Joy in Birthing

Articolo in Italiano

Most parents say that swaddling helps their babies get to sleep, stay asleep, and get comforted quickly, especially when they are newborns. My problem with this is that the focus is on getting the baby to shut up, settle, be quiet so he/she can be put down in  his/her crib on his own. Does this reminds you of an old adage, seen but not heard. BTW that is not the intention of those who suggest swaddling to quiet a fussy baby, but many parents have interpreted this way.  We even hear comments such as,” My baby used to sleep two to three hours at the time, but now after swaddling he will sleep up to five!”  First of all if that is a newborn that is NOT good.  A newborn should never sleep that long without feeding. Holding a baby  or even putting him down without swaddling will allow the baby to wake up when he is hungry, keeping the natural rhythm of breastfeeding. At times swaddling will put the baby into such a deep sleep that he might make him  skip important feedings and lose weight.

A baby will fall asleep in mom’s arms just as quickly.  A baby will sleep on dad’s chest just as sweetly, without needing to feel like he is back in the womb.  We are too quick to try to get our newborn to stop crying, or communicating. Have you ever thought about how crying for a baby is really talking? Babies speak one language we don’t quite understand right away, so we quickly respond by shushing, telling the baby “don’t cry,” and we are told that if we turn on vacuum cleaners or hairdryers we’ll see the baby’s gaze switch and they will quiet down. Yes, indeed that works, but what about allowing the baby to talk?  Now I don’t mean we should let a baby cry on his/her own, but have you heard how after a few weeks a mom will hear a baby cry and say, “I know that cry, he is hungry.  Or he needs to be changed. “  Mom’s eventually learn their babies language. So let’s change our perception from the baby is crying to the baby is talking, and let’s ask the baby what he/she needs as we offer, food, comfort, cuddle, empathy and love.

This being said one of the reasons why the swaddling methods, as well as the shushing methods, have come to the forefront is because those are tools we should use when our baby cry is making a mom go deeper into postpartum depression, or is making the baby being at risk of being miss-handled by a frustrated parent.  So, if you feel like you need a break or you will go mad, PLEASE SWADDLE your baby and turn on the vacuum cleaner.  Or better call a postpartum doula and go for a walk.  Don’t feel bad if you find yourself frustrated especially from the lack of sleep.  We all felt that way, and the quieting techniques have grown from the empathy felt by some experts for new moms.  But these techniques have become the norm, the crutch nearly used daily, instead of being the exception, the tool used in only special occasions.

So if you can, and I am only asking to put aside a few months of your life for this: hold your baby, go ahead it is O.K. you are not going to spoil her, in fact you might just teach her that what she says counts and you will listen.

“If your only goal were to get your baby to sleep through the night, then leaving him to cry would accomplish that goal. The problem is that the reason the baby stops crying and sleeps is that he becomes so discouraged he gives up trying to signal that he needs help. In effect, he has learned to sleep through the night……… out of despair rather than contentment.” ~ Dr. Martha Heineman Pieper, Author of Smart Love

Come and learn the Baby Right Method with Giuditta Tornetta

Baby Care Workshop

Every Last Saturday of the Mo0nth
1:00 pm to 4:00 pm

Baby Right is a baby care workshop facilitated by birth and postpartum doula Giuditta Tornetta the last Saturday of every month at the Sanctuary Birthing Center in Culver Cit.

In this workshop you will learn:

• How to welcome your baby into the world – the first few hours
• Baby appearance at birth
• Bathing, diapering,
• Soothing techniques, understanding baby’s language
• To swaddle or not to swaddle,
• Baby gear what you should have,
• Introducing your pets to the newborn
• How to create daily rituals that will last a life-time – family dinner – the nighttime ritual
• Understanding baby’s language, cues and moods
• Babymoon how to enlist family and friends to help

COST $ 85 per couple

TO ENROLL:

Call the Birth Sanctuary          310… (please tell them you saw the class on our website)

Read more about Baby Right

Here’s what people say:

“In my pediatric practice, I have witnessed the wonderful work that Ms. Tornetta’s does with my families. I love her work!” – Jay Gordon, MD., Associate Professor of Pediatrics, UCLA Medical School

“Giuditta, a pre- and post-natal Doula, has helped many families learn about Natural deliveries and much more. I highly recommend her.” Edmond Sarraf MD  Beverly Hills Pediatrics