As a parent, one of the most nerve wracking things is when your baby is sick. The person who is always supposed to be there to help get them better is your doctor, right? Well what happens when they’re the reason that your child is sick?
About a week and a half ago, it was time for my daughter’s 9 month check up. Everything was going great, and then her doctor told me that she was old enough to be taken off of formula and put on cow’s milk. Now, for you moms out there, I know cow’s milk is a controversial topic and everyone is very passionate about it, but I blindly believed what the doctor said and didn’t follow my intuition.
When he first mentioned it, I’ll be honest, I got really scared. Something in my gut just told me that this was the wrong move. Everywhere I’d read said to start them on it at a year or later, if at all. So, I was very nervous. Everyone around me was happy about it though, and encouraged me that it was fine, and I figured, doc knows best! So that Sunday she started on whole milk for the first time. By Monday morning, she was miserable. She laid down and slept everywhere, and could hardly breathe with all the mucus in her nose and throat! Her face got red, and she refused to leave my side. She was just so unhappy, and not herself.
As a mom, I can’t tell you how crappy that made me feel. When you have a baby it’s so hard though, because you make decisions for another human being a lot of times based off of what is convenient for you. Honestly, it was convenient to pay a fraction of the price of formula to give her whole milk, and that was a big part of fueling our decision. So, how do you cope with the fact that, to save a few pennies, you risked your child’s health.
It turned out that my daughter has an intolerance to cow’s milk, caused by introducing it too early. For that, I fault my pediatrician. I was a bit more lenient before, but now I strongly believe in some cases, standards are there for a reason. If I have researched enough into something, and I feel a doctor is wrong, I will do what I think is right for my child. Thankfully, she is better now!
If I could leave you mamas with any advice, whether you’re breast or formula feeding, using diapers or elimination communication, having a vaginal or c-section birth, follow your instincts! We have them for a reason! It could sometimes be the difference between life and death for your child! Let me know in the comments if you have had any scary moments with your child, that your doctor should have handled better!
Much love mamas!
