started, its ok. They will get used to it. Keep putting the child to the potty.
You can do this part time if you child is taken care of by someone else and you work. When you are at home you can train them part time. The sooner you start the easier it will be.
Potty Facts:
In China and many other countries, parents report completion of potty training between the ages of 12-15 months.
Chinese babies and toddlers don’t wear diapers at all, not even cloth ones. The reason is because cotton, water and soap are all scarce items.
In many parts of India, China, Southeast Asia, Eastern Europe, the arctic, and parts of Africa and Latin America, parents leave baby bottoms uncovered instead, they always wear open-crotch pants.
Did you know that prior to disposable diapers, 95 percent of children were potty trained by 18 months in the U.S!!
In recent studies, however, only about 50% of children completed toilet training by the age 3.
So for those that say that early potty training is harmful do more research because history shows that early potty training was the norm before disposable diapers came into existence and kids were perfectly fine. Yes of course the diaper industry does not want you to believe that so you can keep your kid in diapers until 3 to four years old and keep help their multi million dollar business thriving. It is unnatural and unsanitary to keep a child sitting in urine and feces. If you try infant potty training you will help your child be more independent, confident and self reliant along with helping our beloved mother earth. Happy Infant Potty training!
See video on Full process of Potty Training I made here.
Hey !!
I didn’t know you practiced E.C,, too. We have another thing in common. yaay! My daughter was using the toilet by 18 months. It would’ve been sooner if we didn’t take 2 breaks. lol but she was ready by 18 months and it’s been smooth sailing ever since. Even at night. E.C. is wonderful! I love what you do with your daughter. Great job putting the site together. Thank you for sharing your knowledge. Much appreciated.
See you on YT!
V
that is truly awesome!! I love E.C I am hoping the same success for my new baby…I just started she is five months. Night time is the hardest.
Hi, thanks for the tips, I always thought she was not ready for potty but I feel she is getting too old, she is 25 months and she is still not potty trained. How did you get her to pull her pants all the way up? my daughter would only put them half way and most of the time won’t feel her hands are strong enough to pull them all the way up, I still have problems with that.
Hello- she did not wear pants in the house while potty training- he wore training pants or panties. Those were easy to pull down. Pulling them back up is harder of they have taken them completely off which was what my child did. Give it time. If she is going to the potty by herself now she is doing a good job. Always be consistent- leave her in underwear full time even if she has accidents. Its the only way to learn!