Psshhh...What Do Doctors Know?

I start this post with a deep breath and a long exhaling sigh. You can do it with me if you'd like... In.... and.... siiiiiiiiggh.

To address the title with a disclaimer, Doctors know a lot. They will be very helpful as you raise your kid. It's just a few things that bug me.

A news story on FOX Chicago at 9pm the other day really put the nail in the coffin (not the cherry on top, that's for chicks) on this topic for me. When you first start researching and visiting doctors you'll get this sense of... fearful caution let's say? Not sure if that puts it into words. It's always better to be safe than sorry, and your little boy or girl is very delicate and must be handled with care, caution, pre-caution, etc. BUT...  you'll find articles, news stories, and opinions from doctors that are almost stupid. They are either too scared of liability and don't want to tell you something that goes against the industry, or these reporters are trying to make something out of nothing. I only have a few distinct examples, but I think they'll paint the picture.

I'll get right to it...SIDS. "Woah! Joe! Are you seriously covering this?! Let's not go there!" I know, I know, really scary right? Dudes, this is a tough topic to think about. It's scary, controversial, and very close to home for some. With my son just reaching the 5 month mark, I can't imagine losing him for any reason, let alone SIDS, Sudden Infant Death Syndrome.

I've read several articles on SIDS, as well as the comments from the readers. Let me start by saying this... I have zero credibility; I'm not a doctor; I don't have a medical background; I haven't lost a child, to SIDS or anything else; I have deep sympathy for the people whose comments and articles I've read that have lost a child to SIDS. However, this is one piece that illustrates my frustration when it comes to "experts" in the field of babies and many of this Fearful Caution on things revolve around SIDS.

That being said, DUDES, we're dudes, and I'm keeping it as simple as I can. SIDS has no cause, that's why they call it SIDS. If the baby had some other kind of issue that caused the death, it would have been diagnosed as such. So, after all the investigations, autopsy, etc. to classify an infant's death as SIDS means there was no sign of suffocation or trauma, nor any other cause... completely unexplainable. SIDS is very rare, but it IS real and scary if you start to dwell on it.

What really bothers me though is the substitution of SIDS for actual causes of death. I just read an article about not putting pillows and blankets in your baby's crib to reduce the chance of SIDS... Umm, no. Don't put pillows and blankets in your baby's crib so they don't suffocate! Hello?! Sleeping close to a blanket doesn't cause my son to die, sorry... maybe eating the blanket and causing him to stop breathing will...  it's like they're afraid to tell you the real danger for some reason.

The example that we experienced first hand was what Doctors say regarding your kid's sleeping position. Every Doctor will tell you to have you baby sleep on their back. Okay, fine. No big deal. But why? Their answer is "to decrease the chances of SIDS." Wait, so let me make sure I'm getting this right. You're telling me what TO do, and what NOT to do, to prevent something that we don't know the cause of... what?! Makes no sense. Correlation does not mean causation, but unfortunately to be safe (not necessarily safe for your kid, but safe for the Doctor's liability), anything that has a correlation is treated as causation, just to be safe.

Our son has been sleeping on his stomach since he was about 3 weeks old. One night, before we started putting him on his stomach, he woke up in the middle of the night choking on his own acid reflux spit up. It came out through his nose and mouth! It was bad. It's the most helpless feeling when you're holding your new born in the air above you wishing he would just take a breath again. So, we tried to listen to the doctors about sleeping on his back blah blah blah... well, after he woke up choking like this for the 3rd time, I said screw SIDS, this kid is sleeping on his stomach. He's been fine every since.

If you want to see NPR look stupid... check this article out. Be sure to read the comments. They obviously aren't as articulate as they thought. So much for reading all that Shakespeare to us like we're 4 years old. :) Sorry NPR fans, at least I read their article, give me some credit.

http://www.npr.org/2011/07/15/137859024/rethinking-sids-many-deaths-no-longer-a-mystery

I'm sort of venting in this article, and I apologize if I'm coming off insensitive. SIDS is real, it does happen, and it is not the parents' fault... literally, it's simply an awful, unexpected, unexplainable tragedy.

There is nothing you can do about SIDS. Save yourself some stress and stop worrying about it. There's nothing you can do to prevent it, because we don't know what causes it. Worry about the other things that pose real danger. Do your research on stomach vs. back, sleeping with the baby in your bed, bowling ball storage location (just kidding), etc. Make decisions with your wife/GF on what's best for your kid.

AND... in the great words of NBA Jam, "He Puts the Nail In The Coffin!" This story on FOX Chicago at 9pm states, "Swaddling may cause hip problems in babies." Ppppppbbbsssttt! Are... you... kidding... me...? Is this real? Ummmm, pretty sure we've been swaddling babies since Jesus K? C'mon people! Get it together! Swaddling babies cannot be linked to hip problems. Whoever was spending time and money researching this is more useless than Lindsay Lohan's dinner.

Here's the article online...
http://www.foxnews.com/health/2013/10/29/swaddling-may-cause-hip-problems-in-babies/


There's more... just wait, you'll see it now. This fearful caution is not how I live my life. You have to do everything you can, but if you wash the bottles and forget to sterilize it one day, don't worry, odds are your kid will be fine. We're not perfect. Trying to be perfect will make you lose your mind. I'm sure those who have multiple kids will explain the lower level of worry, and the lower level of stress, as they understand what real risks are and how durable kids can be, maybe you can help me multi-child Dads.

Alright Dude, go be a Dad.

Joe Gattone

PS... I wouldn't argue with anyone about SIDS :) just know what the real danger may be in your own mind and do your research. Talking about this subject is like talking politics and religion in a bar. In fact I'm taking a huge risk