Kate Emery McCarthy’s Post

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Executive Director at Birth Roots Center for Community Supported Parenting

A question asked in *every* newborn class at Birth Roots Center for Community Supported Parenting this month: How do I politely tell my family I don't want my newborn to be passed around at our holiday gathering? There are many good ideas being shared: - wear your baby in a carrier the whole time; - tell everyone that your pediatrician threatened you; - simply say, "my baby bites!" There are lots of laughs in the discussion. But the undercurrent is one of legitimate stress. New moms, dads, and parents are excited to share their newborn with their family, but they also carry the very real fear of their newborn contracting RSV, Flu, and Covid in these winter months. [a fever in a newborn requires a trip to the ER and a spinal tap] If you'll be attending an event this Dec with a newborn, maybe reach out and ask what the parent is most comfortable with, and then offer to run interference for them. This simple act can feel enormously supportive to someone navigating early parenthood. It is a #communitysupported approach to tending to a newborn's physical health, and a parent's mental health.

Jacqueline Grady Smith

Co-Founder at Not Just Co. || 2024 Tory Burch Entrepreneur || 2023 Stacy's Rise Fellow

8mo

Great points, Kate Emery McCarthy. When Abigail was sick and immunocompromised, we deflected a lot on her doctors. Telling people that they were insistent we could only go someplace where everyone was healthy and vaccinated but the onus on them and gave us cover in challenging conversations.

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