Need input on book... Happiest Baby on the Block

[SuperstarMama]

Never read it myself, but someone at a recent La Leche League meeting mentioned it. Wondering your thoughts and if it falls in line with GD and AP.
Thanks!!!

[Llee]

It pretty much does. From what I've been told (I haven't seen the movie, but have read the book) the DVD is much better to watch, especially for a lot of dads. :shifty

[Dana Joy]

Karp promotes the 5 S's: IIRC: swadling, shhing, swinging, sucking and sidelaying. His baby book is very inline with AP. His toddler book bugs me, especially his dvd that goes with it. He calls toddlers savages, and promotes a technique mimicking your child when they tantrum, that just feels disrespectful to me.

[WingsOfTheMorning]

I haven't read the toddler one, but I felt the baby one was very AP. It's all about recreating the womb environment in order to help babies that are fussy/colicky. He even gives evidence that there are cultures where colic doesn't exist! The cool thing is that many of us know to do some of the things he suggests, but putting all 5 together is really the key for some fussy babies.

[klpmommy]

Happiest Baby is a great book. It is mainstream accepted enough that it can be a gateway to AP for some parents. It was my sanity saver for E, esp.

I like the toddler book, too. I skip the first half of "theory" and go straight to the second half of useful information. It worked really well with my kids.

[Katigre]

Karp promotes the 5 S's: IIRC: swadling, shhing, swinging, sucking and sidelaying. His baby book is very inline with AP.
Yep - solid advice that appeals to all types of parenting styles. I love the DVD b/c it cuts straight to helpful techniwues and really does reduce crying :yes.

His toddler book bugs me, especially his dvd that goes with it. He calls toddlers savages, and promotes a technique mimicking your child when they tantrum, that just feels disrespectful to me.
I haven't read the toddler book, but IME mimicking isn't always disrespectful. DD loves it when I 'cry' with her and it calms her down quickly and makes her laugh. I just discovered this last week and I think this is a tool to keep in mind with certain types of kids - DD thinks it's hilarious and it really does help break her out of a tantrum quickly and without a struggle.

She's a total silly girl with dramatic tendencies so this falls right in line with her personality (comes by this naturally...DH and I both did a lot of acting when we were younger and there are a number of performers in our families). When she's upset I will sometimes ask her 'do you want me to cry with you?' and she will say "yes!" and laugh when I sob into her shoulder. Then she's ready to play again and this tool helps her refocus and redirect.

The more serious 'comfort' techniques seem to encourage her to stay stuck in her big feelings instead of moving past them (and thus follows with other parenting strategies with her - silly tends to be 100x more effective than serious).

[CCmomma]

I loved the Happiest Baby on the Block. In fact my friend is supposed to be returning it ASAP so that I can reread it and refresh before DS is born. My DH didn't read it (of course!) but he did learn the 5 S's and used them. They are great!!

I liked parts of the toddler version. I feel like it repeats itself alot and that is annoying. But I liked the "fast food rule" where whoever is more upset talks first. It did make me start thinking about how I was responding and the words I was using. That said, I soon after found Easy to Love, Difficult to Discipline and found it much more helpful.

[Sonata]

I liked both books, and took the parts of it that made the most sense to me. And yeah, I just skimmed when it got repetitive.

I found the toddler one especially helpful. I think calling them "cavemen" is pretty tongue-in-cheek. The basic idea of repeating back what they are upset about has been REALLY HELPFUL with my son. Personally, I don't have a loud and dramatic personality, so I don't exclaim back at the same volume like he suggests. But stopping and reiterating the point he is trying to make before moving on to what *I* want helps him calm and listen to me almost every time. My husband is especially good at remembering to do this, and like you said Katigre, DS is usually amused by his exaggerated emotion, which also derails the tantrumming.