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The First Six Weeks
by
'Cath Curtin is the newborn baby guru! A calming voice, a gentle hand and a wealth of knowledge during one of the most incredible but terrifying times of your life - new parenthood. To have Cath's support after the birth of my first son was invaluable and I don't know how I would have done it without her!' Rebecca Judd
Cathryn Curtin has delivered more than 10,000 babies ov ...more
Cathryn Curtin has delivered more than 10,000 babies ov ...more
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Kindle Edition, 288 pages
Published
April 27th 2016
by Allen & Unwin
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We've only got three weeks before the due date. In some ways it has gone very slow. It seems a log time ago since my wife told me on my birthday that I'm going to be a dad. And it seems like the baby has grown very slowly, she's been in there forever. On the other hand, she'll be out soon. Are we ready? Yes...I think. Maybe.
We are both book learners. And we thought about pre-natal classes, but the midwife said that they don't really help and they are only good if you want to meet other new pare ...more
We are both book learners. And we thought about pre-natal classes, but the midwife said that they don't really help and they are only good if you want to meet other new pare ...more
I would not recommend this book and quite disappointed with many of the statements and comments ‘midwife’ Cath recommends. Several of her suggestions are not evidence based or supported by best practice. As a midwife and expectant mother I’m actually saddened women are reading this book her advice.
I would not recommend this book.
Although a lot of the advice in here is sensible, I was constantly taken aback by statements that contradict best practice.
The most glaring one to me was her dogmatic insistence that pumping and medications do not increase your milk supply.
I would also take with a grain of salt her statement that replacing a breast feed with formula wont decrease your supply.
That said, her routine would probably save the sanity of many new parents and help stop a lot of mispla ...more
Although a lot of the advice in here is sensible, I was constantly taken aback by statements that contradict best practice.
The most glaring one to me was her dogmatic insistence that pumping and medications do not increase your milk supply.
I would also take with a grain of salt her statement that replacing a breast feed with formula wont decrease your supply.
That said, her routine would probably save the sanity of many new parents and help stop a lot of mispla ...more
A semi-useful guide for first time parents. Some of Cath’s advice is to be taken with a grain of salt. She is weirdly pro-formula and anti-pumping (in a pro-breastfeeding context) which is the opposite of all the advice I’ve been given by other medical professionals. Not a big deal though. There’s plenty of other useful advice here.
I think this book is best used in conjunction with other resources. Take what works for you and ignore the rest.
I think this book is best used in conjunction with other resources. Take what works for you and ignore the rest.
As a new to be parent I found this book very helpful. It gave me a structure that I can now follow. It was especially suited to me as written by an author of the country I live in. Australia. To give a real review I should probably wait until my baby is more than 6 weeks old.
This is an informative book, but it is skewed. This midwife really believes in nipple shields, which she presents a lot of compelling arguments for, but she is very against pumping and massaging a swollen milk duct or enlarged breasts. Having gone through some of these things, I received the opposite advice, and for me it worked to do the opposite of what this book suggests.
There is some very sound advice throughout the book, and while I surmised from the title it was mostly about sleeping, tha ...more
There is some very sound advice throughout the book, and while I surmised from the title it was mostly about sleeping, tha ...more
Some good ideas, some not so. Her wrapping technique was interesting & worked but was difficult to keep up with. The idea of the Dad taking over after 9pm worked well for us until he had to go back to work. Overall the book was helpful & I would recommend reading it in the first week after birth while you're living the weeks the author is taking about.
...more
3.5 stars. Lots of practical, real life tips on how the hell to handle this misty, magical and mind numbing first six weeks. The absolute best part of this book? The Bath, Bottle, Bed routine. Getting a teeny tiny bub to sleep for several hours sounds amazing. I'll be trying that next time!
I’ve been a fan of midwife Cath on social media throughout my pregnancy but I did not enjoy this book. She is hypocritical and arrogant in her messaging and is weirdly pro formula, epidural, etc. Advice in this book is completely opposite to for example, to the Royal Women’s advice. I got mastitis, twice, partly because of the advice to not massage blocked duct or engorged breasts!
