A short video by Hallie Bulkin challenging the idea that bottle-fed babies are "lazy." Bulkin argues that feeding method is a parental choice and that babies are not lazy; clinicians should observe feeding function, begin with therapy for two to three sessions, and avoid automatically issuing release referrals except in rare, severely restricted cases.
I don't think most of you do this, but I have heard people refer to bottles as being lazy. And it's not nature's way. And this, that, and the other. And look, you know, babies need to feed. So however that parent chooses to feed the baby, that's. That's their prerogative, right? That's up to them. It's not lazy. It's their choice. Right? So. And babies are not lazy. Let's just go back to that. So what can you do as a clinician? If you're feeling, like, kind of fired up about this. Good. That means you care. And if you're also feeling a little overwhelmed, that, my friends, is okay, too, because this work that we do in the pediatric feeding space, it's complex. Don't jump to, like, a release referral right away. I want you to observe function first, and I want you to start with therapy for, like, two to three sessions and see what therapy can do. Now, if you are so dang sure that that child is so restricted that therapy is only going to help, prep them very little. Like, minimally, you know. Okay, fine. But those scenarios are more rare than they are common. So if you're constantly jumping to a release referral after every evaluation, please don't. Please observe function and intervene. Start with therapy and see where it goes.
What I Was Missing in Feeding Therapy: ARFID, Airway, and Myo with Samy Hernandez
