Palak Vyas

The best guideline is this simple one: Dress your newborn in the same number of layers you’re wearing yourself, plus one. For winters:<ul><li>Think layers. It’s always best to layer baby’s clothing, which traps heat between the layers. Thin cotton clothes work well, maybe a long sleeved shirt and pants or even a snowsuit if your little one is going to be in very cold temps. Cover up. Make sure that your baby is completely covered from head-to-toe. Make sure you have gloves, a woollen cap, thick socks and snow boots handy in times of the need.</li><li>Don’t forget blankets outside. If you’re headed out in the stroller, his plus-one layer can be a blanket and/or his stroller’s rain cover, which will keep out the elements and keep in some heat.</li><li>Beware of overheating. Babies dressed in too many layers (of blankets or clothing) are at greater risk for overheating and SIDS (sudden infant death syndrome). If you’ve been out, remove your baby’s winter clothes as soon as you come inside (yes, even if (s)he is asleep!).</li></ul> For warmer weather dress your baby accordingly:<ul><li>Reduce the number of layers: When the sun is out and temperature is warm, use lighter fabrics that are breathable. Allowing your baby’s body to breathe and not get too hot.</li><li>Choose Quality Fabrics: Focus on purchasing quality fabrics that are less likely to irritate your baby’ skin. Cotton is usually the recommended fabric because it allows the baby’s skin to breathe easily.</li><li>Choose Loose clothing: Always opt for loose fitted clothing that will allow your baby’s skin to breathe. It has been found that tight fitting clothes don’t give ample space for your little ones sensitive skin to breathe. They are more likely to break out in a rash because of overheating.</li><li>When shopping take note of the tags and what the material of your baby’s clothing is made of.</li></ul>

Dress your baby in a way that (s)he remains cheery all the time.

Weather and clothing

Mustafa Lokhandwala

Permissive parenting has very few rules and expectations of children. Most times, the parents are loving and express caring about their children, but they don’t see their children as mature or capable enough to carry out certain tasks or responsibilities that require self-control. This style has also been linked to riskier behaviours in older children, like heavy drinking in adolescents and alcohol-related problems as young adults. These parents do not expect mature behaviour from their children and often seem more like a friend than a parental figure. Ask their children's opinions on major decisions. Emphasize their children's freedom rather than responsibility. Have few rules or standards of behaviour, any rules they do have are inconsistent. May use bribery such as toys, gifts, and food as a means to get a child to behave. Characteristics Permissive parents are highly responsive to their children’s needs and nurture their talents and personality. But they are least demanding because they have low expectations on discipline and self-regulation from their children. <ol><li>Responsive and demanding –&nbsp;Permissive parents are warm and responsive, and that's a good thing. Parents show affectionate which create a secure attachment in relationships. It protects a child from stress and anxiety.</li><li>Friendly behaviour -&nbsp;The parenting style is characterized by parents having a very friendly attitude towards their children. The parents behave more like friends with their kids.</li><li>Loving and Nurturing –&nbsp;Parent often loves and adores their children. The parent will respond to the child’s emotional needs, whether truly necessary or not. They typically do not lack in this department. If a child is not being affectionate, a permissive mom or dad will often try to buy their child’s love and affection with gifts and bribery.</li><li>Self-control –&nbsp;In this style parent behaviour towards their child leads to bad habits in terms of nutrition, screen time, poor sleep schedule and many other aspects of life. A child is not able to understand the long-term effects of these poor choices.</li><li>Child freedom -&nbsp;Permissive parents allow their children to do as they please. These types of parents may even be afraid to set limits. With free roam, a child will over-indulge in unwanted things. In the parent’s eyes, this allows the child to be “true to their nature.”&nbsp;</li><li>Uses gifts and bribery -&nbsp;When a child acts up, permissive parents are often afraid to discipline their child. Instead, they will use bribes (candy, money, electronics, etc.) to persuade the child to do what they want.</li></ol> Effects on Children Children may love the permissive parenting style as it gives them the maximum freedom without any strings attached. But it could be problematic in the long-run. <ul><li>Struggle&nbsp;to learn good problem-solving and decision-making skills.</li><li>Display&nbsp;low academic achievement.</li><li>They may be&nbsp;demanding and have difficulty sharing.</li><li>Lack of boundaries results in&nbsp;insecurity in a child(ren).</li><li>May not take responsibility for their behaviour.</li><li>Show&nbsp;more aggression&nbsp;and&nbsp;less emotional&nbsp;understanding.</li><li>Unable to manage&nbsp;their habits and behaviour.</li><li>More likely to be&nbsp;overweight.</li></ul> Pros of Permissive Parenting As this parenting style focuses on being a friend to a child rather than a parent, the parents understand their children better, and communication becomes easy as they grow old. Here are some more benefits of permissive parenting: Self-assurance -&nbsp;When children are encouraged to express themselves freely, they will become more confident and willing to try new things, regardless of the consequences. Unconditional love is the key to raising a child who values him or herself.Exploration&nbsp;- Permissive parenting allows children to have more freedom, thus inspiring them to undertake new adventures with a greater sense of confidence.Creativity&nbsp;– Parents allow freedom and not limit their children; Hence they experiment with all sorts of passions and hobbies creative and imaginative play children can grow emotionally, socially, intellectually, and even physically. Cons of Permissive Parenting Giving excessive leniency may have significant negative consequences. Let’s see what the drawbacks of permissive parenting are: A conflict between needs and wants -&nbsp;As children grow older, they might demand a lot of things and have unrealistic and unreasonable expectations. They need guidance and limit-setting from their parents. Since parents do not want to upset their children, they give their children everything they ask for. The child does not learn the difference between needs and wants.Lack of time management -&nbsp;In the absence of rules and behaviour at home, these children may not learn the value of time. They might spend too much time watching television or playing online games.Lack of parental control -&nbsp;In permissive parenting, the child may come to feel that they are in charge rather than their parents, and experience that can generate significant anxiety.Emotional imbalance -&nbsp;Children who do not have limits set on their behaviour can have difficulty regulating their emotions, especially when their needs are not met.

