Just wondering if there are any non-batshit relatives. If they are close enough to warrant sympathy, I would think they might have voiced concern over the situation antemortem.
I can’t chase down a cite right now, but I have read studies that show that while parents and others believe they can distinguish one cry from another, when actually put to the test, they do no better than random chance.
In googling trying to find a similar case that I remembered of Christopher Fink I found several similar cases of vegans starving their children. What is with these people?
I think calling these folks vegans is kind of like calling Fred Phelps Christian. Well, yeah technically, but . . .
Congratulations to you, Pazu! Those early months are really tough!
I hope you’re able to get out some, now that the weather’s getting better. I used to take mine to the park, spread out blankets and lay them in the grass, to watch the leaves.
Of course, I only started doing that after a friend pointed out to me that I could - otherwise, I would’ve assumed that It Just Wasn’t Safe Enough (bad case of newbie nervousness on my part).
Specifically to feed him every 4 hours (not more, not less) and to hold him at an arm’s length, cradling his head in one hand. NOT cuddle a baby? I couldn’t believe it.
PM me sometime, if you’d like to share some more!
I hope no one kicks my ass for suggesting this, but I’ve personally known a few vegans (not all, by any stretch) who are that way in a bid to stay VERY thin. Further, I’ve met people who are bothered by babies that are “chubby” or “round” or “soft” or all the other things that healthy babies are.
The couple in the OP are clearly bat-shit insane (not because they’re vegans) - it wouldnt’ surprise me at all if they were underfeeding their child so that it wouldn’t “get fat.” Sadly, this would not be the first time I had heard of such a thing (although the baby in that case, once diagnosed with “failure to thrive” was the subject of some interveining measures and some parenting classes and is now fine).
Am I the only one who is morbidly reminded of that Residents song, or do y’all just have a better-developed sense of propriety that precludes mentioning it?
“Skinny was born in a bathtub, and he grew so incredibly thin…”
Were those tests done with just the cries, or were they in context with things like time of day, baby movements, and other cues that would provide additional help in determining what was wrong?
Kid died but his cholesterol was very low.
Woah, what? Those people sound as much like typical Seventh Day Aventists as the ones in the OP do typical vegans. Although all the adult Seventh Day Adventists I’ve known were vegetarians, none were vegans, and none of their children were expected to fully adhere to the dietary restrictions. And they went to the doctors (even for mental health issues in the case of one severely depressed child) like other people do. Don’t forget it’s oddly fashionable for fringe groups to proclaim themselves to be of a religion their beliefs little resemble. Like the “Mormons” who still have many wives, despite that church long since banning the practice.
Sho nuff! Knowing little about the religion other than the publicity at the time, I took the article on faith. But after your post, I Googled and found this (which given it’s the Pacific arm of the church and the topic, could very well be in response to Caleb’s death:
I’d like to know more about this, too. While during the first two to three weeks, I couldn’t tell what my baby’s cry meant (hell, I could hardly sit up), after about four to six weeks, they did sound different. Hunger was a lower-pitched cry. Dirty or sleepy was a whiny, nasal cry. Pain was this piercing, vibrating scream that scared the bejesus out of me.
However, I’ll have to admit that I wasn’t always right and that it was sometimes hard to tell what he wanted without other cues - sucking fists and rooting when hungry, eye rubbing when sleepy, arched back if hurting, etc.
I’ll see if I can find the cites. I think it was in the book What’s Going On in There (which I would recommend to any well-educated parent, btw).
Recently CNN had a video of the dad complaining about the food in jail. He said, prior to sentencing, “First of all, they don’t feed you right in here. I’m dying every day in here.”
Then I hope someone steps in when he’s down to about 50% of the weight he ought to be. Some mercy is appropriate even to the terminally stupid.
You mean jail cafeterias don’t have a vegan meal option?
I tend to agree.