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8th out of 43 books
—
15 voters
The Diaper-Free Baby: The Natural Toilet Training Alternative
by
Christine Gross-Loh (Goodreads Author)
Imagine infants free from painful diaper rash, new parenthood without thousands of dollars wasted in diapering costs, toilet training that is natural and noncoercive, and, most important, happier babies and parents
As Christine Gross-Loh reveals in her progressive, enlightening book, all this is possible and more. Infants are born with the ability to communicate their need...more
As Christine Gross-Loh reveals in her progressive, enlightening book, all this is possible and more. Infants are born with the ability to communicate their need...more
Paperback, 240 pages
Published
January 2nd 2007
by William Morrow Paperbacks
(first published 2006)
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I came across this book when Brynja was already potty training, and highly verbal, so we were not able to do most of the things in this book. However, I thought this was a great book and I implemented what I could in Brynja's potty training process, and I hope to EC with my next child!
What is EC? EC stands for elimination communication. The basic idea behind it is that all babies are born with the instinct not to want to soil themselves. (Ever wonder why they always seem to pee the instant you t...more
What is EC? EC stands for elimination communication. The basic idea behind it is that all babies are born with the instinct not to want to soil themselves. (Ever wonder why they always seem to pee the instant you t...more
I was interested in Elimination Communication (EC) before Ian was born, but the information I read made it seem like an all-or-nothing proposition - you had to start by three months at the latest, never have them in diapers in the house, etc. - and it just seemed too overwhelming in those early weeks with a newborn. But recently one of the cloth diaper bloggers I follow mentioned that she practices some EC - basically, she sometimes puts her kids on the potty once they can sit up. And she recomm...more
As someone who's already hooked on cloth diapers, I sort of stumbled upon elimination communication (or EC or infant potty learning or whatever you want to call it) by accident while visiting some cloth diaper-friendly online forums. I found the idea intuitive and interesting, and so did the hubbs. This book is great because it breaks down each infant development stage (newborn, middle infancy, toddlerhood, etc) for toilet hygiene based on whether you're interested in full-time, part-time, or oc...more
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An overview of what Elimination Communication (EC) consists of and how to practice it, this book is well written and down-to-earth in its suggestions. I agree with the author's idea that EC is just another opportunity to build the parent/child relationship. However, I am not sure if I would practice EC more than part time at least in the beginning because it might prove itself yet one more task for me to get the hang of as I commence the journey of motherhood. The author promises EC is more conv...more
I really enjoyed this book. My wife and I have been implementing the Elimination Communication (EC) technique for a few weeks now and it seems to be going really well. Our little boy is only 8 months old so we're not expecting to catch every elimination, but it's fun to see him start to get comfortable on the potty.
One aspect of the book that I really liked is that the author consistently reminds you to release any stress or expectations you may have about toilet training. The main goal of EC i...more
One aspect of the book that I really liked is that the author consistently reminds you to release any stress or expectations you may have about toilet training. The main goal of EC i...more
I first stumbled across the phrase 'Elimination Communication' on a blog some point during my pregnancy. I had never heard of it before so I looked it up on Wikipedia, thought 'that looks interesting but I don't know if it would work for me' and put it to the side.
It was my son who actually started me thinking about it again as I begin to realise that he really didn't like wet diapers. Very frequently tears meant that he'd just wet his diaper and I would change it & he would automatically b...more
It was my son who actually started me thinking about it again as I begin to realise that he really didn't like wet diapers. Very frequently tears meant that he'd just wet his diaper and I would change it & he would automatically b...more
Don't let the title scare you. This book is not actually advocating never putting a diaper on your baby. Instead it's about Elimination Communication (EC) which is a different way of toilet training. What it amounts to is watching for your baby's signs when they need to go (just like you learn when they are hungry or tired) and providing a "cue" when they go which can then be used to let them know when it's a good time for them to go, like once you have them positioned over a potty.
