Video

How Do I Know If My Newborn Is Sick? 👶 It might seem like a complicated question, but the answer is simpler than you think! Newborns may not be predictable with routines like sleep schedules, but they ARE predictable in their basic actions. Newborns poop, eat, and cry – it’s what they do! 💩🍼😭 So if at any point your baby stops doing any of these things, it may indicate they are sick and need to be checked out. If they’re not pooping, not eating, and not sleeping – those are red flags. But most importantly, if they’re not crying, that’s a MAJOR sign something could be wrong. Newborns cry a certain amount, so if yours suddenly becomes lethargic and inactive without the typical crying, please have them checked out immediately. Trust your instincts as a parent! Lack of those basic newborn behaviors could mean illness. When in doubt, call the doctor. Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate

Dr. Chheda – You hear about the terrible twos. Well, twos here, threes here in the depths of hell, and it does not get better until you’re 5. Three is hard, three is a very trying age. My two-year-olds would have temper tantrums, okay. I walked away. At 3, they had temper tantrums, looked me straight in the face and said “I hate you, you’re the worst mom in the whole world.” That is 3. It is completely normal. You may want to put your 3-year-old in a military boot camp, but it is completely normal. You just need to take a step back, deep breath, and know it is not going to last forever. And they will be perfectly fine, well-adjusted adults. Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate

Dr. Chheda – Recently I climbed a mountain that was 3,000 feet. It was hard, it was grueling, but I persevered and I made it. This was a hike that normally takes an hour and a half. It took me two and a half hours, and I had to take a lot of rest, but I made it. I did not have to go as fast as the turtle. I was slow and steady like the hare. The same for your kids. Your kids don’t have to be accelerated in math for kindergarten. They don’t have to be taking 20 APs in high school. Let them go at their own pace. Support them. Make sure you are encouraging their strengths, and they will reach far greater heights than you ever imagined. Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate

Dr. Chheda – The goal of starting solids is to allow infants to learn how to chew, cause up until this time all they’ve been doing is sucking. Now they need to learn how to chew and move the food bowl is with their tongue to the back of their throat and swallow it. We would like to start solids around 4 months of age. Between 4 to 6 months is when all these muscles start working in harmony, and that’s why we start solids at 4 months. We’re not giving them a meal at 4 months. It’s not chicken and rice with fruits and vegetables. It is a little bit of pureed foods to let them learn how to swallow and use their muscles adequately. And then we increase the variety of foods and the combinations and the spices. We want them to get used to eating food like a real adult. They are not going to be sucking for the rest of their lives. So starting solids at around 4 months is key to help these muscles move. Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate

Dr. Chheda – Lately, I’ve had several patients ask me for the cheapest place to go for radiology, for X-rays, cat scans, MRIs, imaging. I just remember that the cheapest place is not always the best place. While I understand we need to be fiscally conservative, um sometimes it’s not always the best thing to do, especially when it’s your health or your child’s health that’s involved. Cheap sometimes means outdated equipment, clinicians who don’t actually know what they’re doing, sorry to say, or have had their licenses revoked. So remember don’t sacrifice your child’s health for the sake of saving a few dollars. Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate

Dr. Chheda – My baby is an adult today. I can’t believe how fast time has flown, from the minute I held him in my arms, looking at me with those trusting, loving eyes. But as parents, it’s 18 years of letting go: When he first started walking and walked away from you When she first went to kindergarten and walked away from you When she first went to sleep away camp and walked away from you When he first started to drive a car and then he drove away from you Really, you have to believe in yourself, believe in the values you’ve instilled, and make sure they’ve got a great foundation. It’ll be okay. They will walk away, but every time they come back, they were a little bit older and a little bit wiser. Remember, it’s okay. ❤️ Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate

Dr. Chheda – My 2-year-old loved blueberries, ate a whole pint every single day for a week. Next week it was cantaloupe. The week after that it was strawberries. What’s the definition of a picky eater? It’s a kid who doesn’t eat what the parents want them to eat. That’s not a bad thing normally, especially if it’s healthy things that they’re eating. Yes, blueberries every day for a week can get a little boring, so sometimes you have to be a little creative. We’re looking for variety: Make blueberry muffins Blueberry pancakes Blueberry smoothies I even put whipped cream on my blueberries for a while Then I would decrease the amount of whipped cream I would put on, and then they liked blueberries again. Be creative, keep offering it again and again and again in different formats. Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate

Dr. Chheda – We’re so focused on seeing all the negative around us that sometimes we forget to see the positive. It’s just like that with our kids. We always see the negative, all the bad things they’re doing. We try to punish them, but kids inherently are good. They wanna please. So you wanna look for the goodness inside of them. Encourage their strengths. The fact that they can make mistakes and they have the courage to make mistakes and own up to it is excellent. Give them that resilience so they’re not always looking for validation from other people. They don’t need strangers to like their post for validation. They need to have the strength to do it by themselves, and only a trusted parent can do that. Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate . . . .

Dr. Chheda – Vacation Tips: Avoiding Grumpiness 🏖️ There are two things that will make all of us grumpy: being tired and being hungry. When you’re on vacation, that’s even more true. Acknowledge that you and your children may be: Tired Hungry Out of routine Over stimulated Be prepared: Take time off from constant activity Have comfort food ready for your child and yourself Stay well hydrated As long as you can address the tiredness and fatigue, you’re gonna have a wonderful vacation! Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate . . . .

Dr. Chheda – We recently lost our cat Quill. We had rescued Quill and we had him for five years, and it was very, very tough on my children when we lost him. Losing a beloved pet is hard for any child to go through. And children, because they’re so young, their emotions are very intense. Grief is a hard emotion for them to process. Here at Harmony Pediatrics, we will help your child make sure that their emotional well-being is taken care of if your child is experiencing any kind of grief. One good resource is to go to strong, the number 4 life .com. Transcriptions from AI and may not be 100% accurate.