Re:How to Calm a Crying Baby Like a Mesopotamian
by DoreenMichele on Saturday May 04, 2019 @07:15AM
(#19825765)
Overall, I really like your comments here and generally agree with you about what is going on.
The problem is that it actively fosters a callous and ignorant attitude. It would be much better to tell parents "Sometimes we don't know and won't figure it out because babies are growing and developing so fast that it's a really fast moving target. So sometimes they outgrow the problem before we can confidently identify the cause of the crying."
Telling parents that crying is normal and should simply be accepted breaks an important feedback system. Crying is always an indicator of distress. Sometimes it's mild distress that is readily resolved with a nap, but it is always an indicator of distress. No parent should ever be told otherwise while we try to find ways to help them calm down and so forth.
Parents I knew who accepted the colic explanation in infancy continued to be insensitive and ignorant parents at later stages of development as well. They didn't magically grow more sensitive, attentive to the needs of the child and proactive just because the child got older and learned to talk.
So I think the practice of telling parents it is colic and babies just cry sometimes is generally a bad education practice.
The problem is that it actively fosters a callous and ignorant attitude. It would be much better to tell parents "Sometimes we don't know and won't figure it out because babies are growing and developing so fast that it's a really fast moving target. So sometimes they outgrow the problem before we can confidently identify the cause of the crying."
Telling parents that crying is normal and should simply be accepted breaks an important feedback system. Crying is always an indicator of distress. Sometimes it's mild distress that is readily resolved with a nap, but it is always an indicator of distress. No parent should ever be told otherwise while we try to find ways to help them calm down and so forth.
Parents I knew who accepted the colic explanation in infancy continued to be insensitive and ignorant parents at later stages of development as well. They didn't magically grow more sensitive, attentive to the needs of the child and proactive just because the child got older and learned to talk.
So I think the practice of telling parents it is colic and babies just cry sometimes is generally a bad education practice.