Permissive parents usually take on more of a friend role than a parent role. They often encourage their children to talk with them about their problems, but they usually don't put much effort into discouraging poor choices or bad behavior.

Permissive Parenting

Fatherhood is a biological and an emotional sea of changes. Starting a few months before childbirth, testosterone levels lower as prolactin, vasopressin and other hormones increase rewiring a man’s brain to prepare him for fatherhood. Entire area of man’s brain grows and develops in response to hormonal changes in the first year of a child's life, which allows him to care for a newborn. There is an increased sensitivity to crying, a deeper capacity to bond emotionally and a greater responsiveness to another’s needs. Men and women can experience depression very differently. Symptoms which might indicate poor mental health of a father:<ol><li>Increased anger and conflict with others</li><li>Increased use of alcohol</li><li>Frustration or irritability</li><li>Violent behaviour</li><li>Significant weight gain or loss</li><li>Isolation from family and friends</li><li>Being easily stressed</li><li>Increase in complaints about physical problems, like headaches, digestion problems, fatigue</li><li>Problems with concentration or motivation</li><li>Loss of interest in work, hobbies and/or sex</li><li>Working constantly</li><li>Self doubt</li></ol> Some of the factors that can contribute to depression in new or soon-to-be fathers include:<ol><li>Personal history of depression</li><li>Family history of depression</li><li>Worries about being a parent</li><li>Feeling overwhelmed with expectations in your role at work and your role as a father</li><li>Financial problems</li><li>Lack of social and/or emotional support</li><li>Stress in relationship with family or spouse</li><li>Missing attention and/or sex from partner</li><li>Lack of sleep after the baby is born</li><li>Feeling excluded from the bond between mother and baby</li></ol> Diagnosis:Your mental healthcare professional will ask you to fill up a depression-screening questionnaire to confirm whether you have depression or not. Following are a few ways which you can follow to take care of your stress and emotions:<ol><li>Work on building stronger bond between you and your partner. Understand her needs and desires and talk about your own too. Feel free to express in front of your partner or family or friends.</li><li>Develop a support team from your family. Ask for help. Say YES when they offer.</li><li>Take time for yourself. Have some “me-time” either watching TV, going for a movie or taking a short break from work and spending time doing things you like.</li><li>Talk to other families who have experienced the same.</li><li>Spend time with your baby to develop your own confidence.</li></ol> Treatment:<ul><li>Talk Therapy: PPD is a severe form of clinical depression. Your psychiatrist might suggest you to see a counsellor who will ask you questions about your life. It is important that you answer them honestly. These sessions will help you gain a different and healthier perspective about things. Therapy is different and personalised for everyone but these are a few topics which you might touch in your sessions: your feelings, your beliefs, your behaviour, your life pre and post birth. There are 2 types of talk therapy:</li></ul><ol><li>Cognitive Behavioural Therapy: You and your counselor work together to identify, then change, thoughts and behaviors that are harmful to your mental health.</li><li>Interpersonal therapy: Your therapist helps you better understand how you behave in your relationships and how to work through any problems.</li></ol> <ul><li>Medication: Antidepressants are drugs designed to treat depression, including postpartum depression. They work on different chemicals in your brain.</li><li>Self-care: Get more sleep and exercise, eat healthy foods, do fun activities and relax. Doing these things can help to boost your mood.</li></ul>

