Top 10 Favorite Moments as a Lactation Consultant: #9
Sleep deprivation. It's brutal. And every new parent, mom and dad alike, suffer from it. Remember?
Well, one afternoon a lovely couple came for a visit. The baby was about 1 week old. We start off the visit in the usual way and mom began pouring out her story. She was exhausted. She had labored for hours and ended up with a c-section. She had hardly slept at all, she didn't think she was making enough milk and she had severe nipple pain.
I helped Mom get comfortable and the baby started feeding. That's when we heard it. Dad snoring. Dad snoring loudly. We looked over to see dad lying all the way back on the bed sound asleep. Mom was horrified. She called to him telling him to wake up!
We continue watching the baby feed and the snoring started again. I'm talking some serious snoring. Mom's telling dad to wake up. Sit up. Pay attention. But it was hopeless. He was gone. He just couldn't stay awake. I think he slept for an hour or more.
Mom and I had a great visit together with lots of laughing. As they were leaving, Dad said, "Well I'm just as tired as you are." Hummm...I mused, as I glanced over at an exasperated, smiling mom shaking her heard in disbelief.
So who is the most tired? And which one remembers the way the story really happened?
Debbie