This system...more
This system...more
Worth a read. The advice provided was about equal parts amusing (that such a simple and obvious part of child-raising in my parents' world has a whole "movement" and mystique associated with it in the here and now), ridiculous (pottying a newborn during nursing? seriously?), and useful (common timings and signals). The propaganda blurbs from parents singing the praises of EC got a little repetitive, even though I happen to agree with many of the advantages. We're experimenting a bit with the old...more
This book doesn't break new ground, but it does lay it down gently for the uninitiated. If you've never heard of Infant Potty Training or Elimination Communication, this book is a great introduction for you. If you're curious about how you might go about trying it for yourself, this book is encouraging and full of helpful hints, tips, and lists of where to get or make the few essentials (a potty, training pants or baby panties, etc). There is a subtle humor in the book and none of the alarmist o...more
Now that our nursery is complete, I've moved on to reading child-rearing books to help take the edge off waiting to be placed. Diaper-free is a practice that I was very interested in and a friend of mine practiced it religiously (and successfully) with her two children. I appreciate that they give readers 3 paths to follow (full-time, part-time, and occasional). However, the book is also divided into different sections that depend on how old your child is when you start the diaper-free program....more
This author presented a great idea - raising a baby without diapers! - in a way that made it actually seem doable. This book was much more down-to-earth than the other much hippy-dippier title about the Elimination Communication movement (Diaper Free! something about gentle natural hygiene by Bauer). Author also makes great points about the economical, ecological, and psychological upsides to not using diapers; major emphasis on the fact that the goal is NOT toilet training your infant but rathe...more
Apr 17, 2013
Leani
rated it
3 of 5 stars
Recommended to Leani by:
DiaperFreeBaby.org
Shelves:
parenting
Full of useful tips and inspiring quotes, Gross-Loh's writing is very accessible and friendly. Although I started practicing elimination communication with my toddler when she was a baby, I still found the book gave me the courage (and method) to incorporate more of it into our lifestyle with the new baby. I really appreciated the way she explained how any family can adapt varying degrees of the EC principles into their lives, and how she emphasised the communicative aspect. Definitely worth a r...more
I intended on doing Elimination Communication (EC) with my son so picked up a copy of this book. Long story short is we did not stick with EC'ing but I did like the book even though I am not normally a fan of any type of parenting books.
This book is worth reading if you plan on starting EC'ing from birth or as a baby as it gives easy to follow advise without applying on too much pressure. However I would not recommend the chapters for younger-older toddlers, there is nothing that is not obvious...more
This book is worth reading if you plan on starting EC'ing from birth or as a baby as it gives easy to follow advise without applying on too much pressure. However I would not recommend the chapters for younger-older toddlers, there is nothing that is not obvious...more
Someday I'm going to have a kid and I'm going to do this and it will be awesome because I'll be changing a lot less poopy diapers than everyone else. Ha-ha, suckas!
(Although... I do wish there had been more info about the history of toileting babies, or even more talk about the way it works in other cultures.
Also I imagine that the reason they dressed little girls and boys in dresses up until about a hundred years ago was because it was a lot easier to help them go to the bathroom. That would m...more
(Although... I do wish there had been more info about the history of toileting babies, or even more talk about the way it works in other cultures.
Also I imagine that the reason they dressed little girls and boys in dresses up until about a hundred years ago was because it was a lot easier to help them go to the bathroom. That would m...more
Hmmm...definitely intriguing but not too sure that I'm going to apply it. The concept is that humans are not programmed to soil themselves but we teach our babies to use the bathroom in their pants and hang out in it until we change them, so that when we start potty training them at 2 1/2 or 3, we are having to teach them not to go to the bathroom in their pants although they've been doing that their whole lives. The book teaches you to be in tune with your child's bathroom schedule/routine and...more
A friend's wife had this on her goodreads, so I decided to go ahead and see what it was about. I really enjoyed it, because it really isn't about toilet-training your infant. It is about learning your baby's cues, in the same way you would learn when your child was hungry or tired. She advocates for any form of Elimination Communication, whether you still use diapers or not. The book is in no way judgmental, but does highlight some very positive success stories, which might be discouraging depen...more
I wanted an introduction to EC and picked this one because it was the only one owned by my local library. I came away feeling like I still need to read another book, although I'm not exactly sure what it was missing. I really liked that it included tips on how to practice EC part time or even just occasionally. It is nice to know that you don't actually have to be diaper free in order to reap some of the benefits of EC.