She advices to not follow any other advice but hers, and is strongly against routines recommended by other professi ...more
She advices to not follow any other advice but hers, and is strongly against routines recommended by other professi ...more
We shall see how well all the advice and approaches from this book go but I thought it was a good, no bullshit way of laying information for new parents. There were some areas I found midwife Cath a little bit preachy and harping on about the same things, but the underlying message of the book is good and backs parents
The author basically has one overarching idea for the first six weeks: bath, bottle, bed. The idea is that fathers (or the non-breastfeeding spouse) take over from about 9pm so that the breastfeeding partner can go to sleep and get some rest. He then baths the baby at 10pm, gives the baby a bottle and puts the baby to sleep. The baby is then likely to sleep through to about 2-3am (because of the relaxing effects of bathing), which has then given the breastfeeding partner a chance to sleep a pote
...more
Never consider a baby book as the only source of truth. Always double check and cross-reference book suggestions (eg. formula feeding may decrease milk supply, pumping may increase milk supply etc). If book suggestions work for you - great, if they don’t - don’t stress and try other approaches.
Interesting, easy to read but a lot of conflicting advice from what I received from the hospital midwives, particularly formula and bottle routine. It does give an alternative if things aren't working.
Well written and easy to understand with great information.
Sensible, fantastic
Great book. Well written. No fuss attitude. Just love your baby and feed it! Great work Cath. Highly recommend it
Great book. Well written. No fuss attitude. Just love your baby and feed it! Great work Cath. Highly recommend it
3.0
Very practical and reassuring for a first time Mum!
I did not read much of this. The parts I read were not helpful.
Pretty useful although a bit repetitive at times.
Aiztaupiet šīs grāmatas pirkšanu! Es jums pateikšu visu tās saturu/īpašo autores formulu koncentrētā veidā vienā teikumā: Vakaros fāterim bēbis jānovanno un jāiedod pudelīte (pat ja bēbis tiek barots tikai ar krūti), pēc kā jānoliek gulēt, savukārt mātei tikmēr jāatpūšas. Tas tiek pieteikts jau pirmajā nedēļā, savukārt pārējās (pēc kā arī veidoti nodaļu nosaukumi) tas tiek īsāk atkārtots, sestajā nedēļā noslēdzot ar to, ka šī formula/rutīna jums jau brīnišķi darbojas, tā tik turpiniet.
Gandrīz ne ...more
Gandrīz ne ...more
I enjoyed reading this as a soon to be new parent. It's not preachy and helped answered some of the questions I had about the great unknown that's heading my way! I think what I enjoyed most was that rather than telling you strictly do-this-don't-do-that, Cath advises what you should and shouldn't be concerned about. She encourages you to adapt to your child's needs, but more importantly how to care for your own needs as a new parent too.
It's an easy read - simple, friendly language and one you ...more
It's an easy read - simple, friendly language and one you ...more
'the first six weeks' is the BEST gift you could give any new parents. Midwife Cath's common sense and reassuring tone makes this a very accessible read, even if you have a baby in the house and not much sleep yourself.
Well designed with a mixture of specific hints, personal accounts AND the overwhelming benefit of reassuring the reader that the writer knows what she's talking about.
A midwife of 10,ooo babies over 40 years. No arrogance, just reassurance based on experience.
Extremely well design ...more
Well designed with a mixture of specific hints, personal accounts AND the overwhelming benefit of reassuring the reader that the writer knows what she's talking about.
A midwife of 10,ooo babies over 40 years. No arrogance, just reassurance based on experience.
Extremely well design ...more
ARC provided by Netgalley for an honest review.
An interesting read. The advice, especially for a first time mother, is always welcome.
However, as with most things, all babies are different, and some advice works better for some than others.
Still - well worth reading and considering.
An interesting read. The advice, especially for a first time mother, is always welcome.
However, as with most things, all babies are different, and some advice works better for some than others.
Still - well worth reading and considering.
Lukewarm
It's not a bad introduction to newborns. It has some interesting ideas that I am not sure if it will work.
It does not have the instructions for Cath's wrap. ;(
It's not a bad introduction to newborns. It has some interesting ideas that I am not sure if it will work.
It does not have the instructions for Cath's wrap. ;(
I would strongly suggest NEVER reading this book...
EVER
EVER
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