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Written by Eileen Godin
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Thursday, 25 August 2011 13:34 |
 The Baby Whisperer makes no claim to magical talent or a hidden instruction booklet. What she can boast of is 25 years of handling babies and attending conferences, as well as raising her own two children and enjoying two grandchildren.
So, who is this talented person who provides serenity to frazzled new parents? Wyoming Valley’s best kept secret is Kathy Lloyd, LPN, IBCLC, with Pediatric Associates, in Kingston.
Lloyd explained she was given the title Baby Whisperer about five years ago by a mom with twins who came in for help in getting her twins on a schedule. When one started fussing and crying, Lloyd held him and whispered “shh” into his little ear, and he calmed right down.
“The mother said, ‘Oh my God, you are the Baby Whisperer,’” Lloyd recalled.
The name stuck ever since.
Smiling at the term, she said many people call Pediatric Associates asking for her. Her secret to success? The “shh” sound mimics the sounds in the womb. She continues making the sound until the baby stops crying.
“The infant still wants the feeling of being in the womb for the first three months,” she said.
“You have to whisper it at just the right volume,” she said. “The louder the newborn gets, the louder you have to get because they are not listening to you at that point.”
Swaddling is also very important. It makes the infant feel secure and warm, as if still inside the womb. Lloyd also recommends that a careful, gentle, swinging motion gives the newborn the feeling of mother’s movement.
Lloyd exhibited her Baby Whispering skills as three-week-old Logan Dehaut began to wake up to realize his mom was not holding him. As his little cries began to gain intensity, Lloyd swung into action with her superhero powers– holding him close, she tapped him gently on his back and whispered the soothing “shh” into his ear. His cries became softer and his eyelids closed.
Lloyd also teaches a variety of classes, including Lullaby Baby, Infant Massage, CPR for Family and Friends, Breast-feeding Basics, and Two, Three, Four, Teach Me More. For more information or to register, visit www.kingstonpeds.com.
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