Advice. It's the one thing you never need to ask for, but always have too much of.
People are more than happy to share exactly how they managed to raise the most perfect children in the world, telling you everything from how to get them to sleep to the best way to wean them off the pacifier to getting them to study at night. Everyone and their mother are an expert on child-rearing, it seems.
I asked by friends for the worst piece of parenting advice they ever received and got some whoopers -- sound familiar?
1. "Sleep when she sleeps. What a crock of shit! If I'd done that, I'd have starved, stunk, needed the diaper myself."
2. "That my autistic son would 'grow out of it.' Uh huh."
3. "To give my baby mashed potatoes to help him sleep through the night ... He was 3 weeks old!"
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4. "My pediatrician's advice for flying internationally with a 2-year-old and 4-year-old -- sleep deprivation for a few days before the flight so they'll sleep. Because overtired little kids are SO MUCH EASIER than normal ones."
5. "It's okay to ask for help from your mother-in-law."
6. "You don't feel pain, it's pressure! Hahahaha ... obviously they have never had a baby above 7 pounds!"
7. "To beat, not only spank, but beat my 3-year-old son when he refused to use the toilet. Because nothing says I want you to be comfortable using the commode like getting your butt smacked for refusing."
8. "That I should let my husband relax when he gets home from work because I've been home all day with a baby and a 2-year-old and therefore have no right to some help in the evenings."
9. "The second one is easier than the first. And once you have two, it doesn't matter how many more you have, it's all the same. BULLSHIT."
10. "You can't get pregnant if you're breastfeeding. My three kids prove THAT one wrong!"
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What's the worst advice you've ever received?
Photo courtesy of Jill Smokler
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Comments 78
You DO feel pain!
theres no way I could sleep when my daughter sleeps because when shes awake all I do is hold her, play with her, feed her, the 10 secs I put her down is just long enough to brush my teeth, I would get NOTHING done!
The sleep deprivation I am guilty of, on a smaller scale though. My daughters bedtime was 11pm becasue she always napped around 8pm. I decided this does not work for me any longer, so I have been forcing her to stay awake during that time, and moved her bedtime up to 10pm. It has been working wonderfully, even though she does get crabby sometimes.
The worst parenting advice I ever got was to give my 18 month old RED BULL!! Because it wont make her hyper it will make her go to sleep. I also think the sleep when she sleeps wasn't helpful until she only took one nap a day. When they are newborns all they do is sleep.
My son was going through a biting phase and my grandmother told me that to "cure" him of that, just bite him back! Sooo, one day, my son bit her.... so my grandmother bit him back and guess what? He bit her right back! LOL!!!!
I love my mother in law, so I gladly take advice from her :)
The worst I have ever gotten was letting my 2 week old daughter cry herself to sleep "Because she needs to "learn" you aren't always going to pick her up when she cries" yeah......
i NEVER slept when my daughter slept, there was no need for it. when you have a child that only wakes up once a night for an hour at most, theres no need to sleep during the day. my mother in law is nice, but shes also ditsy,so i dont really want help from her or any one else in my husbands family. most of them are idiots.just cause the woman raised your S/O doesnt mean she was an awesome parent. There was no way my husband was gonna just sit there and relax when he came home from work either when our daughter was a baby. im with her ALL day,dealing with every little thing, he needed to pitch in to. im not the only one that created this child so i deserve some help.
to the person that said wait to bath till the hubby is home. sorry but i didnt like going out smelling like
baby puke. i had to bath when he was at work. so baby went in bouncy seat and i took a bath so i could
see him and take care of him if i needed to.
also i didnt feed mine solids that early but its not a totaly bad idea my parents gave me masjed potatos at 2 weeks i am fine and have only a few food alergies that devloped as an adult.