By Carol Gray, LMT, CST, RPYT, ERYT-200 I recently had a conversation with parents about crying babies and toddlers. They were apartment dwellers who were concerned about disturbing the neighbors. CRYING! It is, after all, a distress call. It’s disturbing — like having a shrieking smoke alarm in your living room. It’s supposed to attract parental attention. Crying is one of the baby’s main survival skills. It helps a baby
More About Epidurals
August 24, 2021
By Carol Gray, LMT, CST, RPYT, ERYT-200 I have been thinking a lot about epidural anesthesia for childbirth. Among those who have experienced it, birth is almost universally described as painful. Who wouldn’t want a drug or procedure that takes away the pain? Clearly, most pregnant people in America want this. It is by far the mainstream way to give birth. When Did It All Begin? What I’m wondering about
The Developmental Derby
August 18, 2021
By Carol Gray, LMT, CST, RPYT, ERYT-200 In 1975 I moved back to LA. My first husband and I had spent three years away while he fulfilled his military obligation. Army life was hard on me. We lived in officer’s housing on an Air Force base in an isolated desert location. My husband was a research engineer assigned to NASA. He never wore a uniform. I was a misfit among
Things We Do (After Birth) to Prevent Babies From Moving
August 10, 2021
By Carol Gray, LMT, CST, RPYT, ERYT-200 I can’t leave The Stuck Baby Series without describing baby immobilization and container lifestyle. In this article I outline the most significant ways in which we prevent our babies from moving after they are born. It seems like the perfect preparation for a sedentary life in a recliner in front of a screen. Developmental delays are on the rise. It’s estimated that 15%
How Fetal Constraint Affects Babies: Things We Notice After Birth
August 3, 2021
By Carol Gray, LMT, CST, RPYT, ERYT-200 This is part six of the six-part Stuck Baby Series. In part one, My Baby Dropped!, I explain why engagement is pathology. In part two, Why Did My Baby Get Stuck?, I describe the maternal factors that cause babies to get stuck. Part three is Fetal Factors: How Babies Get Themselves Stuck. Part four explores Fetal Constraint: How Culture Immobilizes Babies. Last week,
