PUSH BACK: Guilt in the Age of Natural Parenting was published on Tuesday and there’s been quite a bit of media surrounding it.
Here’s a recap:
A Reddit AMA: more than 3000 up votes and over 2000 comments. I was typing for 6 hours straight!
Apparently it was such a great AMA that both Salon,“There is No Recipe to Create the Perfect Child”, and New York Magazine wrote about it, Is Attachment Parenting a Plot to Force Women Back into the Home?
I was interviewed by Elissa Strauss for Slate, Birth Is Not Performance Art.
I wrote:
For WBUR, Adele is Right — the Pressure to Breastfeed is Fu–ing Ridiculous.
For MindBodyGreen, Why You Shouldn’t Feel Guilty About Getting an Epidural: An OB-GYN explains.
For Cosmo, These Parenting Philosophies are Deeply Anti-Feminist.
For Health.com, 4 Things New Moms Don’t Have to Feel Guilty About.
I was interviewed by:
The Austin Statesman, Stop feeling guilty about what happens during birth, infancy.
The Canadian National Post, Feel free to opt for the epidural sans guilt.
SteadyHealth.com, Feeling Crippled By the Natural Parenting Philosophy? It’s time to Push Back.
So far on Amazon there have been nine 5-star views and one 1-star hate review!
Up next:
An excerpt of PUSH BACK on Refinery29.com.
A piece for WebMD.
An interview with The Cut at New York Magazine.
An interview with Glamor Magazine.
My review:
https://jennyhatch.com/2016/04/23/book-review-push-back-by-dr-amy-a-few-thoughts-from-birth-activist-jenny-hatch/
Hugs and Kisses!
The number of negative reviews has increased to 4, making 25% of the total. So anyone who has bought the book off Amazon, make sure to leave a review to improve the overo rating. What is telling is that it is either 5 stars or one star. AMD the negative reviews either attack the author, or fail to specify what is actually wrong with the book. Come on, lets support Dr Amy – the least we can do for all those who have enjoyed her blog for years!
I’ve never left an Amazon review before, but I just did! This blog has meant so much to me in my time as a mother.
Wow, you must be exhausted!
I just had a look at the amazon reviews and saw this pearl
“How did this nonsense get published?
This book is utter garbage. The only birth professional that I have known to heap judgement on women is the author herself.”
A click on the username showed that the user had a list for Josh’s and Megan’s registry. A click on that showed that those are Megan Kite & Josh Diveley.
Googling Megan Diveley brought up … a doula.
Surprise.
https://www.facebook.com/MeganDiveleyDoula
(she is in the same city, so I’m reasonably sure it’s the same person)
Seeing her comment on Dr. Tuteur’s book I wonder what kind of language she uses towards her customers. I fear there is not much respect to be found for different ways of mothering, feeding and giving birth.
OT: I think I’m slowly losing my mind. Younger daughter is now one month old and Will. Not. Sleep. I really did not want to cosleep this time. Not that it’s helped when I’ve tried. I swaddle her, give her a pacifier, have white noise going all night. She is literally up all night. She sleeps about two hours in the beginning of the night and then wants to feed every two hours or more (and will only take an ounce tops). Problem is she will not go back to sleep after feeding. As soon as I put her down she is awake and crying. Hubby helps but even with that I’m still only getting maybe two hours of interrupted sleep a night. Tonight older daughter also woke up after a nightmare so that didn’t help either. I have moments of sheer adoration for my kids but I’m so tired that I have a lot of moments I hate everyone. We have no family close by to help. I think I’m losing my mind. Sorry. Had to vent.
Grim.
BTDT, and yes, we coslept, because nursing while side lying was the only way either of us was going to sleep and my considered evaluation of the risks was that sleep deprivation was more likely to kill us that SIDS (driving as a sleep deprived parent of a newborn is seriously risky).
This too will pass!
#2 is in his own room, in his own cot, and still up once or twice a night at almost 8 months. If he wakes after 5am I take him into our bed for a feed, because if I’m awake for more than 15 minutes at that time I won’t be able to get back to sleep. It’s working for now, and we’ll change when it stops working.
You cannot keep going for weeks on end with that quality and quantity of sleep, so my advice is do anything within reason that helps.
Thing is, tonight I even tried cosleeping and even that wouldn’t work. I don’t know what else to try. I know she has reflux and though it’s better since we changed formulas (at least not screaming in pain and arching her back during/after feeds much anymore), I still think that’s part of the problem. I think she doesn’t want to lie flat. Our doctor says reflux is normal and doesn’t generally give meds for it, I know she’s mostly right but I’m desperate.
