13-05-2004, 11:39 AM
Quote:Originally posted by Icecub
strange they had a write up this week in the Mail about Ford's and Leach's book....and most ppl did not like Ford's approach to babies, they said they were most unsatisfied with her methods...as she was too strict with routine routine...did u find that Jemlet??
I must say i used mostly instinct, if my child was hungry i fed him on demand, i did not have a set routine - and he was a happy child...
Cubbie that was the advice of the health visitor, feed your child on demand and sleep when your child sleeps. This is all fine and well if your child doesn't decide to use you as a dummy, or decide that he was really hungry every 1 1/2 during the day and every 45 minutes during the night. I found that I was able to get less and less sleep which of course makes the quality of your milk deteriate which means your baby gets hungry sooner and you have a vicious cirlce. Gina Ford had some very practical advice like making sure your baby was getting the hind milk and then actually giving it time to digest. Topping up too soon can cause colic. She also told you common sense things like your baby needs to sleep to grow and that they can probably only manage two hours between naps when they are very little. I just felt she empowered you as the mother as she helped give your day some structure. I never followed her timetables religiously and you didn't do everything she said. As you say babies are not all textbook characters so common sense and instinct is still required but it definately helped the baby be more relaxed when he knew what to expect, I managed to get more sleep and that made me nicer to live with.