I found the article "Crying and Comforting" in the Summer 2008 AP in a Non-AP World issue of The Journal of API to be very interesting. I had known about the dangers of crying-it-out (CIO), but it was my first introduction to the concept of encouraging crying without soothing. I can see why API is against them - both go against our natural instinct to pick up and comfort that crying child in our homes.
What I found interesting was the bit about how the cortisol levels in the baby's brain soar so high when babies are left to cry, and then I read an article today (see the AP News Desk on TheAttachedFamily.com for more information) in which a foster mother saw research that these dangerous cortisol levels in CIO babies reach the level equal to that from a jellyfish sting. Wow! So, those parents who use CIO are causing their babies huge discomfort.
I was never comfortable with CIO, but I had a babysitter once (a relative) who I caught using CIO on my then 9-month-old daughter. I came home and could hear her crying and sobbing before I even got to the front door! I still think about that day and wonder if that caused any emotional damage.
What I found interesting was the bit about how the cortisol levels in the baby's brain soar so high when babies are left to cry, and then I read an article today (see the AP News Desk on TheAttachedFamily.com for more information) in which a foster mother saw research that these dangerous cortisol levels in CIO babies reach the level equal to that from a jellyfish sting. Wow! So, those parents who use CIO are causing their babies huge discomfort.
I was never comfortable with CIO, but I had a babysitter once (a relative) who I caught using CIO on my then 9-month-old daughter. I came home and could hear her crying and sobbing before I even got to the front door! I still think about that day and wonder if that caused any emotional damage.
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