Even as new parents get some confidence in their abilities as their baby gets older, they sometimes have problems dealing with unwanted advice from family members, friends, and even strangers.
From giving your baby water and when to start baby food to the observation that you may be overdressing or under-dressing your baby, you will likely get lots of unwanted advice from people.
How do you respond to this advice?
Remember that there is often more than one right way to do some things. That doesn't mean that you have to change how you do things. But rather keep in mind that that could be what is motivating the advice. The other person likely did something differently from how you are doing it, and the fact that it worked for them makes them think that you should do it the same way. They likely are considering that the way you are doing it is working for you though.
Some good ways to respond to unwanted advice include saying:
- "Thanks, I might try that."
- "That's a good idea, but this way is really working for us."
- "Our pediatrician suggested that we do it this way."
- "I might try that, but I want to see what my pediatrician thinks about it first."
Most importantly, if what you are doing is really working for you, then have the confidence to say so. While you should do some things in a certain way, like putting your baby to sleep on his back to reduce the risk of SIDS and placing her in the back seat of the car in a rear-facing car seat, you have more flexibility in the way you do other things. For example, you might figure out a way to hold, rock, or burp your baby that works better for you and your baby though it may be different than other people do it.
If you aren't sure about the best way to do something, ask your pediatrician.
