When I first became a mother at the age of 21 my parenting was based on instinct, the support of my family, and trial and error. One night soon after my son was born I sat up in bed late at night nursing him in the "cradle position", as I was shown in the hospital, so that I could place him neatly back down in his bassinet. I was exhausted and fell asleep nursing him. I awoke as I nearly dropped him on the floor. I decided I needed to lie down in my bed with him next to me and nurse that way. I fell asleep, he fell asleep, and he didn't leave my bed for 2 years. It was a defining moment in my parenting, though I didn't know it then.
Twenty years and 5 more children later, my parenting has evolved to become even more instinctual, though I have also read a lot about parenting . I have learned that there are phrases used to describe the parenting that came naturally to me or that I learned along the way, phrases like Attachment Parenting and The Continuum Concept. I discovered the closer I stayed to the biological expectations for human parents and babies, the easier parenting became.
Though many of the parenting practices came naturally and instinctively, they weren't always easy. Society as a whole had lost touch with these ancient ways and now relied on gimmicks and high-tech baby gear to take the place of parenting. I sought out books to help me navigate the parenting journey and found works such as The Continuum Concept and Our Babies, Ourselves. Each of these books not only validated my parenting practices, but also helped shift my mindset toward a more clear picture of the biological expectations of children and parents.
Over the years I've noticed that parents are struggling to fit these practices into their lives. They wonder things like, "Do I need to do everything a hunter gatherer would do?", "Will it mean that I'm overly attentive and giving in to my child?", and "What does this kind of parenting look like in a modern culture?". Modern Parenting BC explores these questions and more.
