Does *anyone* think Claire Verity's methods are kind of OK and we are hugely overreacting?

[Pruners]

Message withdrawn

Hmmm, let's be careful this doesn't turn into another you-know-who-type-fiasco... Stick to criticising the methods, not the person?

My personal view is probably that Dr Spock had it right - you know your own baby. Did not like the CV methods - I want to hear the snuffles and grunts, and know my baby is OK. But I do agree that we don't take them out enough - I will take my next baby outside more to just lie in its pram, but when I'm in the garden too. 4 hourly feeds only really work properly if you bottle feed as you can almost force them to take a bit more. DD1 was in a nearly 4 hours routine at 4 weeks, but she had been tube-fed for the first 2 weeks in SCBU then bottle-fed (mix of EBM and formula).

I didn't like the continuum woman either - thought the advice now was to be v careful about co-sleeping? And a breastfeeding counsellor told me an awful story about a baby that died in a sling - similar to the advice re not being in car seats for too long as newborns are best when out flat.

MMM Housemum I think that in this case personal critiques of CV's methods are very valid on a few grounds though.
I think that in the beginning when C$ were looking for methods to follow, that Truby king would have stood out, because in it's time it was ,on the face of it very successful - you can't really read about Truby King without it being clear that he did a huge amount to reduce infant mortality and in effect, start of the whole health visitor movement - He studied calves, yes, but that taught him that artificial feeding was dangerous and he translated that to the human babies he saw dying of diseases related to poor hygiene. He believed that 95% of women were capable of breastfeeding so was the first 'breast is best' campaigner , unfortunately he was pretty much the father of formula too, producing safe milk substitutes and through his 'plunket nurses' educating women how to use them .He introduced 4 hourly feeding regimes as a response to a problem of obese babies, and believed that overstimulation was a bad thing, but certainly didn't recommend no eye contact or leaving babies to cry for hours and hours. Of course , this was all between 1913 and 1938 and by the time he died, many of his more crackpot theories had already been discredited .
It would be easy for someone who had superficially read up his methods and the background to think he was a pioneer who shaped childcare for many decades after his death, in fact,He was a man of his time,working with what anyone knew at the time, which was that 'bad air' carried disease,Children sometimes failed to thrive, but no one knew why, and that premature babies died more often than not and it was god's will.
However CV doesn't really follow Truby King - she has developed her own philosophy, which to my mind, owes more to JB Watson than TK , he was the man who advocated not interacting with babies and believed that babies would be better off if mothers were taken out of the equation altogether and cared for by nurses who would rotate so that their charges did not get attached - amazingly, his 2 wives allowed him to test this out on their children - result 2 suicides, one death from anxiety disorder related ulcers and one survivor(after years of therapy) .Watson himself was deeply sorry in later life that he had ever got involved with child development and admitted that he got it completely wrong.
Based on what is now known about the risks of these methods(and was known even 50 years ago)Then CV is not just badly informed, but downright wilfully dangerous and together with C4 and the production company is culpable for any future emotional harm which proves to have been inflicted to the children.
Lisa X

"Based on what is now known about the risks of these methods(and was known even 50 years ago)Then CV is not just badly informed, but downright wilfully dangerous and together with C4 and the production company is culpable for any future emotional harm which proves to have been inflicted to the children. "

Absolutely Lisa. I'm shocked that C4 allowed this to be shown. I'm just hoping that not too many dysfunctional parents are watching it, nodding their heads while baby's upstairs screaming .

I watched this whole show twice. This is nine years later on youtube. I was at first raging against Claire methods and attitude. I was livid. If you listen to the whole show, the narrator is very bias towards Claire and her method as she really is not towards the other two. This set the tone of how a show wants you to lead you. Not Professional of the show.
I still do not care for many of the things Claire say, but with some things , they do work and produce happy children. As an 11 year professional nanny, and watching children grow. The families that have the least structure, too much go with the flow, like the 60's methods, are still having sleep issues when the child is three or four! Other families that set a sleep and feeding structure in place, but "also love and cherish" their children, seem the most happiest overall. One house had a very firm schedule since children were 5 months, and even not, he is three, he still is a big sleeper, a big napper and a good eater. So is his older brother! I am not a new born expert by far, but you should see me with 5 happy one year olds to 6 year olds. The children act very different with nannies than with mothers. I can happily get them to bed and eat when mums can't...

I'm with 7 families currently, in two families are 4 month olds. The both have older children. One the mom just breastfeeds at every cry, she is too tired to try to bottle feed. The other mom is just as loving but give both breast and very often bottle (breast milk in a bottle that was pre frozen) she encourages lots of independent play, meaning she sits there but during floor time tries not to engage too much. Guess which baby is self soothing, cries less and seems more content? The one encouraged on independent play and bottle fed 60% of time. Both moms are equally as loving! The one mom with the fussy 4 month old that can't self sothe has an older sister that had the exact same problem! The sister still can't sleep, need tons of attention, and extra soothing. Moms can over mother so the one I disagree with the most is the 60's method. So since I flow with families, I know the importance of schedules and also love. I'm 50% 70's and I agree 50% with Claire. I'm sure I am the only one.