I read an article someone posted on facebook the other day (and I can't remember who or else I'd link it) that said, in essence, that when we let our babies cry it out or don't attend to their other emotional needs, we are doing them a disservice and are essentially stunting their emotional development. The article said the most important thing a baby and young child needs besides food and shelter is attention to it's emotional needs: to be coddled, picked up, stroked, and shown caring.
I read another article today that talked about how on today's college campuses, it's becoming more and more inappropriate to talk about subjects that may make another person uncomfortable. There is a great desire to protect those who may feel different than others, whether due to traumatic and uncomfortable events in their lives, different opinions, or race. And while this trend has the unfortunate affect, according to the article, of limiting free speech, it also contributes to what I have heard called "the wussification of America."
People today don't like to have their feelings hurt, and they want to protect others from having their feelings hurt. I heard someone say once about church that we should never say anything that might make someone feel uncomfortable, that we shouldn't make them feel bad, like they're not trying hard enough. And I thought, Isn't that why people come to church? To learn what they need to change in their lives to be a better person? What's wrong with a little righteous guilt? We can't coddle adults. There's a big bad world out there, and they have to be able to face it.
So, here we are coddling adults and protecting their feelings from getting hurt, but our babies are being forced to cry alone in the dark with no one to protect them from getting hurt. Shouldn't it be the other way around? Let's coddle and love our babies and shield them from the hurt of no one caring about them. And as they grow, we can teach them how to handle those tough emotions on their own so that when they are adults, and someone says something that pricks an emotion or a memory, they can deal with it.
