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Easy Catch #3 – Poop: what to do besides watch your baby poop, and clean up after

Translations of this post: Spanish

GDF-Podcast-30-Poop

Alright, we've learned all about Easy Catch #1 and Easy Catch #2 on the Go Diaper Free Podcast. Now it's time to cover Easy Catch #3 - Poop. How many of you have noticed when your baby is pooping? Maybe you hear it, see it, or the look on their face is unmistakable. Whatever it is that cues you in, chances are you've been aware of what is about to fill your baby's diaper. In today's episode, we'll talk about everything you need to know about this easy catch, and the steps to take once the grimacing begins.

Easy Catch #3 is my favorite catch. It's a simple catch with a high-reward, because who likes cleaning up a poopy diaper? Not me. Remember, after you listen, to tune in next time as I cover the last easy catch - Easy Catch #4.

You will hear:

  • About the many signals children may exhibit when they need to poop
  • Learn what to do and say once your child has signaled they need to poop
  • The sign language to use with an older child
  • How to cue your child to finish pooping
  • What to do if your child resists pooping on the potty
  • How to establish a pooping routine

Links and other resources mentioned today:

Easy Start Guide for EC (Free Download)

Go Diaper Free YouTube Channel

Top Hat Potty at TinyUndies.com

Download the transcript

If you can't listen to this episode right now (um, sleeping baby!?)...download and read the transcript here:

Transcript: Easy Catch #3 - Poop

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Have you tried Easy Catch #3? Please leave a comment below with your experience!

xx Andrea

Andrea Olson

About Andrea Olson

I'm Andrea and I spend most of my time with my 6 children (all under 12 yo) and the rest of my time teaching other new parents how to do Elimination Communication with their 0-18 month babies. I love what I do and try to make a difference in one baby or parent's life every single day. (And I love, love, love, mango gelato.)

25 Comments

  1. Avatar Tiffany on February 5, 2019 at 7:55 am

    This easy catch has always made the most sense to me. When I babysat as a kid, I always knew to wait for the baby to finish pooping – which was completely dumb! However, it is what I knew, so it is what I did. Fast forward to when I had my own kids – my first baby had blowouts EVERY. SINGLE. TIME. It was the most annoying diaper stage! I refused to take him anywhere without at least 2 or 3 extra outfits until he was out of the ebf stage.
    That was when I learned about EC. I looked into it, learned as much as I could with the resources I had, and determined I would do EC for my 2nd baby. My first was already too old, so I used another method of potty training for him.
    For my 2nd baby, I would’ve had the same regular blowouts (I know because of the 2 or 3 misses i have had on occasion) but instead I was able to just stick her on the potty. Blessed relief!
    Now that she is nearly 5 months old (we have EC’d from a few days old), she does not like to poop in her diaper. She will holler at me, hold it, stare me down, anything to get my attention when she’s about to poop. When I miss all that, she farts, and if I’ve missed anything it’s only about 10% of what she had to do and I can catch the rest on the potty. No more blowouts, happy baby, and hardly any poopy diapers

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on February 7, 2019 at 10:57 am

      Tiffany, thank you so much for sharing! This is a wonderful description of what it looks like without EC…and what it looks like with EC. Makes changing diapers vs. pottying an absolute no-brainer. I am so happy you discovered EC and were able to implement it with your 2nd. You gals are doing GREAT! xx Andrea

  2. Avatar Sarah on February 5, 2019 at 8:49 am

    I loved the term “stealth pooper.” That*s really what I have, a stealth pooper. This is not an easy catch for me.

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on February 7, 2019 at 11:12 am

      Fair enough! Our 2nd was a stealth pooper too and grew out of it. Hang in there!! xx Andrea

  3. Avatar Bethany on February 5, 2019 at 8:52 am

    Your bonus about how to explain EC without sounding crazy sounds great! :D I typically just “do my thing” and act like it’s normal and don’t really discuss it. But some tips about sharing about it could help others who would like to have better communication with their babies, better hygiene, and change fewer poopy diapers too!

