The Sisterhood of Motherhood

Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. • Feb 13, 2015

When one of the Facebook parents sent me the following video clip, she was careful to say, “watch it to the end.  You’ll never guess that it’s a commercial selling something.”

And so I watched… all the way to the end.

SPOILER alert, if you haven’t clicked the start button.  Go ahead and do it now.

In exchange for two minutes of your time, you get a glimpse into the best and worst sides of your parenting selves (and not necessarily in that order.)

It’s the Working Moms vs. the Attachment Parents.  It’s the exclusive Breast feeders vs. Bottle Moms.  Throw in the Stay-at-home Dads, and you have an arena of parents who are poised to judge one another and assert authority in ways that Dr. Spock could have never imagined.

How is it that we forget on such a regular basis that there are as many right ways to raise a child, as there are children?  In the quiet moments of honest reflection, hasn’t every parent thought, “This is SO hard! And so important a job that I just can’t screw up.”

But we all screw up.  We turn our backs for a second, and the awful thing happens.  “There, but for the grace of God, go I,” was what my Grandmother always used to say.  (She would have reminded me that another mother’s mistake doesn’t mean that I am the perfect parent; only that I should be kind and cultivate a little more humility.)  As I watched the slow down hill slide of a most beautiful baby, I was reminded that it is as hard to support one another’s parenting choices as it is to slow down a runaway stroller.  But it can be done.

All it takes is a little reminder from a most unlikely place.

Gayle Schrier Smith, MD

Who is a pediatrician mother whose kids had breastmilk, formula and a Dad who wore those snuggli-things.

 

The DrDownload Blog

By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 30 Jan, 2024
It's not what you say... it's how you say it. But sometimes, it IS what you say, and knowing how the experts communicate with children, big and small can often help parents. The post What Mothers Say Matters To Our Kids appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 01 Dec, 2023
With an organized roadmap to offer checkups and flu vaccines this fall, I’m proud to say that our practice vaccinated more than seventy five percent of the patients and the parents who come to us. It wasn’t an easy task, and there were some families who probably thought our email reminders were annoying. To you, […] The post Flu, Vaccines & Chicken Noodle Soup appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 01 Dec, 2020
Five years later.  It’s official. Kids, I’ll no longer be asking you to take a teaspoon of medicine. I’m making the call to action for the pharmacists who prepare prescriptions for my patients to kick back any prescriptions if I forget to write in milliliters. The American Academy of Pediatrics came out with the wise advice (they […] The post How to Measure Medicine, Mary Poppins appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Smith 29 Nov, 2023
FDA Approves Goat's Milk Infant Formula & the AAP agrees it's an excellent option to nourish infants who are not breastfeeding.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 10 Jul, 2021
When we ordered a new electronic health record, we picked one build for kids in an effort to improve the quality of the care we provide. One of the things it prompts us to ask about is guns in the home. I’ve always been in the habit of asking about a child’s home setting to […] The post Guns? You Gotta Ask appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 18 Dec, 2020
The first shipment of COVID-19 vaccine arrived in Richmond this week.  I’m calling it a shot of hope, and I couldn’t be more hopeful and yes, excited to get my vaccine. As a spokesperson for the American Academy of Pediatrics, I am always careful to say when I’m speaking on their behalf and when I’m […] The post A Shot of Hope appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 10 Oct, 2020
This week, it’s about our Children’s Hospital… DID YOU KNOW?? Did you know that I have written about and wished for a real Children’s Hospital for Richmond for more than twenty years?  We could split hairs on the definition of a ‘real’ Children’s Hospital, but I’ll wager that you know one when you see one. […] The post Did You Know We Need A Real Children’s Hospital? appeared first on the original DrDownload blog at PartnersInPediatrics.info
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 24 Sep, 2020
We call it Love and Liquids.  It’s what you do when your child is sick, and as the Fall unfolds, we’re pretty sure it’s going to be a very long winter of illness.  So let’s review the drill for how to get better. At first, you think it might be allergies, but really … you’re […] The post Get Better Faster With Love and Liquids appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 08 Sep, 2020
I just finished reading an excellent blog post by Emily Oster written to help parents make decisions in CoronaVirus times.  She blogs at CovidExplained.org I’ve grown fond of saying that we are living through history, and in some ways, it softens the daily blows that come with actually having to do that.  This Coronavirus has […] The post Coronavirus Decision Making appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
By Gayle Schrier Smith M.D. 30 Jun, 2020
COVID-19 Testing. It’s a featured topic on 60 Minutes in late June, 2020 and their investigative journalism has some surprising discoveries about how the FDA allowed antibody tests of varied accuracy onto the market. “The wonderful, beautiful immunity.”  That’s how the President described antibody protection in folks who have recovered from COVID-19.  We know that […] The post COVID-19 Tests. We Must Proceed With Caution appeared first on Partners in Pediatrics.
More Posts
Share by: