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Diapering Your Natural Baby Part 2 | Elimination Communication

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Here in Part 2 of our Diapering Your Natural Baby series we’ll continue to discuss the variety of options available for diapering your dear bambino and how natural (nor not) they are.  Next up, Elimination Communication.

Commonly referred to as “EC” elimination communication is the practice of actually NOT DIAPERING your baby at all but, instead, learning to read his/her cues and getting them to the potty so they can be diaper free.

You can begin this process from birth, and, while it might seem shocking to many there are way more babies around the world that don’t wear diapers than that do.  Elimination Communication is the name given by westerners to this ancient practice of raising babies without diapers that’s fairly new (or maybe recently refound) to us.

While most people who have diaper free babies don’t have the option of diapers – there are many that do and still choose EC.  Why would you decide not to use diapers on your baby?

Many feel that it’s more comfortable for the babies to not be diapered.  While others feel that the bond between parents and their children is enhanced by practicing elimination communication and the reading of the baby’s cues that’s involved in the process.

Then, if we just consider the point of view of the environment – babies being diaper free is the best option available!  Nothing in the land fill, less energy and water usage than cloth diapers; Elimination Communication is really the most natural option for diapering  your baby out there.

But, how realistic is it?  The answer to this question is going to be different for each family.

You see, part of Elimination Communication is being with your baby 24/7 and always watching their body language, facial expressions, and vocalizations to know when they need to go.  This isn’t going to be possible for many families for a variety of reasons.

You’ll also need to figure out what to do about going out.  There are a lot of different possibilities like having a portable potty you can carry in the car, using diapers part of the time (like when you go out, or overnight), or another creative solution that makes EC work for your wonderfully unique family.

That’s the most important thing though.  Whatever diapering method, or more likely methods, you choose, be sure they work well for your natural family.  What worked for my boys was even somewhat different with each one of them depending on where we were in time at that point; it’s definitely going to be different from family to family!  And that’s why we’re here; to give you the information you need to be as natural as you can or your want to be!

To find out more about all the different ways you can diaper (or in the case of elimination communication – not diaper!) your baby, please read our full 4 Part Diapering Your Natural Baby series!

 

 

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Diapering Your Natural Baby Pt 1 – Cloth Diapers

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Even before your little bundle is born what you’re going to do about catching their pees and poos has to be decided.  Many natural families hope to do this in the most eco friendly way possible but, honestly, there’s no easy answer when it comes to diapering your baby naturally.

So, we thought we’d take a look at what’s available and the the pros and cons of each through our Diapering Your Natural Baby series to hopefully help you diaper your baby as naturally as possible for your family.

Diapering Your Natural Baby Series Part 1 – Cloth Diapers

When many people think of diapering naturally, cloth diapers come to mind.  They can be a great option in many situations and do certainly keep diapers out of landfills; a common concern with conventional diapers.

There are quite a few different styles of cloth diapers, even ones that are exactly like disposable diapers (easy on, easy off, use once) you just reuse them.  No folding or pins or anything like that.  Of course, you can still do things that way but, the world of cloth diapers has come a long way since their meager beginnings.

If you plan (or end up ) having more than one child cloth diapers generally end up making diapering your second nearly free.  This is a fantastic advantage of using cloth vs many other diapering methods for sure!

Many do feel there are concerns with the extra loads of laundry cloth diapers create and the extra water and energy usage that results from that.  Also, some folks don’t have a washer and/or dryer at home which can make cloth diapering more difficult.

Overall, cloth diapers can make a very nice option for diapering your natural baby, but, like anything they’re not perfect by any means!  To learn more about other diapering options please read the rest of our Diapering Your Natural Baby Series where we’ll explore Elimination Communication, Hybrid Diapers, and yep, even Disposables!