A parent's mental health is of the top most priority when it comes to parenting. A healthy mental space leads to a happy and healthy bond between a parent and a child.

Postpartum Depression in Fathers

Symptoms of an ant bite:<ul><li>Redness</li><li>Swelling</li><li>White yellow pustule at the site of the bite</li></ul> What to do after an ant bite:<ul><li>﻿Clean the bite site immediately with warm soapy water, then with plain water and wipe it dry.</li><li>Apply an ice pack or cold compress.</li><li>Do not touch or pop it unnecessarily.</li><li>Apply antibiotic ointment on the site of the bite.</li><li>If the child is old enough, give him/her paediatrician’s prescribed pain reliever and oral antihistamines to reduce pain and itching if it’s unbearable.</li><li>If there is facial swelling, itching, stomach cramps or trouble breathing, immediately seek medical attention.</li></ul>

An ant bite usually goes unnoticed until some symptoms arise.

Dealing with ant bite in children

You may be coping up with financial challenges of managing your career or climbing up the corporate ladder, parenting is something where most people are stuck. Raising a child with both parents working is indeed a challenging task. But, do not worry, a research shows that having a working mother has no impact on children’s happiness in adulthood. Also, children of working mums and dads are often successful in their later careers. The key here is to divide the household chores and child’s responsibilities equally among both the partners. For example if the mother is cooking food, the father should help with the dishes or vice versa. Similarly, if there’s a meeting or function to be attended in the child’s school, both the parents should do it alternatively. It should fall on to any one of the parents’ shoulders. Things to take into consideration here are:<ul><li>Work timings of both the parents: Say for example if the father has to report to work early in the morning, it is obvious that he won’t be able to take up the household chores in the morning. If the child has to go to school in the morning, the mother will have to look after that if she has the time in hand.</li><li>Work profile of both the parents: Say for example, if the work profile of the mother is stronger than the father and requires more time, then the free time that the mother gets should be first devoted to the child and then to the household chores. Or the mother can opt to do the household chores along with the child. This will help her to bind with the child better.&nbsp;</li><li>Both the partners should be mature enough to understand the above two points and work in the direction in which both the parents get equal amount of quality time to spend with the child.</li><li>Make sure that the time which you are spending with the child should be quality time. play family games post dinner, go for a walk together. A weekly ritual of spending the day on a day off also does wonders. Take the opportunity to learn about their interests, what is going on in their schools and classes, how are things with their friends, if there is anything that’s bothering them, etc.</li><li>In all these, do not forget to spend alone time with your partner. You both are each other’s strongest pillars. Once in a while, plan family outings so everyone is just having fun with each other by leaving behind the worries.</li><li>If your partner is not helping you share the responsibilities of the house and of the child, talk to your partner calmly and make them understand that you cannot do this single handed and it might take a toll on your mental health.</li><li>Make them understand that for healthy family dynamics, you will need their full support in everything.</li><li>In case if you are not able to sort it out, you can take counsellor’s help to resolve the situation between both of you.