My husband and I are trying to get pregnant and we have been trying to find out more information about raising a baby without diapers. I believe the common catchphrase is elimination communication. We believe diapers to be both detrimental to the environment and unhealthy for our baby because of the chemicals. Of course cloth diapers would be a huge improvement over disposable, but why put ourselves or our child through all the mess and hassle if we don't have to.

I was wondering whether or not anyone has tried raising their child without diapers. If so I was hoping you could offer any advice or reference material of any sort. It would be greatly appreciated.  

Because I'm not a very patient person, and it's been a few days since I posted this, I thought I would offer what I have heard about raising a baby without a diaper.

Some of my favorite reasons for doing so are as follows:

* healthier for baby than chemical laden disposable diapers, or sitting in their own waste
* healthier for the environment than throwing away disposables or constantly washing cloth
* diapers teach baby not to listen to instincts  
* elimination communication (EC) teaches baby from the beginning to pay attention to urges so potty training is less traumatic � if it is even necessary
* less messy - except for the times you don't get to the bathroom on time    
* saves time and money of buying diapers and changing them

According to those who have raised their children this way it is reasonably simple. You pay attention to the actions of your baby before they pee and eventually you learn to recognize them. When the baby is peeing you make a �psss� sound which they learn to associate with peeing. You can eventually � if not immediately � take your child to the restroom or potty at regular times close to their normal schedule and make a "psss" sound to alert them that it is time to go. Eventually you learn to understand each other.

The only thing I've heard against this is that it can put too much pressure on a child. I disagree with this because this method is used effectively in many other countries. Also, provided that the parent does not reprimand their child for messing on themselves, it will give the child a strong sense of self.

One decent website I�ve found is www.diaperfreebaby.org If you�re expecting, or have a little one at home I sincerely advise checking it out. I haven�t read any books, but I don�t think I will � I�d rather figure it out on my own.

Blessings and best of luck to all who try this method out.

Ok.....good luck?

I thought you and your husband were trying to open a internet business and go back to school??

I personally would not do the diaperless thing...but hey, and cloth diapers worked well for me....I now use them as dust rags and the kids seem fine....wait until you have a child...are you going to stay up 24/7 to wait until you see the "signals"?? I see many problems with this method, but hey, it's your child....

Blessings Bright and Dark,