Q. ::iam NOT trying to sound like a le leche freak, or post holier than thou questions::
Health reasons aside, why choose bottles over breast?
I jsut got done reading something with the world census thing, and doing a little research. America has the HIGHEST infant mortality rate of all the industrialized nations. Thats insane, and they say its because all other countries tend to have much higher rates of breastfeeding verses formula.
I think its unfair that hospitals and doctors dont provide education and support to moms. Every mom wants to provide the very best, and its not fair that commercial entities and cultural taboo's are allowed to steal the best from our children.
On top of all that, some states and counties are MAKING IT ILLEGAL to nurse in public.. WTF?!
It just bothers me that we cant provide the best.
People in saudi arabia have healthier babies than us for cripes sake. Theres something wrong here.
Honestly i have to admit that I decided to nurse because it was cheaper. It wasnt until my son was born and I was crying in pain with every feeding that I researched it and found out how good it is and decided to tough it out.
So its not like I did it for his sake in the start. I was just one of those uneducated masses. Because no one offers education on this stuff. I had to google it on my own.
A. Bless you for writing this!
I made a big mistake with our son and breastfeeding/colic
I was uneducated with our son- though I thought I was. He took right to breastfeeding. He did well- but he had colic while I was nursing him. I changed my diet, watched what I ate- and still he had colic. I was told by our ped. at that time that "breastfed babies don't get colic". He handed us some soy formula and said "this will work." So, I listened- BIG MISTAKE- HUGE!!! Our baby cried for 5 hours when I was nursing him every night. On soy- he cried for 18 hours a day. I didn't know that you could put them back on the breast. I didn't know that the breastmilk would make it easier for him with colic. I had thought it was me and my milk that was causing him problems. I swore that any baby that we had following would be breastfed- and have done so. Our baby is just a year old and is still breastfed- 3 times a day. She has only been sick one time- she caught pink eye from me. She is far ahead on the charts for development.
So, some of it is lack of education.
Some of it is our perception of breasts in America- they are veiwed as "sexual objects" instead of as what they are for- to feed our babies.
Women are frowned upon for nursing past the first year.
Women are frowned upon for nursing in public. I will nurse our baby when and wherever she needs to eat.
For some women it is hard to nurse- they have pain. It is NORMAL and it passes.
Others have milk supply issues- these can be fixed. Still, it is O.K. to combine formula with breastmilk once baby is on the breast and is accostomed to the feeds.
Breastfeeding is easy- it is always ready.
Initially, babies want to nurse all the time. THIS PASSES! The first 6 weeks are the hardest- but it goes so fast.
I guess if I lived in an area that had laws passed not to nurse in public, I would get arrested. I have heard people say, "Nurse in your car." Sure- in 95 degree heat- IS THAT WISE??? Or, here in NY- in the freezing cold. Crazy!
Or: Nurse in the bathroom- nice- would you want to eat in a smelly bathroom???
Once, when nursing our baby in Toys R Us a family from India passed- they had a 5 month old baby and an older son. The dad and I had a nice talk- as I sat there covered and nursing our baby who was only 8 weeks old. He said that in his country women who are nursing are worshipped because they are passing on the next generations health and well-being. He told me not to hide in an aisle. I felt so good after talking to him and his wife. He was offended by the views on women who nurse in this country- and could not comprehend it.
Likewise, it is frowned upon to nurse here in public- when nothing can be seen. I had that experience recently- and it's the very thought that a baby is nursing under a blanket that is just a horrid thought to some- ridiculous! I receive more dirty looks from women than from men.
Many doctors are also not pushing breastfeeding- as did ours 10 years ago. If someone had told me, "he has colic- but he'd have it anyway, KEEP NURSING..." I would have. I didn't have the support or the internet to help.
NOTE: I work full-time and have been nursing for a year- I pump 3 times at work and once before I leave. Both babies were tongue-tied- our youngest still is and nursed fine.
So...good for you for bringing this up- and thanks for listening!
What are some Montessorri activities I can do with my 4 month old?
Q. I am looking for some activities that I can do with my 4 month old that are Montessori-inspired. Right now I am working on getting her to roll over, to reach for toys that are dangled in front of her, and to spend more time on her tummy for more head control. Any ideas?
A. I don't have a lot of infant ideas, since I teach 3-6 year olds.
I would recommend this book:
http://astore.amazon.com/monteblog-20/detail/0805211128
Really, what I would suggest, thinking about Montessori, is your actual environment. Not so much specific activities, but I would look and see whether the environment is set up for the child. When your daughter is old enough to crawl, is everywhere she crawls safe for her?
Right now, language is playing a huge role in development. Not that she'll start talking, but it is important to make sure you talk to her a lot, sing and play games, and she sees positive communication from you.
What can cause abnormally fast strength and skill development in infants?
Q. My 10 week old infant has been gaining certain abilities at a very fast rate. He started trying to lift his head the day after he was born. At 3 weeks old he had full control of his head and learned how to roll over from his tummy to his back. At 7.5 weeks he started trying to roll from his back to his stomach. At 8 weeks he started trying to crawl. He can't get his knees under him but he manages to travel across the designated play spot at a very slow pace. He hates tummy time and fights to get out of the position which results in the rolling over and crawling. I try to encourage play with toys because tummy time is good for him but he just screams so he has gotten limited practice. At 10 weeks he can almost sit, has full control of his back, can roll from tummy to back, can almost roll from back to tummy, and is in the process of gaining skills to crawl. He also has a very strong grip and very strong legs. When we are holding him he tries to stand on our laps. If he is laying down and holding our hands, if we try to pull our hands away, instead of him letting go he holds on and his whole body comes up with us.
What causes this abnormal amount of strength and skill development?
How can I get him to have more tummy time without screaming his head off?
Is this considered a birth defect?
This is not me thinking my child is special or trying to brag. Some of the stuff he's doing typically doesn't occur till 5 months or later. I'm asking what can cause this and if it's reason for concern.
Then why did the doctor say he's very strong for his age? He also said it was abnormal for him to have full control of his head. I've also had other parents saying it's weird and how their kids couldn't do this. He can crawl it's just very slow and not up on hands and knees. I read that kids don't roll from tummy to back till 5 months and back to stomach even later and he did it at 3 weeks and gets 3/4 over from back to tummy. So I wanted to know if he can hurt himself or if there is something wrong.
A. Your baby is on a normal development track. Being "almost" able to do something is not the same as doing it. He does not have full control of his back if he can not sit unsupported. Babies try to make the motions of crawling often for months before actually being able to do so. Rolling over can easily occur early depending on the muscles he is using to accomplish the task. I am not trying to minimize your son's performance, but from a developmental standpoint he is not so advanced that you have need to worry about something being wrong. Just let him develop at his own pace.
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