For those of you following this:
Junior no longer has vision problems. Apparently all 2 year-olds are farsighted and their vision fluctuates a lot during the third year — if a doc tells you your kid needs glasses, just make ‘em a second opinion appointment (which will take roughly 3 months, especially if you actually get two 2nd opinions) and all will be well.
This basically confirms my thought that, in many parenting matters, non-intervention is always a good course to consider. I’m aware that this parenting policy is at striking odds with my career life as a multi-card-carrying liberal sociologist whose favorite sociology-daddy is Comte (because of the sociologist as ‘priests of society’ thing).* I choose not to think deeply about this.
*Just kidding. My real favorite is much more lame… Durkheim!
Durkheim’s still the king… and I’m not saying that just because I’m French!
I remember we spent a whole semester just on him in one of my freshmen soc classes and it was a revelation.
Then, we spent the next entire term on Bourdieu and it was yet another revelation!
Sociological theory rocks. It’s not lame at all!
You know what the problem is but you’re too polite to write it: parenting is WAY too influenced by psychology, especially popular psychology!
I think some kids truly can’t see – my brother had glasses at like 2-3 and he really did need them. Was the original doctor a general pediatrician? I TOTALLY agree with not listening to them about anything of grand importance – they really are jacks of all trades and masters of none.
Yes, gradmommy, i should clarify this — non-intervention is more of a problem on health matters! her school originally spotted something (squinting and reading book up close) and then an eye doc with no business practicing agreed. we then saw our pediatrician and two other pediatric eye docs, all of whom agreed that her vision was fine.
the story, as i understand it, is that at junior’s age, things like lazy eyes (or anything other than straight ahead vision) are very serious but farsightedness generally is not (since all of them are and they would all be wearing glasses if this were the standard).
and, yes, socprof, i was alluding to all the child development stuff that makes it way into popular parenting advice with often disturbing results. i don’t go too far on this since i have a minor in this (which i think makes me notice it more) and also because i collaborate with some great developmental psychologists (who generally agree with me on this concern).
Thanks for the update. I am glad to hear that everything is going well. Non-intervention is also our philosophy with home improvement matters
funny… we move into our new house this week. we started out with all sorts of projects, which have now turned into “Ummm… I’m sure it will be fine as is!”