Raising Primates

Alma Gottlieb, PhD, anthropologist and author of A World Of Babies, and I sit down to talk how our WEIRD (Western, Educated, Industrial, Rich, Democratic) culture can differ from many others around the world with regards to ideas and practices surrounding child rearing. We discussed: -why the Western notion of attachment theory doesn’t hold up around the world, and how the nuclear family in the West is a historically novel situation -how parenting ideals/values/practices differ from our own around the world, particularly with regards to infants and teenagers -why anthropologists shy away from the word “universally” -how cultural ideals are transmitted through child rearing, and the impact this has on the way children view themselves and their role in society -some ideas about ethics, infant mortality, and prenatal testing -creating a village in our modern technological world Check out Alma’s website: www.almagottlieb.com Different Faces of Attachment: www.amzn.com/131661798X Alma’s book A World Of Babies: www.amzn.com/1316502570 Alma’s Facebook page for A World of Babies: https://www.facebook.com/WOBBook/

Barry Hewlett, PhD, professor of anthropology at Washington State University and I sit down to talk about his time spent with the Akas in Central Africa. We discussed: -How Barry’s career in anthropology evolved and how he came to spend time with the Akas (a nomadic foraging society he lived with off and on for over 40 years) -Among other things, Barry talks about the high amount of touch provided for infants, who are often held by various members of their extended family throughout the day -Egalitarian and autonomous values within the Aka society -Ideas (or lack thereof) about “personal space” with the Akas -The Aka fathers and their heavy involvement in child rearing - what about their lifestyles allows their fathers to be so present with their offspring? -Lessons Barry learned from the Akas Check out Barry’s book about the Aka fathers here: www.amzn.com/0472082035 Find out more about his work here: https://anthro.vancouver.wsu.edu/people/hewlett/ RATE, REVIEW & SUBSCRIBE to the podcast Check us out online: www.raisingprimates.com

Charlotte Faircloth, PhD, anthropologist and author of "Militant Lactivism? Attachment Parenting and Intensive Motherhood in the UK and France", and I sit down to talk about "parenting culture" and how attachment parenting fits into the larger ideology of intensive mothering. We discuss: -Charlotte’s work and how it influenced her own journey through motherhood (and vice versa) -How developmental psychology in the 1970's played a key role in creating “parenting culture” - and what that means -the idea of the “natural” being held up as ideal (is/ought problem), and some of the problems this may create for new parents trying to sort out their unique relationship with their child -defining intensive motherhood and looking at attachment parenting as a subset of this dominant cultural ideology -our very human need to belong to groups, and find support and validation around the parenting practices we employ -the difference between criticism and critique - or, how can we analyze various behaviors of parents without necessarily attaching a moral judgment to them? -how social media can both help and perhaps harm our perceptions of ourselves as parents -the idea of optimizing “parenting” or “attachment”, and how neurobiological research can be appropriated to inform “best” parenting practices More of Charlotte's work can be found here: https://iris.ucl.ac.uk/iris/browse/profile?upi=CFAIR39 The book Militant Lactivism?: www.amzn.com/0857457586 The book Parenting Culture Studies: www.amzn.com/1137304634 The Center for Parenting Culture Studies at Kent: https://blogs.kent.ac.uk/parentingculturestudies/ RATE, REVIEW & SUBSCRIBE TO THE PODCAST!! Visit us online: www.raisingprimates.com

David Lancy, PhD, anthropologist and author of "Raising Children: Surprising Insights From Other Cultures" and I sit down to talk about our incessant desire as parents to teach children everything. We discussed: -David's own journey through fatherhood as an anthropologist who was raising his daughters in a vastly different culture from the US -Our adult-driven teaching tendencies (think baby flash cards, kindergarten readiness obsession, singing/reading/playing with our children), and how these differ vastly from many other culture's beliefs about how children learn (and how adults' time should be spent) -What we may be missing out on when we focus exclusively on teaching academics (think basic skills like budgeting, laundry, etc.) -The important role that older children play in the lives of younger children, particularly with regards to modeling appropriate cultural behavior/skill sets -how we can relax a bit more and trust that our children don't necessarily need explicit instructions for every task, and may benefit from being allowed to figure things out on their own Here are my favorite books by David Lancy: The Anthropology of Childhood: www.amzn.com/B00N4PM61E Raising Children: www.amzn.com/1108415091 More of David's work can be found here: http://www.usu.edu/anthro/davidlancyspages/index.html