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on February 7, 2019 at 11:12 am

      Oooooh Bethany then you’re gonna LOVE next week’s show! Feb 12. Tune in for sure. Can’t wait to share with you <3 Andrea

  4. Avatar Ricarda on February 5, 2019 at 9:09 am

    I started to offer the potty after every diaper change since birth of my 6 month old son and it was working great from the beginning. We almost don’t have to clean poppy diapers (and poopy clothes), which is great and makes outings more preductable. And it is real fun.

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on February 7, 2019 at 11:13 am

      Awesome, Ricarda! You guys are doing great – thank you so much for sharing! xx Andrea

  5. Avatar Shelley on February 5, 2019 at 11:17 am

    It was fun to see this was today’s email because I had just caught a poop in the top hat. It almost never happens though. I’m good at catches #1 and #2 but my girl (just shy of 6 months) leaves such a short length of time between when I realize she needs to and when she does it that I’m only likely to catch it if she’s already at the changing station. I’m going to have to the “wait” and see if we can learn that. I think part of the problem is that, while I’d love to have her use the potty I’m not keen on trying to switch from the diaper to the potty half way through. One small problem I’ve been trying to figure out is that she nearly always poops in twos or threes (i.e. poop, wait a minute or two, then poop again) and in the interval she is not very cooperative about staying still and I don’t want a top hat full of poop to be tipped up on the bedroom floor while she’s squirming. Any suggestions for keeping her still (-ish)? When she is on it to pee I accept the back arching as her signal that she’s done or doesn’t need to.

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on February 7, 2019 at 11:16 am

      Yeah Shelley, sometimes the arching could mean she’s working out the next “set.” I would try the sink if she is not on solids yet, or a mini potty with cozy (I have a new short one at https://tinyundies.com/minipotty). Definitely, at the least, try “wait.” But I always, always, always try to catch the rest of the poop in the potty after the baby has begun going in the diaper. Reason being…they begin to rely on that and will begin to wait for you. The squirming should also stop with age :) xx Andrea

  6. Avatar Hanneke on February 7, 2019 at 4:51 am

    Hoi Andrea
    Thanks for your great podcast again! Somehow I catch pee more easy then poop my 5 month old usaly poops when she sneezes ??. But I will do some observation again while she bottom free again to focus again on her signals!
    With my 2 year old. I almost always notice when she needs to poop but she always refuses to go on the toilet or potty. You said to give them privacy. What ab eye opener. Nwver thought that might be the trick!
    Thnx a lot. Can‘t wait for easy catch #4

    Hanneke

  7. Avatar Andrea Olson on February 7, 2019 at 11:17 am

    Hey Hanneke! So glad that the tips have helped with both your LOs! Yay. Hilarious that she poops when she sneezes…usually that is a “shart” (wet fart), and if you follow up with an offer of the potty, she will probably do the rest in it. Best wishes! xx Andrea

  8. Avatar Jenny on February 9, 2019 at 9:56 am

    Thanks for the podcast Andrea! I have a question for you, actually two. My daughter is almost 9 months old. I have had good success catching her poops because her grunting before hand is pretty obvious. However, sometimes she will give me a “no” when I put her on her mini potty after she has been grunting. I KNOW she is about to poop because of the grunting, but she won’t stay on the potty to “finish the job”. Do I try again in a few minutes, or try to switch her from the cloth diaper to the potty once she has already started to poop? Which leads me to my second question: I use the “wait” for the times she has already started to go, but what is the best way to get her dirty diaper off and put her on a potty? I’ve tried to clean her up some first and have been pooped on! I’ve also tried to take the diaper off and get her directly on the potty, but got poop everywhere. I don’t like to wait for her to finish pooping in her diaper to then have to clean her up, but I confess I have done so because juggling her, her clothes, and her dirty diaper seems like more than what I can handle with just two hands! Thanks for your advice.

