Media Review: Keeping your child in mind: Overcoming defiance, tantrums, and other everyday behavior problems by seeing the world through your child’s eyes

Keeping your child in mind: Overcoming defiance, tantrums, and other everyday behavior problems by seeing the world through your child’s eyes

By Claudia Gold, MD

Written by a child psychologist, this book covers a broad range of parenting challenges with a unifying approach:  holding your child in mind.  In essence, as you recognize the thoughts & emotions behind your child’s behavior, you help them develop the ability to regulate themselves.  Each chapter focuses on a specific age (from baby to teen) and combines real-life examples with in-depth explanations of child development research.  The book offers no quick-fix solutions.  Instead, the author helps parents understand how their own childhood experiences and their current emotions affect their relationship with their child, enabling parents to lay aside these things in order to see their child’s perspective.  Once a child feels understood, they have a sense of security that results in improved behavior. 

Media Review: Potty training girls the easy way: A stress-free guide to helping your daughter learn quickly

Potty training girls the easy way: A stress-free guide to helping your daughter learn quickly

By Caroline Fertleman, MD & Simone Cave

This quick read provides a gentle, laid-back plan for potty training.  By starting with 1-hour sessions that celebrate each small milestone, then extending the length and number of sessions as desired over a couple weeks, girls learn to use the toilet in a positive, pressure-free way.  As if having a conversation with a trusted friend, this book offers practical advice on every aspect of potty training:  knowing when your daughter is physically & mentally ready, shopping for supplies, responding to accidents, using public restrooms, sleeping without diapers, troubleshooting and more.  The checklists and short “scripts” for what to say are especially handy.  Best of all is the reassuring, relaxed tone of the book and the potty training plan.  When your daughter is ready and the experience is positive, she can progress quickly out of diapers and into a confident big girl.

"Great Expectations" Childbirth Preparation Classes at Parents' Place

by Simone Snyder CMT, CD, ICCE

There are many reasons why expectant parents should enroll in a childbirth education class.  Not only do you get to learn about what to expect during pregnancy, labor and postpartum but you get to socialize and learn from and with other expectant couples. The goal of any childbirth preparation class is to provide information so that individuals are able to make informed decisions-the result of any childbirth preparation class is just plain old fun!

Every childbirth class is different, each educator brings her own style, method, and life experience to the class.  As a childbirth educator myself I see great value in learning from and observing other educators teach and interact with her students.  I was excited to find out upon moving to the area that in addition to all the wonderful classes Parents' Place offers-childbirth preparation was also on the list.  The classes are taught by Tricia Williams, RN and this is what she had to say about her classes...


The Saturday Childbirth Class is one day, from 9-12, then 1-4.  We see many good films, some with wonderful animation to show the stages of labor and the changes of the cervix during this process.  I like this film because, as we talk about the process of labor, I like this visual because it is powerful for to visualize this process while in labor because it helps women look inside their body and work with the contractions.  They can see that the contraction is pushing the baby down, and pulling up, dilating the cervix and effacing it. After working for 20+ years with women, I found this to be a very powerful visualization, not to be done before labor begins. We talk about the fear of pain, what is it that they fear?  If they have never been in labor it is speculative, so why not stop listening to the negative stories from friends and TV, and start telling themselves they can give birth and see themselves breathing that baby down into their arms. 

We talk about interventions, see a film on all of the interventions, and talk about them, "Plan B" if they have a cesarean section that they need  to plan appropriately. Then we practice almost an hour of breathing and relaxation exercises as well as hands on comfort measures that dads and support can do to help moms. I give the a recipe for Laborade, an electrolyte drink they can make themselves, how to talk to their doctor, research interventions and ask about risks and benefits. What do they do if labor slows down, mom has back labor?  If mom has an epidural, there are still things she can do to help the baby move.  When it is time to rest, when it is time to actively participate in your labor?

If you ever get the  chance to just sit and talk with a childbirth educator or doula you can just feel the passion for what she does radiating off of her and that is what I sense from Tricia as well. If you or someone you know is pregnant I highly recommend enrolling in the "Great Expectations" childbirth preparation class.  Not only will you learn a great deal you will leave feeling empowered and supported.

The next class is November 19th.  Please contact Parents' Place for more information. 

I have also included some articles on the importance of childbirth classes and how to pick the best class for you.

Mothering
http://www.mothering.com/pregnancy-birth/choosing-childbirth-education-class

Lamaze
http://www.lamaze.org/IntheNews/NewsReleases/FiveTipsforChoosingaChildbirthEducationClas/tabid/957/Default.aspx

Birthsource
http://www.birthsource.com/scripts/article.asp?articleid=193