</li></ul> What can be done to reduce the burden on working parents other than sharing the responsibilities:<ul><li>Find a quality Day care: Find good, trustworthy, hygienic day care for your child. This will help you stay at peace and focus on your work at office. Also, ensure it offers flexible hours. In case if the grandparents are available and are ready and healthy enough to take care of your child, that option can also be considered.</li><li>Have a good morning routine: This is extremely important for working parents as a haphazard morning can spoil both your and the child’s day. Spend some time while brushing teeth together, give a long and refreshing shower, have breakfast together and a little conversation while you drop the child at school/bus/van.</li><li>Stay organised: Prepare everything a night before, pack the bag, chop vegetables, have a menu for breakfast. This will give you enough time to spend with your child.</li><li>Take good care of yourself: When you are tired and stretched, it gets difficult to manage both work and home. Have some ‘me time’ wake up a little early – exercise or go for a walk in green surroundings. A healthy body and healthy mind will keep you fit and energetic for the day.</li><li>Take help whenever required: You can always seek assistance from parents or grandparents. Offer car pooling for evening activity class on a busy day at work and arrange for a play date for children over the weekend.</li><li>Avoid planning to give equal time for both: You cannot practically do that because some days are extremely busy at work and sometimes baby’s health/education will need an extra attention. Flexibility at work and home is the key to strike the right balance.</li><li>Be a smart cook: you can boil 2 – 3 types of lentils on weekends and stuff them in refrigerator, this will save your cooking time on weekdays and spare time to spend with your kids. If your finances allow, outsource certain tasks like cleaning, cooking etc.</li><li>Discipline sleep schedule: The efforts should not be to wake up early; the efforts should be about sleeping on time. Spend more bedtime with kids and wake up early together. Share small household chores with your kid(s).</li></ul>

When both the parents are working, it becomes a tad bit difficult to manage work, household chores, and spending time with the child.

Working parents and Responsibilities

Points to keep in mind while buying and using the stroller: <ol><li>Buy a stroller that is specifically designed for your child’s age, height and weight. Newborn babies should be able to lie down fully in the stroller.</li><li>Five-point harness: Shoulder straps, a strap between the legs and waist belts that connect together.</li><li>If the stroller has a hand-rest at the front of the seat, ensure that the opening between the hand-rest and the seat can be closed when the stroller is used in the reclined position. This means the hand-rest needs to be an adjustable one.</li><li>Check for strollers that have brakes which are easy to use and works as per required.</li><li>Ensure it doesn’t have any parts that pinch your child’s fingers or is some kind of a choking hazard.</li><li>A stroller should be stable. The wheelbase should be wide and the seat should be low in the frame.</li><li>It should not tip backwards while in resting position.</li><li>The leg openings should be appropriately designed so that the child’s legs don’t slip off.</li><li>The handlebars should be at your waist level or maybe lower than that.</li><li>Never leave a child unattended in a stroller.</li><li>Always use the safety harness while using the stroller.</li><li>Ensure to put on brakes when the stroller is not in use.</li></ol>

A stroller is a wheeled vehicle to transport children generally in a sitting up or semi-reclined position by a person pushing on a handle attached to the stroller