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on February 12, 2019 at 1:21 pm

      Hi! I would definitely try the “walk around and talk about something else” technique with this LO. And if she is mid-poop and you’re asking her to wait, you will get the seat reducer or potty poopy, but you will also catch the rest. Oh, the # of times I’ve wiped down those receptacles with a bleach wipe! :) Hang in there! It will get better. xox Andrea

  9. Avatar Rebecca on April 21, 2019 at 10:26 am

    This easy catch got us started with EC! BUT.. we started at 12 months, so my son resisted and wanted to go in his diaper instead of the potty. So I let him. Then when he was done, I emptied the contents of the diaper into the toilet and we watched as it flushed away. Then, I the next day I was tired and just not as pumped about EC as I had been the day prior. So when I noticed he had to poop, I was going to let him use his diaper. But then he started hauling-baby-bum to the bathroom! And we haven’t looked back since! :)

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on April 22, 2019 at 12:09 pm

      That is an awesome story, Rebecca! Thanks so much for sharing how you started with this easy catch and had such a surprising journey with it…I can say I’ve never heard this before and I am super excited about it! :) xx Andrea

  10. Avatar Amelia on June 11, 2019 at 8:40 pm

    Hi Andrea
    I just started practicing part time ec with 5 month old exclusive breastfed baby by only trying to catch poop in the morning when she wakes up and in the evenings before bath. She seems to love her potty time as i face her in front of a mirror. Yay! Before ec, she was pooping during and after each feed, and does not really give cues. But lately, she hasn’t been going during the afternoon When i am out and about and only goes when i potty her. Is it bad that she is holding back her poop and will only do it on the potty? It might be hard for me to bring a potty along or being her to a toilet strong the day when we are out. Appreciate your thoughts on this!

    • Avatar Amelia on June 14, 2019 at 9:20 am

      A friend also just sent me this article- how valid are the views of this doctor?

      https://pottygenius.com/the-dangers-of-early-potty-training/

      The reason little ones who potty train as early as 2 years of age have more of the problems mentioned above than children who wait until they’re at least 3 years old is that they’re not mature enough to decide on their own when they should pee and poop. They don’t yet realize the importance of eliminating right when they feel the urge and eliminating completely. According to Dr. Hodges, every year of holding urine shrinks the bladder, making it more overactive.”

      • Avatar Andrea Olson on June 18, 2019 at 5:52 pm

        Hi Amelia! Unfortunately this article circulates often through parenting groups, EC groups, etc. Dr Hodges has a very skewed perspective since he is a urologist. By the time he sees kids, they have serious medical issues. EC is not potty training, it is perfectly okay for babies to use a back up. There is no pressure from the parent to only use a potty. Infants will not hold to the point of damaging themselves. If they need to go, it’ll happen. Keep in mind also that EC used to be the standard in the US, and is currently standard practice in many countries. There would be entire countries of people, entire generations in the US, with constipation and bathroom issues if EC caused problems. xx Andrea

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on June 18, 2019 at 5:34 pm

      Hi Amelia! At 5 months old she isn’t holding for the potty for very long. It’s more likely that her poop schedule has just changed. Newborns go very frequently, around her age things start to consolidate. If she really, really had to go, she would. xx Andrea

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on June 18, 2019 at 5:47 pm

      Hi Amelia! At 5 months old she will not hold to the point of hurting herself. If she really needs to poop, she will. Most likely her poop schedule has changed. It is very common for things to consolidate around her age and they go less frequently. xx Andrea

  11. Avatar Ashley on August 20, 2019 at 12:08 pm

    My baby (3 weeks) often seems to poop while breastfeeding. I don’t feel I can stop feeding him midway through to catch the poop though. Any advice for this? I have caught poop at other times but it seems like during breastfeeding is when he takes most of them

    • Avatar Ashley on August 20, 2019 at 12:10 pm

      I should add, I always offer a potty opportunity before feeding him.

    • Avatar Andrea Olson on September 18, 2019 at 9:05 pm

      Hi Ashley! This is very common in newborns. You can offer before if he isn’t fussy. If you pay attention you may notice he actually unlatches before going, then you could hold him over the potty. Another option is it’s actually pretty easy to nurse over a top hat potty so you can catch those poops. xx Andrea

  12. Avatar Pris on November 18, 2020 at 7:53 pm

    Hello! I just started EC with my 3.5 month old last week. So far she’s getting better at it! One problem I’m encountering is this: She sleeps in her own room and often poops first thing in the morning. Although I use a monitor, it never goes off in the morning because she just wakes up and plays in her crib for 15 minutes before fussing/crying. So I never catch her morning poops! Any suggestions?

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