I randomly came across this concept when looking at parenting books in the library. A lot of what the author says makes sense. I am pretty open minded and may end up giving some of these philosophies a try. I am all about fewer poopy diapers. The book did a good job of presenting several different options and didn't read as a sermon as so many parenting books do.
I like the idea that "elimination communication" does not necessarily have to be a full-time thing. This was an excellent way for me to be more comfortable about Teddy's using the potty. We might be making the switch to underwear soon.
There are way too many testimonials, though I do like the resources section at the back.
There are way too many testimonials, though I do like the resources section at the back.
The principles are laid out clearly for each stage of babies with the emphasis on communication, not traditional potty training.
What I liked: instructions that change at each stage along with parents' stories for what happened to their children to give a better idea of the range of things that are possible (though by no means all).
What I disliked: cues are laid out, but could have been improved. I still have questions.
I did learn a lot about baby behavior that has helped me so far to understan...more
What I liked: instructions that change at each stage along with parents' stories for what happened to their children to give a better idea of the range of things that are possible (though by no means all).
What I disliked: cues are laid out, but could have been improved. I still have questions.
I did learn a lot about baby behavior that has helped me so far to understan...more
This book provides a really good introduction to elimination communication (EC). The approach is very flexible ranging from full-time, part-time to occasional. The book also covers what to do depending on your child's age. Overall, a very helpful guide to understanding EC and how it is a way of communicating with your child (like understanding when they are need to nurse) and is not potty training. Will definitely be revisiting this as a resource.
I picked this book up more out of curiosity than an intention to actually do EC, but I found myself impressed by its thoroughness (including information on additional resources), clarity, and, more than anything, Gross-Loh's friendly and fundamentally non-judgmental tone- which, for whatever reason, seems extremely rare in parenting books.
Well I read the whole book, so I feel I can legitimately rate without trying this first- and I found that it has some very legitimate points. One that really stuck with me is this- You're going to clean up messes anyway, so why not just make your kid more comfortable and also clean up a little less? ...Especially if they give you cues from the time they are born. It seems like a very common sense concept, I'll adjust my rating depending on how it works for me in a few months.
I'm reviewing the concept more than the book itself as to be honest, I could have guessed the method myself (cueing with sounds and sign language, using a potty etc). I am looking forward to seeing how we go, the little one is already loving wearing her diaper less often
For me this book opened up a whole new way of thinking about and practicing potty training. This practice, called elimination communication (EC), is based on the premise that infants are born with the instinct not to soil themselves and that we as parents and caregivers can learn to pick up on a baby's cues to eliminate just as we learn their sleep and hunger signals. Intellectually, this makes sense to me. I'll let you know later how it works in reality...
This book is much more of a practical "how-to", whereas Ingrid Bauer's "Diaper Free" is more a look at the philosophy of why to go diaper free. I enjoyed both, but would probably suggest reading Ingrid Bauer's book first to understand the philosophy.
Very interesting concept. Curtis and I tried it with Jane and she went almost 2 months without a messy diaper after she got the hang of it. Then we went on vacation to WY for a week and she started using her diaper again. Oh well. She is hit and miss now.
Best book on EC that I have read yet. Info on how to EC with your older baby is awesome! And this book is much more accepting of "whatever works for you", that every parent and child relationship, personality and situation are different.
Seemed good so far, I'm trying some aspects of elimination communication when I can. I only read up through the infancy stages, will probably return to read more of the book later if I'm still interested in trying it with L.
This book was very helpful in understanding the philosophies behind EC. I appreciated the helpful tips for the three tracks (full-time, part-time, and occasional) and I plan to refer back to this book when the time comes!
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Christine is a freelance writer, author, parenting speaker, and mom of four (two boys and two girls). Her fascination with global parenting began when she was a child, growing up the Korean-American daughter of immigrant parents in small-town Pennsylvania. Christine has a doctorate from Harvard and is a contributor to Mothering.com.
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