You've covered most of the things we do so I'm racking my brains about what else! We cycle and walk most places (much easier in the town we live in than in most places!). We don't use mattresses or pillows. We have a small house so can't accumulate much stuff and we really value having space. And we only have herbivore pets!
Okay I had previously read your piece about EC and really enjoyed it! Considering trying it out for baby #3. You made it sound a lot easier than I’ve encountered in the past.
I’d love to hear more about no mattresses or pillows.
We use a shikibuton that that the kiddos share (with each other but also with dad if he falls sleep putting them to bed lol). It’s made entirely from organic cotton and wool, and sits on tatami mats. It’s great for cosleeping and breastfeeding at night because it’s so firm but still comfy, but unfortunately I find it very uncomfortable when my relaxin levels are high - my hips get totally out of shape. But my husband and kids love it! Luckily we’ve been gifted secondhand conventional mattresses in great shape so I have something else to get me through pregnancy and breastfeeding. But part of what motivated me to purchase it was that I knew most Japanese moms coslept so researching that sent me down a very fun rabbit hole. I feel like if we could afford a second one and to stack them I might find it more comfortable.
Also, I never thought of this but we have pet rabbits and they are basically living composters — their poop is so good for the garden!
Oh I went back to a mattress when I was pregnant, but then I really enjoyed moving back onto a very thin mat. I never thought that I'd feel snuggly on the mat, but I do!
I will write about the effects on the neck of pillows (tl;dr - most people in our culture have heads that hang forwards from their bodies. Take a look around - you'll start noticing a lot of people who have their chins lower than their shoulders. This is a big problem for normal musculoskeletal movement. We tend to blame it all on looking down at devices, and that's certainly a major contributor, but pillows also reduce neck movement and neck strength. Without a pillow, people tend to sleep in a much broader range of positions, allowing their bodies to better stretch during the muscle relaxation of sleep.
So for kids especially, we figured that it's easier to start them in a way that will help them in the long-term, rather than try to course-correct later on.
Also would love to hear about your EC journey, if you try! it honestly is great no matter how much effort you put into it - you just get different levels of good outcomes. I have friends who've done loads, and done very little, but even a tiny bit is so much better than none. :)
I love this! What a great list! Thank you so much for writing!
We used the wool shell for diapers in the flaparap style because we did elimination communication, and my friend made me these incredible boiled wool outers that I lanolinised! I've got an article on it here: https://open.substack.com/pub/guenbradbury/p/better-baby-bottom-cleaning?utm_source=share&utm_medium=android&r=4bpym1
You've covered most of the things we do so I'm racking my brains about what else! We cycle and walk most places (much easier in the town we live in than in most places!). We don't use mattresses or pillows. We have a small house so can't accumulate much stuff and we really value having space. And we only have herbivore pets!
Okay I had previously read your piece about EC and really enjoyed it! Considering trying it out for baby #3. You made it sound a lot easier than I’ve encountered in the past.
I’d love to hear more about no mattresses or pillows.
We use a shikibuton that that the kiddos share (with each other but also with dad if he falls sleep putting them to bed lol). It’s made entirely from organic cotton and wool, and sits on tatami mats. It’s great for cosleeping and breastfeeding at night because it’s so firm but still comfy, but unfortunately I find it very uncomfortable when my relaxin levels are high - my hips get totally out of shape. But my husband and kids love it! Luckily we’ve been gifted secondhand conventional mattresses in great shape so I have something else to get me through pregnancy and breastfeeding. But part of what motivated me to purchase it was that I knew most Japanese moms coslept so researching that sent me down a very fun rabbit hole. I feel like if we could afford a second one and to stack them I might find it more comfortable.
Also, I never thought of this but we have pet rabbits and they are basically living composters — their poop is so good for the garden!
Oh I went back to a mattress when I was pregnant, but then I really enjoyed moving back onto a very thin mat. I never thought that I'd feel snuggly on the mat, but I do!
I've written a bit about the benefits of mildly uncomfortable sleep environments for children to enable them to develop healthy thresholds for sleep throughout adulthood - https://open.substack.com/pub/guenbradbury/p/sleeping-like-a-log?
I will write about the effects on the neck of pillows (tl;dr - most people in our culture have heads that hang forwards from their bodies. Take a look around - you'll start noticing a lot of people who have their chins lower than their shoulders. This is a big problem for normal musculoskeletal movement. We tend to blame it all on looking down at devices, and that's certainly a major contributor, but pillows also reduce neck movement and neck strength. Without a pillow, people tend to sleep in a much broader range of positions, allowing their bodies to better stretch during the muscle relaxation of sleep.
So for kids especially, we figured that it's easier to start them in a way that will help them in the long-term, rather than try to course-correct later on.
Also would love to hear about your EC journey, if you try! it honestly is great no matter how much effort you put into it - you just get different levels of good outcomes. I have friends who've done loads, and done very little, but even a tiny bit is so much better than none. :)
And yay - here's to herbivore pets! :D