Chris LoRang (DC) and Abbie Sawyer, co-founders of Building Your Baby From the Ground Up, and I sit down to talk about baby-led movement from a bio-physiological standpoint. We discuss: -what typical gross motor development looks like in the first 2 years of life -baby-led movement: what it looks like, why it's important, and how parents can easily incorporate it into their lives -the increase in infant containers in recent decades, and how these may contribute to delayed gross motor development and unstable "biomechanics" -how returning to a minimal approach to baby gear and movement can free up your baby and your wallet and lead to optimal gross motor development Use the code "raisingprimates" for 10% off anything in their store at www.buildingyourbaby.com Share Chris and Abbie's super informative and easy to digest Instagram account with anyone you know who has/will have babies! www.instagram.com/buildingyourbaby RATE, REVIEW & SUBSCRIBE to the podcast to never miss future episodes! www.raisingprimates.com BECOME a PATRON at www.patreon.com/raisingprimates

What does it mean to be a "natural" parent or "parent by nature"? Can childrearing ever exist in a vacuum void of culture? Where did the ideology and practices behind the "natural parenting" trend come from? Is it possible that they were cherry picked from traditional societies, and other practices were largely ignored? Today on the show I am providing some interesting information about "natural" parenting practices seen around the world in various cultures, that may seem uninformed or downright horrific to us Westerners. If natural is defined as things humans have been doing for millennia, we may need to rethink what we mean when we refer to "natural parenting". Further reading: The Anthropology of Childhood: Cherubs, Chattel, Changelings (Lancy) The Evolution of Childhood (Konner) Do Parenting Matter? (Levine) Mother Nature (Hrdy)

Clarifying yesterday's episode

Wow...well this is awkward. Today on the podcast I share why I'm leaving Attachment Parenting philosophy behind for good. This may come as a shock to many of you who found my podcast specifically for getting support in your parenting practices. What I'm hoping to provide you with is the courage to believe that families, especially mothers, are always doing the best for their child and themselves, and that this looks SO different for every family, and always has ...and that's ok! Through hearing my story, I hope that perhaps you will challenge your own thinking and beliefs about what brings about healthy and content children (and parents!) Books that have deeply challenged my very Western ways of thinking about parenting: Do Parents Matter? www.amzn.com/1610397231 Raising Children www.amzn.com/1108415091 The Gardener and the Carpenter www.amzn.com/0374229708 Cribsheet www.amzn.com/B07FZPTDJ3 Intensive Mothering: www.amzn.com/B00RY92UBM The Cultural Contradictions of Motherhood: www.amzn.com/0300076525 www.raisingprimates.com Email me with feedback: raisingprimates@gmail.com

Kerstin Uvnäs Moberg, MD, PhD, and author of Oxytocin: The Biological Guide to Motherhood, and I sit down to talk all about our favorite hormone: Oxytocin! We discuss: -biological underpinnings of oxytocin -what helps release oxytocin (and what hinders its release), particularly during the birth and breastfeeding processes -creating an ideal environment for your body to release and work with oxytocin -how common hospital interventions can affect the release of oxytocin -oxytocin's role during bonding/breastfeeding in the postpartum period Visit her website for more information: www.kerstinuvnasmoberg.org Order her book: www.amzn.com/B01NA7V002

