How the NCT will bring down the NHS

Being a recent new mum I can see this argument from both perspectives,1 and I think it’s unfair to blame organisations such as the National Childbirth Trust (NCT) for new mother neurosis. I was fortunate that I could attend my antenatal classes at my local GP practice, however, I did feel that all of the emphasis was placed on the ‘birthplan’ (which rarely happens) and how ‘easy’ breastfeeding is, and nothing was placed on how to spot when your baby is unwell. Now the NCT provide classes with information about the early days, weaning, and even first aid, and I have met many a mum who feels much more comfortable with their new role after attending these postnatal courses. I agree that sometimes people put too much emphasis on things that may be mentioned in classes or by the health visitor, such as what their newborn’s poo looks like, but I can assure you that some NHS professionals don’t help either: when I took my just-turned 9 month old to be weighed, I was quizzed about his bruises (Mongolian blue spots, mentioned in his red book) and why he wasn’t walking yet, and to finish, I was told off for letting his weight go up one centile! Many of my new parent friends have little trust in health visitors and social workers, which is very sad as they are a great source of information and we really need to work at changing this. However, instead of slandering the organisations such as NCT when a mum presents with a healthy baby, perhaps we should take the opportunity to teach the parent about common childhood problems and not forget to ensure that there is no underlying postnatal anxiety or depression?