Selecting a stroller for your baby

Separation anxiety often develops after a significant stressful or traumatic event in the child's life, such as leaving child for&nbsp;school, a stay in the hospital, the death of a loved one or pet, or a change in environment (such as moving to another house or a change of schools). Measures which can be taken to deal with this situation:<ul><li>Good-byes should be quicker and loving: See them off with warmth and love. Kiss them bye, provide a special blanket or toy as you leave, keep the good-bye short and sweet. If you take longer time the child gets anxious, so make it quick.</li><li>Be consistent: Try to drop them at the same time each day, to avoid unexpected factors whenever you can.</li><li>Attention: While you are leaving your child, give your him/her full attention, be loving, and provide affection. Then say good-bye quickly despite their cries for you to stay.</li><li>Keep your promise: You’ll build trust and independence as your child becomes confident in his/her ability to be without you when you stick to your promise of return.</li><li>Be specific, child style: When you discuss your return, provide specifics that your child understands. If you know you’ll be back by 3:00 pm, tell it to your child on his/her terms; for example, say, “I’ll be back after reading time and before afternoon snack.” Define time in a way (s)he can understand.</li><li>Practice being apart: Leave the children off to grandma’s home, schedule play-dates, and allow friends and family to provide child care for you (even for an hour) on the weekend. Before starting child care or preschool, practice going to school and your good-bye ritual. Give your child a chance to prepare, experience, and deal in your absence!</li></ul> Separation anxiety hardly persists after pre-school years. In case of working parents, separation anxiety can occur to both parents as well as children. Above mentioned measures can be helpful in this case as well.

Separation anxiety can be difficult to deal with but things can be made easy by following a few measures.

Separation anxiety measures

Ravina Sewani

Choking is caused due to an object — usually food or a toy — getting stuck in the airway. Because of this, the air can't flow normally into or out of the lungs, so the child can't breathe properly. Most of the time, the food or object only partially blocks the trachea, which gets removed by the coughing and breathing returns to normal quickly.&nbsp;It's best to do nothing. Watch the child carefully and make sure he or she recovers completely. The child will likely be fine after a good coughing spell. Don't reach into the mouth to grab the object or even pat the child on the back. Either of these steps could push the object farther down the airway and make the situation worse. Stay with the child and remain calm until the episode passes. Sometimes, an object completely blocks the airway. If airflow into and out of the lungs is blocked and the brain is deprived of oxygen, choking can become a life-threatening emergency. A child may need immediate medical help if (s)he:<ul><li>Can't breathe</li><li>Is gasping or wheezing</li><li>Can't talk, cry, or make noise</li><li>Turns blue</li><li>Grabs at his or her throat or waves arms</li><li>Appears panicked</li><li>Becomes limp or unconscious</li></ul> Until the help arrives:<ul><li>In these cases, if you've been trained, immediately start abdominal thrusts, the standard rescue procedure for choking.</li><li>Start CPR (Cardiopulmonary Resuscitation) right away, if you've been trained in it. If you can see the object in mouth, only then remove the object.</li><li>If you have not been trained, and no one else is available who has been, wait until help arrives.</li></ul> Prevention:<ul><li>All kids are at risk for choking, but those younger than 3 are especially at risk. Young kids tend to put things in their mouths, have smaller airways that are easily blocked, and don't have a lot of experience chewing, so they might swallow things whole.&nbsp;</li><li>Avoid foods that pose choking risks.</li><li>At mealtime, be sure to serve a child's food in small bites.</li><li>Teach kids to sit down for all meals and snacks and not to talk or laugh with food in their mouths.</li><li>Toys and household items also can be choking hazards. Choose safe, age-appropriate toys. Always follow the manufacturer's age recommendations.</li><li>Take the time now to become prepared. CPR and first-aid courses are a must for parents, other caregivers, and babysitters.</li></ul>

Choking is caused due to an object — usually food or a toy — getting stuck in the airway. Because of this, the air can't flow normally into or out of the lungs, so the child can't breathe properly.

