crying it out

[metaphortunate]

Spend time around the hippie parenting areas of the internet, and you will run into the attachment parenting idea that leaving your baby alone to cry at all is a form of child abuse.

At first I thought this was wild-ass exaggeration. Now I think it's - these are all people with only one child, right? I mean, to even come up with this idea? Because let me tell you, when the toddler shits himself and starts to run around the house like a maniac giggling, I will be putting the baby down. And if that baby chooses to cry the entire time I am collaring his brother and wrestling him into the tub, then that is just what he will have to do, because I can't help him while I am dispensing justice and hygiene. I cannot have him strapped to my chest, not unless I want him being sharply kicked and having his poor little head shoved around by the large and active toddler making his very best effort to escape. Which incidentally wouldn't do much for the cause of not crying.

Comments

[lovepeaceohana]

Yeeeeeeaaaaaaah, I find it really difficult to keep hanging out in those kinds of spaces. I mean, I do consider myself aligned with attachment parenting, in that I did a lot of the stereotypical AP stuff - elimination communication, babywearing, bedsharing, (willingness to do) extended breastfeeding and baby-led weaning, etc. - but like, no, sometimes it's just not physically or temporally possible to attend to two children at the same time. And that sucks! But suckage is not child abuse, and it's - I can't deal with that, I can't deal with people who think like that.

You did the best you could with a crap situation, literally. Your toddler will be fine. Your baby will be fine. You're still a great parent.

[metaphortunate]

They both seem fine. :)