Elimination Communication / Infant Pottying
Honor your baby’s natural instincts, return to the ancestral + ancient parenting practices, and save our planet from a whole bunch of sh*t by learning how to potty your baby from as early as birth in a practice known as Elimination Communication.
The Approach
Diapers are a modern invention - yes, even cloth diapers. Cloth diapers were introduced in the early 1800s. Disposable diapers weren’t introduced until the 1960s. This means that for most of human existence parents were doing something else to deal with infant pees & poops. That something else was elimination communication, anticipating and understanding when a baby needed to pee or poop and offering them a container (or, more likely, the ground) to relieve themselves. Our Elimination Communication / Infant Pottying class is designed to help parents relearn the ancient + primal human practice of pottying our babies so that we an honor our babies’ natural instincts to not soil onto themselves, break-up with BIG Diaper & their predatory marketing tactics, and save our planet’s landfills from generations of baby sh*t & plastic diapers that don’t biodegrade.
Surprising Facts About Diapers & EC
In 1957 92% of babies were potty trained by age 18 months
Since disposable diapers hit the market in 1961, the average age of potty trained babies has jumped to 36 months (or 2 ½ years old)
Over 50% of the world’s children are potty independent by age 1, so why the heck are kids in the US so far behind?! (Psst - It’s because of the dependency on disposable diapers)
Modern potty training information that we are taught from pediatricians has been funded by diaper companies for decades.
Every diaper that has ever been used since the very first diaper put on a baby still exists, in tact & not broken down, in a landfill today.
The average baby uses 6,000-7,000 diapers in its lifetime with an average age of potty training around age 3.
Cost of just one year of single-use, disposable diapers = $936
Sources:
Go Diaper Free by Andrea Olson
Contemporary Pediatrics, 2004
American Academy of Pediatrics
What is Elimination Communication / Infant Pottying?
EC / Infant Pottying is a gentle, noncoercive way to potty babies from as early as birth. It is offering babies a potty, not forcing or expecting them to use it. It involves offering baby an infant appropriate potty at times of “natural timing” - similar to how we as adults have certain times of day when we use the bathroom - upon waking up, before going to sleep, before leaving the house, after getting home from being out, some time after having drank a beverage, or if we just haven’t gone in awhile. It can also involve learning to recognize baby’s signals and cues that they need to go to pee or poop and offering a potty at that time. We will get into what the signals and cues are in a bit.
Important:EC is NOT potty training. We do not train babies to use the toilet. We simply offer them a potty when we think they need to go or when they sign to us that they need to go and THEY decide if they use it or not. There is no pressure, no expectations, no training, no rewards, no punishments, no consequences, and none of the elements of conventional potty training.
What you’ll learn in this class:
The history and foundations of Elimination Communication / Infant Pottying
Why EC is NOT potty training
How to get started with a newborn or infant (12 months & under is ideal)
Supplies you’ll need to practice EC
How and when to use diapers as a backup
How to use EC on-the-go
How to EC at nighttime & naps
How to wrap up EC and ditch diapers early
I used elimination communication (EC) with my son beginning when he was 3 weeks old. With no expectations, no pressure, and no potty training my husband and I continued to offer a potty to my son whenever we thought he needed to go pee or poop or when he signed to us that he needed to go. He was out of daytime diapers just after his first birthday (with the exception of naps, nighttime, and car rides). He was diaper free with the exception of overnights by age 2. And, we was entirely diaper-free by age 2 1/2… all with ZERO potty training or reward-based systems.
We plan to use EC with our 2nd, due Fall 2026, from birth. Stay tuned for our second time around with EC!
Brandy’s Experience with EC
Register for an upcoming EC / Infant Pottying class!
Class dates coming soon!