The Tools for the Job
You can use a screwdriver to unscrew the screws in a wardrobe you’re disassembling for transport. That screwdriver will likely give you blisters if you’ve got a few dozen screws to remove, and it might well strip the heads from the screws. A better alternative is a handheld power drill. It’ll save you time and pain, and leave the screws more usable.
Similarly, as a parent, you’ll have options in child raising that are akin to the hand-held screwdriver. They work, they get the job done, but they’ll hurt you, they may damage the child, and either way you’ll be more tired than you have to be. However, if you’ve got the right tools for the job, then the job is easier and you get a more qualitative outcome.
Following we’ll explore a few “tools” for the “job” of parenting. Granted, parenting is nothing like building a cabinet or taking one apart. The decisions you make have lifelong consequences sometimes. So the tools for the job aren’t like mechanical tools. Many of them involve using professional services as needed. Consider the following.
1. Parental Support Groups
This is a list of some online parental support groups for new parents, but don’t stop with online options, or even those recommended by childcare professionals. Human beings are human beings, meaning they have their own opinions and ideas. Accordingly, you need to inform the advice you get through diverse options.
Certainly public solutions like online support groups are helpful, but ask your parents what organizations they’re involved with or know, and look around your local community as well. Give yourself a well-rounded selection of choices prior narrowing it down.
2. Lactation Consultation
There are definitely complications in breastfeeding; common problems include failure to express, mastitis, nipple injury, clogged milk ducts, and latching difficulty. The hyperlink will lead you to certified lactation specialists who can help you determine what your issue is, and how to overcome it.
It’s better to have something and not need it, than to need something and not have it. Lactation consultation is an ace in the hole when unexpected nursing complications develop.
3. General Healthcare
Your child won’t have teeth, in most cases, until a few years after you give birth. But at that time, as their baby teeth come in, they’re going to chase sugar like a sweet-seeking missile, and they won’t care a bit for what that does to their teeth.
Another resource tool in your parental toolkit should be a family dentist in Kearney, or wherever you happen to be, for when you need their services. Family dentists are often general dentists who have additional training in child development and pediatric dentistry. They are generally well-trained in child nutrition and can work with parents to provide good oral health education for their kids.
Building Your Parental Toolkit
General healthcare, lactation consultation, and support groups are three of the most important tools you can have in your parental toolkit.
Think of them like the Phillips-Head screwdriver, the adjustable wrench, and the “bubble-level” of parenting. Granted, you need many more tools; but with these three, there is quite a bit you’re able to accomplish.
