Reviews for Genetics and You

The average rating for Genetics and You based on 2 reviews is 3 stars.

Review # 1 was written on 2017-01-04 00:00:00 Ralph Kennington This is absolutely not the way I want to teach my child to sleep. I will paraphrase one sentence that really stuck with me and made me close the book immediately and leave it by the door to return it to the library: you want your child to learn that crying is not worth his while because it won't make you comfort him. Never in a million years would I take this approach! I subscribe to the belief that babies cry to convey their needs and not to manipulate their parents. If he wants comfort, why shouldn't I give it to him? That's what a mother is for. I will teach him to sleep independently when he is developmentally and emotionally ready. Until then, I will work on teaching him to sleep BETTER. Also, it annoyed me when the author said that cosleeping is "deadly" for your sex life. In your bed and at night are not the only circumstances that allow for sex. Get a little creative, ok? The Baby Sleep Book by Dr. Sears and the No Cry Sleep Solution by Elizabeth Pantley definitely fit my parenting style better. Although these books don't necessarily solve your sleep problems, they do remind you that babies may not be ready to sleep the way you want them to and that it's your privilege as a parent to comfort them and teach them to trust that you will be there for them.

Review # 2 was written on 2012-09-20 00:00:00 Edward Agnew I only read the sections that I felt pertained to my daughter at 5 months. The section about bedrooms, bedtimes, and bedtime routines was useful. Most of the suggestions, consistent routine, same time, a lovey, were things I already had going. The idea of negative and positive sleep associations is helpful. Negative sleep associations are anything that would require a parent to assist the baby in falling asleep (rocking, nursing, singing, cuddling, etc.) Positive associations are things that would still be present during a middle of the night waking (a lovey, a pacifier, a night light, a consistent enviroment.) I was already on the right track with a routine, a consistent environment, putting the baby to bed drowsy but awake, and by keeping the baby in her bedroom during middle of the night wakings. Basically, no rewarding the baby by bringing her back out to hang out with us once I've decided it's bedtime. Unlike the author, at 5 months old I don't expect my daughter to go all night without feeding. The book suggests that all babies wake naturally and all they need is a the ability to self-soothe herself back to sleep. I'm pretty sure my child needs to eat! Seriously lady, 12 hours without eating, come on! I think the idea of creating positive sleep assocations is worthwhile, but the promises that after just 2 weeks of implementing a consistent bed-time routine with the final step being putting the baby to bed awake, that the baby will sleep through the night is far fetched. Warning: Dr. Mindell is a cry-it-out advocate. She does soften it a little by suggesting parents take small steps that parents are comfortable with during sleep training, even if that means going in to reassure the baby every 30 seconds. But, once you start sleep training with crying you can't turn back as you'll only make things worse; you'll basically have taught your child to cry rather than sleep. In general, I'm lucky my child is not a crier anyway, she doesn't freak out when I leave her in her crib by herself. She just humms while sucking her pacifier until she falls asleep. Hopefully as the author suggests, by 6 or 7 months she'll be able to retrieve her own pacifier when it falls out. That will help us both sleep!