EC support group

[Antje]

I'll have to look for it! Thanks!

[Antje]

OK, I just ordered it online. I'm on a real internet shopping kick these days!

[Splash]

Hi Antje we started at 7 months but with no real aim of being toilet trained early. I sat R on when I could after naps and sometimes meals. We didn't do a lot of nappy free time and still don't but the communication between us did improve.

I use potty time to communicate using toys and books or songs so I wouldn't call it distraction. R let's us know when he has used and has asked for 'pee pee' on occasion. He is very aware of when he needs but doesn't always tell me.

We now have a routine where R sits on the double toilet seat after breakfast as this is usually when he poos but he does sometimes wait for nappy. We wash and brush his teeth and strip off while on. After lunch he sits on potty usually in livingroom and childminder also sits him on then. He poos more often that not at this time with books, songs etc. after dinner he sits on toilet again, gets teeth brushed and songs while we get bath ready and Mostly pees. R now claps and cheers when he pees in toilet.

It's so nice seeing they are proud of their achievement. Hope that helps give you an idea. We never did it full time just when it fitted in really. R only sits on those three times every day unless he has asked between times. If we are out we don't do it. You just need to do what suits. Good luck

[Antje]

Thanks, that sounds a lot like what I had in mind for us, at least to begin with.

[sully]

splash, that sounds similar to how we are approaching it too-its so nice hearing how things are for you now with an older lo

[LittleCrush]

I'm just starting to read the Diaper-Free Baby book and wondering whether this might work for us. I've bought a potty but for some reason am feeling nervous about putting Goblin on it. Not sure why I don't just bite the bullet! What's the worst that can happen?! It's interesting to hear how other people have got on!

[Antje]

Just do it! We're starting up very casually, as there are two family trips and a move to a new home coming up in the next month, so I'm not expecting any new routines to stick until all the craziness is over. So far my goal is just to build awareness of elimination (we're late starters at 11/12 months) and to grasp the concept of what the toilet is for.

Since we've started so late, and since I know my daughter understands a lot of simple words and phrases, we're skipping the cueing noises and just using words. Does anyone know of any reason this might not be the best idea? We're totally new to EC and don't know anyone else who is doing it in RL.

[cvious]

We started at 12 months and used the 'ssssss' noise and signing, even though she was pretty verbal. Within 3 months we'd abandoned these and we just used words alone, but they were helpful during that time. Especially since when she said 'potty' at 12 months she said 'doddy', which sounds too much like 'daddy'.

I still use the 'ssss' when I'm desperate (we are diaper free now), but it doesn't work on a 22-month-old. Now I tell her to relax her bladder or count to 20 with me if she's antsy.

[MammaB]

Hello EC'ers! I'm new to these boards,and am enjoying lurking so far.

DH and I have been part time ecing little man since about 4 weeks old and really
Ike it even though we aren't super dedicated to it. He is just now able to sit up on his own, so we've been offering the potty bowl while he's on the changing table. I show it to him, hold it up against his bum and cue him- it's really satisfying to see him grin, get still and concentrate...often we get a pee, sometimes a poo, and frequently a fart (which I take as a success, because it means he associates the cue with activity down below. We offer the potty after every nap, after spending time in the sling or wrap and at every dipe change, even if it's already wet. Sometimes he fusses before going, and we can catch one then.

The few times I've held him over the big toilet or placed him on his little potty he has burst into tears, but today he sat (with assistance) and tinkled on cue with no protest at all!!. I was very proud, he had no idea how marvelous he was.

Earlier in the day I had read a post here about letting LO play with his potty before asking him to use it, so this afternoon he had time with the bowl, banging it around, handling it, sitting on it, with no cueing. I think it's possible this play time helped him be more accepting of sitting on it later, so thanks ladies!!

