Nasal Aspirator. Suction Bulb. Bulb Syringe. Snot Sucker (my kids’ favorite).
Whatever you call it, I know you are familiar with it.
It’s just a standard thing that is used on babies. In fact it has to be used, right? And why WOULDN’T you want to use it? Besides the fact that no one dreams about one of these coming at them.
Many women have come to think of having low energy and foggy thinking as an unfortunate but unavoidable side effect of pregnancy. Luckily, this could not be further from the truth. It’s possible to have a vibrant, energetic pregnancy if you provide your body with the right fuels to accomplish that. While it is rarely [...]
Swaddling a baby….it’s a time tested practice that everyone should do, isn’t it?
Turns out it may not be so great. Personally, I never did it. I tried once or twice with my first, but quickly threw it aside when I saw just how much my baby didn’t like it and how it wasn’t conducive to breastfeeding or snuggling. Then with my other four, I never ever got the urge because I saw zero benefits to doing it.
Also of note, that the first thing that my non medicated doula clients do after being handed their babies back (after weighing and measuring) is unwrap the baby from the swaddled blanket. NOT swaddling seems apparently is an instinct, which is not a surprise given all the benefits of skin to skin care.
According to this great article, you are actually putting your baby at risk by swaddling her.
And because she is tired, distracted by her baby, and just done with working, she is at her most vulnerable and a lot of times will consent to 3rd stage pitocin just to get staff to shut up so she can focus on her baby. But for those moms who continue to hold their ground, and refuse pitocin, they’ve then got the nurse coming in every 5 minutes to ” fundal massage” (what masochist came up with that word to describe it?). With my last client, in fact, the nurse dug so deep when she did this external kneading that I swear she was touching my client’s spine. Of course my client was jumping all over the place simultaneously trying to hold and nurse her infant. And then the nurses will say, “You know, if you’d just do the pitocin, I wouldn’t have to do this.”
We put a lot of unrealistic, artificial expectations on our babies.
New parents seem to be surprised and disappointed when by 6 months their babies aren’t speaking in full sentences and independently potty trained. Okay, maybe I’m being a little extreme, but if I hear one more parent lament how their babies just can’t seem to go to sleep on their own or feed less than every 2 hours I’m going to scream!
It seems as though back in the 70′s we weren’t as uptight about breastfeeding as we are today. As much as I love this clip, and love that Sesame Street promoted breastfeeding then, when breastfeeding rates are lower than they are now, I have my doubts that they would be able to do this in [...]
The phrase “you are what you eat” really is true, according to a new study published in the online journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences regarding the benefits of breastfeeding. Researchers have determined that baby boys who are breastfed during the first six months of their lives–who also gain the most weight during this crucial developmental period–grow up to be stronger and more masculine than men who are undernourished.
I believe they are intelligent and are doing their best with the limited information they have been given. Unfortunately, some of that information for which they hinge their practice and philosophy on is based on half truths and deceit.
The truth is that vaccines have side effects, sometimes very serious and fatal.
The truth is that the benefits of vaccines are inflated while the risks of the illnesses are overstated and the risks of the vaccines are almost entirely buried.
“It’s your social responsibility to vaccinate so that outbreaks don’t happen.”
“You sure are selfish to make others take the risks associated with vaccines and you benefit from their sacrifice. It’s because of us who vaccinate that your unvaccinated kid isn’t sick or dead”
“My kid is immuno compromised, if you don’t vaccinate yours and my child dies from an illness your kid develops, that makes you a murderer.”
Yep, it’s true…these are all things I have really heard. Guilt, fear, coercion, what a way to make a responsible and informed decision, no?
