Or, subscribe via email
Supporting
The American Academy of Pediatrics has released new recommendations with respect to autism screenings. In a new report to be released next month in the journal Pediatrics the AAP will discuss new recommendations that children be screened for autism twice before the age of two. The rate of autism is on the rise in the United States, 1 in 150 children is autistic; early detection and thus early treatment have been found to help families lessen the severity of the disorder. The new recommendations will allow parents and pediatricians recognize the disorder earlier and start treatment at a much earlier age.
As with any new recommendations the AAP recognizes that this new autism screening recommendation will likely cause people to over react, but the idea is to give parents and pediatricians the information necessary to recognize potential autism indicators and make accurate diagnoses.
Here are just a few of the things parents can look for in their children that may indicate autism and a need to talk further with their pediatrician:
- Babies who don’t babble at age 9 months
- Babies who don’t smile in response to mom and dad’s voice at age 4 months
- 1 year olds who don’t point to toys
Parents are cautioned not to overreact and assume that just because your child exhibits one or even several of the common indicators of autism that your child automatically is autistic. The idea is to make sure parents have the knowledge to recognize when further discussion with their pediatrician is warranted and when further screening is likely necessary. There is a great website that has been set up by two nonprofit organizations, Autism Speaks and First Signs, that contains video clips of children with autism compared to children who are not autistic, it is a great resource.
Parents are their child’s best advocate. Recommendations like this new one being released by the AAP are designed to open the doors to more discussion between parents and pediatiricians and to make changes to the current way of thinking and acting in order to best help children with autism. The early it is recognized and the early treatment can start the better it is for the child and the family.
For more information on Autism visit the following websites:
My due date is just around the corner, I can’t believe there are only about 3 weeks left. We are busy trying to get the nursery put together, hopefully that’ll be done this week sometime. I don’t procrastinate and am one of those people who has to have everything done early, be on time (or early) to everything, and the fact that the nursery is not done yet is driving me a little crazy. But I’m dealing with it.
My last day of work is this Friday. I’ll be a stay at home mom (for a while anyway) and I can’t wait. I’m glad I decided to take a couple of weeks to relax before the baby arrives, provided, of course, she doesn’t decide to come early! It will be nice to get a few things done around the house, prepare and freeze a few meals for us and just spend some quality time with myself. I know a lot of women don’t get the opportunity to do that so I am very grateful.
My husband and I attended our first childbirth preparation class yesterday, it is a two part class so next Saturday is our other class. The class was pretty good, we learned a few things and got to take a tour of the maternity ward, which is just beautiful. You should see the security system they have set up to prevent baby abductions. I know most hospitals here in the US have these fancy systems now but I really had no idea how high tech they were. We got to see the nursery too. The babies were adorable. Soon we’ll have one of those!
I have been very lucky so far and haven’t had much, if any, of the third trimester aches and pains. Hopefully with only a few weeks to go I’ll get to miss out on that part! I have had a back ache every now and then, nothing too bad though. I’m not sick of being pregnant yet, and everyone seems to think I should be by this point. To me it is still fun, and totally amazing.
Time to get back to working on the nursery 
My husband and I attended a breastfeeding class last night at the hospital we will be delivering at. The class was lead by a nurse/lactation consultant. It was really a fantastic class and I would highly recommend you plan on attending a similar type class if you are planning on breastfeeding, or even if you are just interested in getting more information so you can make an informed decision.
The class, as I mentioned, was lead by a lactation consultant. She has spent most of her career in the lactation field and is very passionate about breastfeeding. She had a lot of knowledge and information to share with us, complete with stories about actual patients she helped. Her knowledge on the subject and her obvious wealth of experience really made me feel comfortable.
The attendees were mostly first time parents, however, there was one second time mom. The class really is beneificial no matter how many children you have. Things in the world of babies, pregnancy, parenting, etc are always changing so these classes can serve as great refreshers even if you have done it before. Most of the women in the class had already made the choice to breastfeed and were there to learn more about the techniques, the common problems and their solutions, where to go for help and what to expect. One of the moms had not yet decided, she was attending the class to get more information on breastfeeding so she could make an informed decision about what feeding method was best for her (I’m not sure what she decided to do but like the rest of us, I’m sure she got a lot out of the class).
I had heard that sometimes these classes can make a mom feel bad if she decides to opt for a feeding method other than breastfeeding. Our instructor definitely drove the point home that breast milk is best but she made sure to acknowledge that it is not always the right choice for every mother. She took the time to tell the undecided mom in our class that no matter what she decided to do she would be making the right decision. I think this is a very important message to get across. It is important that moms not feel guilty if they cannot or choose not to breastfeed.
A few of the really helpful things we addressed in class were:
- What services the hospital provides after labor and how to get the assistance of a lactation consultant once you get home.
