As a new parent it’s just instinct now: something is “wrong” with your baby so you search for the expert opinion of “someone” online.
Baby doesn’t want to eat every couple hours.
She’s spitting up more than I think she should!
Baby prefers to sleep on her stomach instead of back!
He won’t follow a nap schedule!
Is his poop supposed to look like that???
Being a new parent is stressful enough – throw in an internet search and you end up with result after result of some internet expert that says your child has some sort of rare intestinal disease because their dirty diaper doesn’t exactly resemble the “normal” 4 month old’s diaper.
Talk about a whole new level of stress never felt by anyone!
Of course your next step is to call the pediatrician to schedule an urgent appointment to take care of this rare disease that is plaguing your baby only to hear a slight chuckle on the other end of the phone.
Ummm…excuse me!?!? Why aren’t you taking this situation as seriously as you should be!?!?
Well, because it probably isn’t that serious.
With the internet at our fingertips and with us constantly on our phones and tablets, it is overly easy to look up everything…and I mean everything these days.
When my little lady was 2 months old, I was convinced that she had some serious valve development problem because of the amount and frequency of her spitting up. At least, that’s what the “experts” said online! Turns out she’s just a really, really gassy baby.
Being a new parent has taught me that you just need to roll with whatever comes at you (figuratively and literally)! It’s a pretty scary feeling being responsible for that little person’s life, but you’re the best one to do it. No one else knows your baby the way you do and can figure out their cues as to what they need. Sometimes it’s just trial and error to see what calms down your baby’s crying.
Searching for the answer online will only stress you out, make you worry unnecessarily, and take time away from your babe. Babies are not one-size-fits-all. What may be true for one baby is not for another. As the parent, you know best. If you feel that something really is wrong, call the pediatrician. Don’t let some looney online tell you what’s going on according to whatever made up reasoning they have.
I know, I know, there are some legitimately helpful websites and info out there – but still take it all with a grain of salt. Notice how on websites they say *not all babies develop the same… there’s a reason for that!
So set that phone down, turn off the tablet, quit scouring the internet for an answer that’s wrong and just go with your gut instinct. Enjoy the time you have with your little one before they are all grown. The last thing you want to do is add more stress to what is already a super stressful job – parenting!
Time to confess! What things have you searched online that you look back on and shake your head???
