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What form your fertility calendar will take depends on what fertility signs you are tracking. If you’re going to track your BBT, then you’ll need a graph style chart, which you can make by hand, with computer software, or by signing up with one of many online fertility charting websites. There are also apps available if you want to track your fertility signs using a smartphone. You can choose the method that fits your personality and lifestyle best....

There can be a lot of practical benefits to having kids share a room, but there are also challenges. That includes dealing with different bedtimes as well as contrasting sleep styles. “Parents should remember that as a child ages, the expected duration of sleep decreases and the timing of sleep (when the child feels tired) becomes later,” explains Bobbi Hopkins, MD, medical director of Johns Hopkins All Children’s Sleep Center....

Although mastitis can occur any time you’re breastfeeding, it’s more likely to happen within the first six months. When combined with the pressures of caring for a newborn and the pain that sometimes comes with the condition, many women consider giving up breastfeeding. However, continuing to breastfeed while having mastitis can actually help clear the infection. Even though mastitis is discouraging, it is easily treated. Mastitis Symptoms Usually, mastitis begins with a painful area in one breast that may be tender, red, warm, and swollen....

Michelle has been around for almost a century and was an extremely popular choice for parents in the 1960s and 70s. So, not only are plenty of today’s parents (and even some grandparents) named Michelle but there are also many Michelles to be found on the big screen. Who knows, maybe your Michelle will be the next Pfeiffer or Rodriquez? Or perhaps she’ll be the next Obama? But, no matter who your Michelle turns out to be, she will have a classic name to make all her own....

Is Middle School Difficult? Middle school is going to be a little bit of a change academically. Your child might have more homework, and teachers expect middle schoolers to be more responsible about completing homework, keeping up with assignments, and speaking up if something isn’t completely understood. Help your child stay organized and offer tips on how to keep handouts, notes, quizzes, and tests organized for review later. Also, check his homework every now and then to make sure he’s understanding and keeping up with his school work....

If a breastfeeding parent or their child needs to be hospitalized at birth or later in the infant’s life, it can disrupt breastfeeding and result in unintended weaning or health complications like mastitis. To address this issue, the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine (ABM) released recommendations, published in the peer-reviewed journal Breastfeeding Medicine, that the nursing parent and their child stay together if either needs to be hospitalized. What Are the Recommendations?...

For adults recovering from an accident or stroke, OT may indeed include work-related skills. But for children, whose “occupation” is school and play, therapy focuses more sharply on developmental milestones and skills required for the playground and academic activities. Occupational therapists working with children typically use techniques and routines that seem like play. In reality, they are designed to target areas of delay and difficulty. Some occupational therapists also are trained in therapy with a sensory integration approach....

What Kind of Finishes Are Available? Back in the day, parents were pretty much limited to a bronze finish on the shoes. These days, you have more options. You could have your baby’s shoes plated in traditional bronze, bright bronze, gold, silver, pewter or porcelain. Companies then finish the shoes off with a coating of protective lacquer. Cost If you would like to bronze the shoes at home, you can purchase a kit ranging from $80 to $400....

Research has shown that sexual intercourse does not cause or increase the risk of negative outcomes for the baby or parent. In a normal and healthy pregnancy, orgasm doesn’t increase the risk of miscarriage or preterm labor. Sexual activity may even have positive health benefits for the pregnancy, by boosting feel-good hormones like oxytocin and increasing the blood flow (and oxygen) to the uterus. Learn more about sex and orgasm during pregnancy....

Knowledge is power here. Understanding what postpartum depression is—what it really feels like to experience it—is the first step toward recognizing that you have a problem.It’s also valuable to understand how postpartum depression is diagnosed and what happens when you make that first brave step toward feeling better. Signs and Symptoms Postpartum depression is a perinatal mood disorder experienced by mothers in the first 12 months after having a baby and is usually diagnosed after you have experienced symptoms for two weeks or more....

Postpartum depression is common—as many as 1 in 9 new moms experience it—and while some people are more vulnerable to getting it, there is no one single thing that causes it. Not only that, but many of the causes and risk factors are not something you could have caused yourself. All that said, it can be illuminating to understand what causes postpartum depression, what the risk factors are—and maybe most importantly, what steps you may be able to take to prevent it in future pregnancies....

Multiple studies published in 2021 confirmed that the COVID-19 vaccine produced antibodies (proteins that fight infection) in umbilical cord blood and breastmilk samples but did not pass the vaccine itself. In addition, there is no evidence of adverse effects from vaccination on parents, fetuses, newborns, or breastfed babies. “With the COVID vaccine, you produce the antibodies to the spike protein on the COVID virus, and therefore the antibodies are passed on to the baby, giving the baby some protection against COVID as well,” explains Marcos Mestre, MD, vice president and chief medical officer at Nicklaus Children’s Hospital in Miami, Florida....

Although current health advice assumes moderate caffeine consumption during pregnancy is safe, the author of the recent meta-analysis found the evidence compelling enough to conclude that pregnant women and women contemplating pregnancy should avoid caffeine altogether. Heightened Risks For the analysis, Jack James, PhD, a professor of psychology at Reykjavik University in Iceland, looked at 48 studies focused on maternal caffeine consumption in the past two decades. He found that 32 of them suggested caffeine-related increased risk in four main categories:...

Here, you’ll find 50 rainy day activities that will keep your kids entertained and happy. Indoor Activities for Families When the rain is coming down in sheets, settle in and try one of these activities. Have storytime. You can’t go wrong with a good old-fashioned storytime. If your kids are old enough, they can take turns reading. Sort through old toys. Your playroom will be much more organized at the end, plus you may discover some old toys that you can put in storage or donate....

The Options For Making Up a Failed Class Before discussing the advantage of summer school, consider all of your options for making up a class: More Time for the Basics Summer school will give your teen more time to learn the basics of the subject. Middle and high school classes mimic the fast-paced world in which we live. Unfortunately, teens learning math and science may not be able to keep up and end up getting lost....