New Baby - Worried About Minor Potential Birth Defects

Please don't suggest to your wife that you're worried about the alcohol she consumed during her pregnancy. I found out not long ago that my mom did the same thing... and managed to convince herself that I had FAS! I said, "Mom, that's ridiculous. You don't still think that, do you?"

"Well..." she said.

"OMG, Mom!" And I proceeded to pull up half a dozen papers online to prove how ridiculous she was being. I think she believed me.

I grew up with a mother who has been convinced, my entire life, that there is something "wrong" with me, and that it was probably her fault. She used her fine education to try to diagnose me with every damn thing under the sun. She's a bundle of guilt and insecurities, and you bet I noticed, even if I didn't always know why.

Don't do that to your son. Kiss his cute little ear. Kiss his chin. Believe in him!

Nobody's kids are perfect.

My daughter was born with a haemangioma on her upper lip that grew to the size and shape of a ripe plum and required several surgeries over the course of 18 years. And she's horribly nearsighted. But she's also incredibly smart and accomplished and just a really sweet person.

My son looked perfect at birth, but had some weird tics show up later. Kept his infant reflexes too long. Couldn't run or jump. Wouldn't put his hands out to catch himself when he fell. Kept choking on his food. Couldn't digest some foods properly. Malformed enamel on his teeth. Molar fused to his jaw. He's still hypoglycemic, flat-footed, near-sighted, and has been officially diagnosed with a "learning-disability-not-otherwise-specified". He says he's dyslexic. But he's also incredibly handsome (no, I'm not just saying that because I'm his mom), well over six feet tall, charming, glib, and just as clever as his sister, for all that he has a harder time with the academic stuff. He's spent his entire school career in gifted classes, and is going to university next year with a 2000 dollar scholarship in his pocket.

Your son is his own unique little self. Believe in him, because guaranteed he's got some awesome stuff to show you down the road!

/r/Parenting Thread