Choking in children

The authoritarian parenting style is characterized by parental use of high levels of control behaviours and showing low levels of warmth and support. Authoritarian parents tend to be restrictive, allow little input from children, and provide little reasoning behind rules and regulations. People with this parenting style often use punishment rather than discipline. CharacteristicsThe authoritarian approach represents the most controlling style. Rather than valuing self-control and teaching children to manage their behaviours, they focus on adherence to authority. Instead of rewarding positive behaviour, feedback is in the form of punishments for misbehaviour. <ol><li>Demanding, but not responsive –&nbsp;Such parents want their kids to grow exactly the way they want. Parents have lots of set and unwritten rules for their kids and expect them to follow —even though children receive little to no explicit instruction about these "rules." Instead, children are expected to know that these rules exist.</li><li>Show no feelings or empathy -&nbsp;Parents show no feelings for their children and do not empathize with them. They do not entertain questions or make an effort to understand the child's emotions.</li><li>Little Explanation for Punishments –&nbsp;Yelling and Abusing a child is often seen in such parents, rather than explaining in the love and caring manner when the rules are broken.</li><li>Don't offer choices to children -&nbsp;Parents' approach to discipline is strictly one way. They don't discuss the rules with their children before implementing them. The kids are rarely allowed to make a choice.</li><li>Have a low tolerance for indiscipline and misbehaviour –&nbsp;Parents usually misbehave and expect their children to follow the rules with no choice.</li><li>Lack of trust in their children -&nbsp;Parents, expect high standards from their children. They do not allow them the freedom to put up their best behaviour and make choices. Instead of letting their children make choices, the parents ensure that the kids follow the instructions so that they do not commit mistakes.</li><li>Not Responding to a Child's Questions or Requests -&nbsp;Any conversations from children to their parents are irrelevant and are not met with an acknowledgement. Even when the child successfully manages to adhere to all the expectations, the feedback would still be of expecting a lot more the next time, without any praise or acknowledgement of the present achievement.</li><li>Shame their children for indiscipline -&nbsp;Parents use shame as a strategy and force their children to follow the rules by using phrases such as "Why do you always do that?" "How many times do I have to tell you the same thing?" or "Why can't you do anything right?". These parents believe that shaming them will encourage them to follow the rules.</li></ol> Effects on ChildrenThe authoritarian style of parenting affects kids in different ways. It can impact them mentally, emotionally, and socially. Below are the impacts of authoritarian parenting on Child: <ul><li>Do not learn to think independently and&nbsp;cannot make decisions.</li><li>Display more&nbsp;aggressive behaviour&nbsp;outside the home.</li><li>Act fearful or overly shy&nbsp;around others.</li><li>They grow up with&nbsp;low self-esteem.</li><li>Have difficulty in social gathering due to a&nbsp;lack of social skills.</li><li>More likely to have symptoms of&nbsp;depression and anxiety.</li><li>Poor academic performance&nbsp;due to mental tolerance.</li><li>Lack of creativity&nbsp;as they are afraid that they might go wrong.</li></ul> This generalization appears to apply across a variety of cultures. Kids from authoritarian families may find it more challenging to fend for themselves and make friends. Pros of Authoritarian ParentingOften strict and rigid, authoritarian parents expect their kids to follow the rules at all times. But there are some good things about this parenting style. Good behaviour -&nbsp;Children have a good understanding of what is and isn't acceptable. They are also highly attuned to the negative consequences that can stem from wrong behaviour, so they will avoid stepping out of the line.Safety -&nbsp;Authoritarian parenting places a strong emphasis on safety, which minimizes the types of risky behaviour a child may engage in.Goal-driven -&nbsp;As per the standard of living in this style, children can understand what steps need to be taken to accomplish a goal. Cons of Authoritarian ParentingThis parenting style may lead to symptoms of depression and anxiety. There are several other cons of authoritarian parenting that should be considered if you're adhering to this type of child-rearing. Rule-dependent-&nbsp;A heavy emphasis on rules set by parents without any real explanation, makes children feel insecure and unsure of how to behave in specific scenarios or social gathering.Reduced self-esteem-&nbsp;As choices are limited, child skill development and creativity are limited, which may have a direct impact on his or her self-esteem. Children who depend on others to develop their confidence will often struggle in social situations or new environments.Rebellion -&nbsp;Children eventually grow tired of the seemingly endless list of rules without any discussion. Children then start to defy the rules and risk their safety eventually intentionally.Emotionally withdrawn -&nbsp;Children who are raised by authoritarian parents tend to shy away from expressing their emotions as Parents do not entertain questions or make an effort to understand the child's emotion.

When parents practice tough love parenting, they adopt a parenting style that psychologists call authoritarian parenting. Find out if this parenting style is right for your child.

sleep walking parenting concerns

Parenting issues are a part of the everyday parenting journey. Following article(s) might help you with your concern(s).