Diane Bahr, MS, CCC-SLP, speech-language pathologist specializing in oral-motor function and feeding therapy, and I sit down to talk about how the way we feed our babies/young children impacts their facial structure/jaw/teeth development, nasal and air passageways, and speech. We discuss (among other things): -the difference between breastfeeding and bottle feeding, and each method's impact on oral-facial musculature and development -how to bottle feed in a way that mimics breastfeeding as much as possible -how tongue ties, pacifiers, and bottles can lead to a high, narrow palate (and thus suboptimal breathing - think open mouth posture) -the critical practice of keeping infants in optimal positions for gross motor development (through babywearing, prone position and/or lying on back), and how this ultimately affects fine motor development (think feeding/speech) -why you should consider ditching the "baby equipment"! -when and how to introduce solids -are crooked teeth ever "normal"? Or a sign of something gone awry? Find out more about Diane at her website: www.agesandstages.net, and check out her books here: "Nobody Ever Told Me (or My Mother) That!" www.amzn.com/9781935567202 "Feed Your Baby and Toddler Right" www.amzn.com/194176567X RATE, REVIEW, & SUBSCRIBE to the podcast - every review helps!! visit www.patreon.com/raisingprimates to support the podcast and get EXCLUSIVE episodes not here on iTunes! www.raisingprimates.com

Andrea Olson, founder and author of Go Diaper Free, and I sit down to talk about what we did before diapers were the norm! Some may have heard the term "Elimination Communication"...just a fancy way of saying "listening to your baby's natural potty cues". In this episode, we get into the nuts and bolts of EC - and how to incorporate EC into your life, even if only part-time! Check out all things Go Diaper Free at www.godiaperfree.com, or listen to Andrea's podcast "Go Diaper Free"! RATE, REVIEW, & SUBSCRIBE to the podcast! Become a PATRON to support our efforts and receive exclusive episodes not available to the public: www.patreon.com/raisingprimates Visit us at www.raisingprimates.com

Robbie Davis-Floyd, PhD, legendary birth anthropologist and author of Ways of Knowing About Birth, and I sit down to discuss the technocracy of modern birth. How did we get to be so reliant on technology in modern birth, how does our reliance affect our birth outcomes, and what is the way forward? Robbie's website: www.davis-floyd.com Robbie's books: "Ways of Knowing About Birth", www.amzn.com/B0767PKSVZ "Birth as an American Rite of Passage", www.amzn.com/B007FRK2DG RATE, REVIEW, & SUBSCRIBE to the podcast - every review helps!! visit www.patreon.com/raisingprimates to support the podcast and get EXCLUSIVE episodes not here on iTunes! www.raisingprimates.com

In my first solo episode I'm talking all about 5 parenting practices that are common in the "WEIRD" countries that I've ditched...and 3 that I still embrace! Including... -adults "teaching" children -separate vs shared sleep -"well baby" visits -diapering -and more! RATE, REVIEW, & SUBSCRIBE to the podcast - every review helps!! visit www.patreon.com/raisingprimates to support the podcast and get EXCLUSIVE episodes not here on iTunes! www.raisingprimates.com

Bill Crain, PhD, author of Reclaiming Childhood and psychology professor, and I sit down to talk about the importance of letting childhood unfold naturally and without interruption. We discuss: -The inspiration for his book, which was written over 15 years ago but still very much applies to today's world -The importance of making time and space for children to express themselves through nature, art, music, and other sensory exploration -Children's innate love and reverence of animals, and how we can foster their relationships with living beings around them -How parents can inadvertently turn children off to learning when they place an inordinate amount of pressure on performance/academics/behavior -How social media and screens can affect children's innate interests and motivations -What parents can spend more time doing when they aren't trying to control or direct the path of their child's future Bill's book can be found here: www.amzn.com/B005G4A9BU Find out more about his farm sanctuary here: https://safehavenfarmsanctuary.org/ RATE, REVIEW, & SUBSCRIBE to the podcast! Become a PATRON to support our efforts and receive exclusive episodes not available to the public: www.patreon.com/raisingprimates Visit us at www.raisingprimates.com

Why I changed the podcast name from Attachment Parenting Podcast to Raising Primates Podcast. Patreon support & EXCLUSIVE episodes: www.patreon.com/raisingprimates raisingprimates@gmail.com