It’s hard to believe this photo of Rachelle and baby Rocco almost never happened.
For most of us, soon after the birth of a baby, we discover that photos can be misleading. Parenthood is, we discover, not a nappy commercial. We discover the day-to-day reality is more messy,blurry and relentless than anyone ever described. We join a secret club with other parents and go around shaking our heads,making cynical comments to each other about ‘those’ photos of clean babies, gazing lovingly at mothers who look like they have just awoken from 8 hours of sleep and been dressed by a team of Vogue magazine stylists.
When there is a perfect moment – a special cuddle, a loving look, a smile, a sleeping baby – we whip out the camera phone to gather precious, precious evidence that there were, after all, at least some glimpses of connection, buried in the chaos and confusion of parenthood.
But, for Rachelle, her family’s hope of stealing a moment of perfection here and there, came crashing down at her 20 week scan.
Here is her story. Read More
My baby cried. A lot.
Soon after her birth, I discovered the biggest parenting in-joke: it’s the one (often accompanied with a roll of the eyes) about the wealth of advice we receive – lists, books, comments – which is usually contradictory and often unhelpful. In fact, one of my child health nurses would share the joke with me – I think in an attempt to help me relax and remember that wonderful platitude that “all babies are different” and I was just doomed to have a baby who cried. Read More
When I first learned about using infant massage as an intervention to support vulnerable families, I was completely unaware that (unlike midwifery, child health nursing and social work) infant massage is an unregulated occupation here in Australia. So, it was only pure luck that I happened to enrol in a course that met my needs and that had some evidence behind it. Read More
The growing trend of sending babies as young as two days old to “Baby Day Spas” has prompted calls from child health experts to be cautious about using such services, particularly those offering “infant massage”. Read More
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