[Antje]

So, we're still VERY casual about the whole EC thing around here, but there's a new development that I'm unsure of. My daughter is now 14 months old, and she has started urgently signing for the toilet when she's in a situation she's not happy about. Such as a diaper change, or bedtime or naptime. I don't like to think of my child as being manipulative, but it does kind of seem that she's trying to get out of things by playing the "toilet" card. When I do respond and put her on the toilet, she doesn't stay for long and almost never actually goes. When she's finished sitting on the toilet, and I try to get her diaper back on, she once again urgently signs for the toilet.

Any insights from you lot?

[squirt]

hey all,

we started EC from birth and by 2 months I thought we'd be nappy free really quick. No luck, he went on a potty strike a couple of months ago and is practically full time in nappies. This sucks, because his body shape is such that no nappy in the world contains wees and poos, so every nappy change is also a change in clothes. We have carpet and rent, so can't just let him go naked. Plus, it's winter and cold and leggings aren't really enough.

I don't know what to do. I'm scared that starting solids (tomorrow), will make it all worse. He's had paper, once and that made him poop so many times, it wasn't funny. And all in his nappy. We put him on the potty during every nappy change, but he just held it until he was in a nappy and pooped.

any tips on how to get going again? My husband does nearly all the parenting as I work a lot, although I'm on break for the next month still (been on break for a while now). He's not too keen on keeping him naked, worried he'll get cold.

also, S rolls and is very close to crawling. He's never on his mat for long, unless he sits. He can sit on the potty unaided. Should we just have him sit on the potty for a whole day and see if that improves communication? He doesn't sign at all anymore, we get no warning! We used to get the poopy face really clearly, it was so easy when he was newborn.

Could it be that he's just too busy to care? I'm a bit like that, when I'm busy I'll hold it up, don't want to be interrupted. He's so busy playing.

[Splash]

Antje - that is a difficult one but I would probably automatically sit her on for diaper change and make it routine then perhaps try offering a fun activity when it's back on so that she doesn't keep asking when she doesn't need.

Squirt - hi, as S is still very young you will be fine keeping in nappies but building sitting on potty into routine as much as possible. You might find s starts saving it for potty as its not pleasent to sit in. S will start using potty again if you keep going with it and persevering. Make potty time fun with books and toys and have fun together. I wouldn't sit s on all day as that wouldn't work. JuSt try to relax, the only way to increase comunication is to play, read and talk to S when on potty. Have S in with you on toilet and say what you are doing. Good luck!

[sully]

Hi all

We have an exciting new development to share - having been largely unsuccessful at catching anything in months and months, Pumpkin has wee'd on the potty most mornings for a week and today I caught no less than 5 wees and 2 poos in her potty!!! She also seems to be doing something a few minutes after being on the potty rather than sitting on it for ages then going on the floor

So in people's experience, is 14-15 months a common age for it to start clicking into place / them to start understanding the potty's use more, or is this just a lucky run? Should I up our ECing whilst we are on a role?? (we are very part-time but happened to have had most of the day indoors today, which is unusual for us).

Excited Pumpkin's mama

[catkin]

Hi all - have read through quite a bit of this thread, interested to note that the questions/issues are very similar to what we had training a 3 yr old!
I think we may be slipping into doing a little EC-ing with the baby. Put her on the potty for the first time at around 3 mos to get a urine sample as she was making so much fuss about doing pees we wondered if she had a UTI. She peed immediately, & no UTI. Last few days (4 mos old) i've been making a bit more effort and catching pees as often as not. Really astounded that babies have this ability, I had no idea. Haven't made any effort to train her, don't think i've even sat her on for more than 30secs. I do try to pick an auspicious time, like when she hasn't peed for a while or when she wakes up.
We're not v serious about it, the rest of the time she's in sposies. And by as often as not i still mean maybe 1 or 2 per day. still feels like an amazing result for no effort. but I'd love to catch some poos too now! I have a feeling she does give signs and I'm just not picking up on them. She often poos mid-feed, which i think must be me confusing hungry signs with poo coming signs.

[catkin]

What was I saying? Either I've got it or she's got it - THREE poos on the potty today.
She looked ever so pleased with herself.
Baby poo in a potty looks weird.