- Recommendations for breast pumps, an especially important purchase for working moms.
- Information about the various holding techniques and which ones seem to work best for most moms.
- How to get your baby latched on correctly and what to look for so you know you have done it right.
- Common problems moms run into and how to correct them.
- The physiology of lactation.
If you haven’t signed up yet for a breastfeeding class I would highly recommend it (encourage your husband to go with you cause he’ll learn a thing or two as well). You can learn a lot by reading the many books out there and doing research on the internet, but there is something to be said for learning from a true expert and from the other moms in the class. No matter how much reading and research we do we always have questions and the class setting is a great way to get answers. Plus, other moms in the class may think of things to ask about that you hadn’t thought of.
Ask you doctor or midwife for recommendations on breastfeeding classes available in your area. Most hospitals seem to offer some kind of breastfeeding class, usually lead by their nurses or staff lactation consultants. You can also ask other moms for recommendations.
The decision of whether to stay home with your baby or to return to work is a hard one and one that has many variables to consider (most of which are out of your control). Stay at home moms are often pitted against working moms in the media, as if there is some battle between the two, as if one choice is really better than the other. But the decision is a very personal one and the choice you make will be the right one for you.
When trying to decide whether to stay home or return to work the mother and her partner must look at many factors. Here are just a few of the things to consider when making this very important decision.
- What option would I prefer? You need to ask yourself this question first because it may eliminate a lot of the other questions. If you don’t want to stay home, if returning to work is important to you than you don’t need to give it much more thought.
- What option does my partner prefer? Talk about your differences of opinion and work together to meet at a decision what makes both of you feel comfortable.
- What is our financial situation? Together with your partner you will need to take a very detailed look at your budget, at what you bring in now versus what you will bring in after the baby (assuming both staying home and returning to work). Determine what the budget tells you. If you can afford to stay home and really want to stay home then this is a viable option for you.
- Do you want to stay home full time or part time? If you want to stay home full time and can afford, great. If you want to stay home only part time, either for financial or personal reasons, you will need to determine what your options are. Talk to your employer about the part time options available for your position, what that would entail and what difference it would make in your pay and benefits.
- If you return to work full time after the baby is born what daycare options are available to you? This is important to research as part of this decision as it may sway you one way or the other if you are still on the fence. Look at the options available to you, what the costs of the various options are, and how those costs fit into your budget.
As I stated earlier the decision to stay home or return to work is a very personal one. You don’t always have a say since many women find themselves in a personal or financial situation that requires them to return to work, such as single moms. If you have a choice be sure to consider all aspects of the decision carefully before making your choice. You may find that when you ask yourself the question “Do I want to continue working?” the answer is a resounding yes. Talk to your partner, this is a decision you need to make together.
This will be a hard decision to make, particularly if the budget is tight but you really want to stay home. It is important to contemplate this subject early and do as much research as you can so you can feel comfortable with the ultimate decision.
What did you do to decide if you would stay home or return to work after your baby? What part of the decision did you find hardest? Are you happy with the choice you made?
Skin to skin contact between a mother (or father) and a premature infant has shown time and time again to be therapeutic for the infant (and the parents). This care, commonly referred to as kangaroo care, is used to help with the bonding between parents and an infant that is in the neonatal intensive care unit, the infant’s heart and respiratory rates, and to help with the infant’s own body temperature regulation. Infants are not well equipped to regulate their own body temperature, premature infants are worse off and often times cannot regulate their own body temperature. It has been found that kangaroo care helps aid the infant’s body in learning to regulate its own body temperature through the skin to skin contact with their parent. One of the milestones a premature infant must meet before being released from the nicu is being able to regulate their own body temperature so kangaroo care is very important. This skin to skin contact is a common practice in most (if not all) hospitals now, what a great way to aid in your baby’s development and eventual release.
Most of the focus of skin to skin contact has been conducted on premature infants since they have the most to gain from the practice. However, a few years ago researchers with the American Academy of Pediatrics began to look into the benefits of kangaroo care on full term infants. The research found that newborns who practice kangaroo care with their mother immediately following birth were better able to transition from the womb to the real world. This transition from the nice, comfortable, warm womb to the loud, bright and cold real world is very traumatic for infants. Kangaroo care is a great way for a mother to help her child with that transition and make it a little easier for them.
Skin to skin contact between parent and child is something you can continue even after you get home. Babies spend a lot of time all wrapped up in clothing and blankets (which is good cause as I stated before they don’t regulate their own body temperature well), but it often results in a loss of that skin to skin contact. Breastfeeding mothers have the advantage of getting a little skin to skin contact each time they nurse. It is a great bonding tool, and very comforting to both parent and child so give it a try sometime if you haven’t already.