Any opinions on ABC Nursery & Day Care Center in Malden, MA?

Answer 1

NICHD has been studying the separation of children from their mothers for decades. What they've learned is that if a child enters day care before age 3, and for most kids, before age 5, they are seriously damaged by this. First, the attachment between mom and child is damaged, the dad's approval of the child is damaged, the child's IQ is damaged, the child's social skills are damaged. The child is at great risk for depression and anxiety.

And, guess what - these results hold true even if daddy is the caregiver, if a full-time live-in nanny is provided, or if the day care is of the highest quality.

Why? Human infants evolved to need their mother's arms and mother's milk to grow optimally. Separating from mom floods a baby's brain with stress hormones, impairing the child's ability to learn and to regulate its emotions.

In addition, and perhaps most critically, the baby is currently forming his view of the world. Is the world reliable, a safe place, can i trust? Now picture him in day care, screaming for mommy (oh, they'll lie and say he doesn't) and you never come. What does he learn about you and about life? What does he learn about his effectiveness to get his needs met? What does he learn about what you think of his needs for love and affection?

Do you really want to teach your poor dear baby all those things? Last point, day care is far harder on boys than girls. Please don't do this to your child. He didn't ask to be born; he desparately doesn't want to grow up in an institution with a mommy who schedules in a few 'quality' minutes for him every day.

What you will miss by abandoning him to day care is immeasurable. My friends and I who actually raised our babies are always amazed by how totally detached from their kids our working friends became, how utterly unaware of children's needs and rythyms they became.

Day care is a lousy way to grow up. Up and Out in the rain, out in the freezing, out in the sweltering, never with mommy to share excitement, loyalties to the primary caregiver (who must become 'mommy' if she's gonna do a good job.) Why would you do this to your kid?

Source(s):

http://www.geocities.com/wellesley/garde... = lots of info on harms of day care
The Irreducible Needs of Children, a book by Brazleton
http://www.naturalchild.org wonderful site on kids' true needs