I had my reflux baby sleep inclined and swaddled in a rock n play, which helped tremendously. Also this is a crazy, throw anything at the problem until something sticks suggestion, but my daughter refused to sleep at night until I left an extremely dim light on. When she was new I think darkness was very comfortable for her to open her eyes and try to check things out, so with the light on, she was more willing to close them.
Maybe we’ll try the swing tonight. I usually try to not leave her in it for prolonged periods to avoid plagiocephaly but at this point I’m desperate.
At this point, it’s worth demanding them. She’s miserable and you can’t live on that amount of sleep, especially with no family around to help. Gaviscon Infant is available here (Australia) without a prescription, so it might be worth asking a pharmacist if it’s available without a script where you are. Hope you get some decent sleep soon!
We tilted our boys’ cribs by putting books under the legs at the head end, so they were lying at an angle. Not a steep angle, obviously, but enough. That might help. But I agree, this sounds like the kind of situation that calls for meds.
My 4th had reflux. I used a Gentlease formula and added rice cereal to each bottle. He was also an inclined tummy sleeper nearly from birth. The fact that she’s restless after feeding (when she’s all filled up and wanting to rest) means that the feed is causing her discomfort/pain. During the day my son wouldn’t be so bad because he would eat and then be up for an hour or so before laying down to nap. But at night the goal is – obviously – to feed and put right back down, which isn’t conducive to normal reflux symptoms, the liquid comes up and the burning starts.
Incline and belly are my best tips. GL 😉
It’s really funny. You’d think by the number of crunchy mamas who descend upon this blog, or by the way they talk about Dr. Amy in their own inbred circles that she’s got a terrible reputation and her POV is horrible. Then you read the comments sections of mainstream media and most people are totally receptive to her message! That’s got to be really gratifying.
That’s why the crunchies are so desperate to discredit her, I think.
Her message IS mostly mainstream! She isn’t some extreme whacko. She is just very adamant on the mainstream.
I don’t even think she’s adamant on the mainstream– I think she’s adamantly pro-women making the choices that work best for themselves and their families. If that includes mainstream stuff, great, but she’s not anti-AP if it’s freely chosen.
Wow, that’s such an impressive list! So very proud of you Dr. Amy, you’ve certainly left your mark in this realm. I’ve sometimes wondered who will pick up after you’ve left off…(goodness knows the fight is not over) but hopefully we won’t need to worry about that for many many years to come! Enjoy the sense of accomplishment, you’ve certainly earned it!
OT: Amy posted this to her FB pages and I’m fascinated it was written by a doula in crunchy Los Angeles: http://mom.me/club/30417-doulapreneur-modern-motherhood/
“The term ‘natural childbirth’ is quite divisive,” she says. “It places women in camps of achievement. To be pregnant is natural and to deliver your child is natural,” no matter what method is used or required for a healthy delivery. “Using that language is pulling women apart instead of bringing women together.”
“The path to birth is fluid. The goal is fixed.”
Love it
What a breath of fresh air!
I’ve been doula shopping in crunchy LA and been pleasantly surprised. A lot of practices say up front that they aren’t there to push their vision of birth on you and that they want to support you through any kind of birth – medicated, unmedicated, scheduled C, whatever. Then again, I automatically click away from anyone who mentions homeopathy or placenta encapsulation services, so I may have biased my sample 🙂
YAY! YIPPEE!!:)
Trying to decide whether to get the hard copy or kindle version of the book. Are there lots of graphics that would make the hard copy better? Advice anyone?
There are very few graphics.
Thanks!
I got the Kindle verison and I’m satisfied with it.
Also, I requested the book thru my library and the request came in about 3 days after publication.
So…guessing you got no sleep this week? 😉
well, you do have a newborn, after all, dr amy–sleep deprivation is to be expected!… 🙂
congratulations! looking forward to reading it!
You were rather busy this week.
So happy to see all this that I’m actually tearing up. You (and so many here) have fought so hard for so long against this insanity that it’s amazing to see it paying dividends.
I’m goose-bumps… Love all the publicity!!!!!
Damn Amy, either you have a great publicist or you are just kick-ass at promoting your book, Either way, great job! Glad your message is getting out there.
I bought the book on Amazon yesterday. I have a 5 year old and don’t play on having more kids but I am looking forward to reading it!
Brava, Dr. Amy! You are a true force for change!
Can’t wait to get the book and check out all the links above!