The effects of childhood abuse and lack of parental affection can last a lifetime, taking a toll both emotionally and physically.

There are many reports assessing the psychological damage resulting from childhood abuse, and the effects on physical health have also been well documented. For instance, this "toxic" stress has been linked to elevated cholesterol, cardiovascular disease, metabolic syndrome and other physical conditions posing a significant health risk. The research into the physical effects of abuse, however, has focused on separate, individual systems.

"A new review paper out in the Journal of Developmental and Behavioural Pediatrics has me hearing choirs, seeing the clouds part, and sun shining down (and I live in Vancouver, BC so it’s not something I see very often) over finally seeing someone address the issue of sleep training in young children by summarizing ALL the research (albeit only until six months of age).  This new review paper examines all articles from 1993 to August 2013 that examined the effects of sleep training on infants younger than six months of age."

Parents, teachers and doctors all agree that lack of sleep makes children cranky, tearful and more prone to tantrums. Now researchers from the UK have found that children with irregular bedtimes are more likely to have behavioral difficulties.

Headlines declare the practice risky -- so why does the data say otherwise?

There’s a lot of talk about the importance of secure attachment. We mostly hear of it in two circles: adult relationships and parenting, especially of adopted or foster children. We’re hearing more of it in parenting at large, mainly through organizations like Attachment Parenting International. But for the most part, the importance of individual attachment style continues to be downplayed. After all, we all grew up “just fine,” right?

Women in labor might not have to worry about their hunger anymore. A new study has found that women who drank protein shakes fared comparably to those who only consumed the standard ice chips with regards to physical side effects. Yet their satisfaction during the ordeal was much higher.

NASHVILLE, Tenn. – Tennessee is known as the Volunteer State and that willingness to lend a hand has earned some national recognition. 

A list of the most compassionate cities in the U.S. has Nashville ranked second. 

The factors included giving to social causes, number of nonprofit organizations and number of volunteers, says Barbara Nicholson, co-founder of Nashville-based Attachment Parenting International.

"And I just see that..."

A study recently released by the Official Journal of the American Academy of Pediatrics indicates that an estimated 46.6% of babies between the ages of 7 to 12 weeks in North America will suffer from positional plagiocephaly, or “flat head syndrome.” That’s nearly one in two babies! This largely preventable syndrome is widely assumed to be the result of over-use of infant holding devices, such as car seats, swings and bouncy seats, as well as the rise of the “Back to Sleep” program, which started in North America in 1994 (3). So, what’s the good news?

“Babywearing” is the term used to describe wearing your child in a soft carrier. There are a wide variety of carriers available on the market today. A 1986 study in Pediatrics found that infants that are carried more cry less than other infants; a 1990 study in Child Development found that infants carried in soft carriers showed a high degree of positive attachment at 13 months, and countless parents around the world have found that wearing their baby in a cloth carrier allows them to tend to their daily tasks while also caring for their infant.

Europe seems to host the most pediatricians who recommend that, in order to avoid pressure on their underdeveloped bodies, newborns and infants lie flat on their backs in a stroller and not be carried. Yet, laying a young infant on his back alone in a stroller is actually physically and emotionally stressful and can be developmentally inhibiting. Being carried or worn in an upright position with proper leg support is not only developmentally sound but often preferable to parents and babies alike. Upright carrying optimizes the physical, emotional and intellectual growth of your baby.

When done properly, carrying a baby in a soft baby carrier can be safer than carrying a baby in your arms. Your carrier doesn’t have muscles that get tired, and your carrier doesn’t have arms that reflexively reach out to balance you or catch you when you fall. But, as with anything concerning babies, good safety practices are of paramount importance. This article has many safety tips, but no set of guidelines can anticipate every circumstance. You are responsible for your child’s safety as well as your own.

What’s missing in the current debate over economic inequality is enough serious discussion about investing in effective early childhood development from birth to age 5. This is not a big government boondoggle policy that would require a huge redistribution of wealth. Acting on it would, however, require us to rethink long-held notions of how we develop productive people and promote shared prosperity.

At birth, we each are given two gifts. One is life and the other is death. Through the body of a woman, each one of us enters life’s dance. Whatever our relationship to this woman is today, this simple fact unites humanity. Through the bodies of women, we begin a journey that must inevitably end. In ancient mythologies, the keeper of the underworld was often a female figure. According to mythologist Joseph Campbell, this is because we are born—and we die—due to a gift she bestows upon us. A gift embodied in the mother archetype. 

I am a doula.