Bonus Episode: My Mom, the OG Pediatric PT, on What Tummy Time Really Looked Like
Surprise! This one's a bonus episode, and it's personal. 🤍 I sat down with the OG pediatric PT herself, my mom, Susan Swiat, who spent 40 years in early intervention, to talk about what parenting actually looked like before the Back to Sleep campaign changed everything and before the baby container industry figured out how to profit off of new parents being scared.
We get into why babies used to sleep and play on their stomachs without anyone calling it "tummy time," how swings, bouncers, and car seats quietly created something called container baby syndrome, the real rise in torticollis and flat spots on baby's heads, and why crawling was recently and quietly pulled from the pediatrician's milestone checklist without much explanation.
If you've ever second guessed your gut because of something you saw online, I think this conversation is going to bring you a lot of relief.
Connect with me: 💛
🌐 Website: milestonesandmotherhood.com
📸 Instagram: @milestones.and.motherhood and @more.than.milestones
✍️ Substack: https://substack.com/@morethanmilestones
🍼 Tummy Time Masterclass: https://milestonesandmotherhood.com/tummy-time
🛍️ Amazon storefront: https://a.co/d/03ucPZbo
✉️ For sponsorship or guest inquiries: podcast@milestonesandmotherhood.com
If this one gave you a little relief about trusting your gut, follow the show and leave a rating or review, it genuinely helps more moms find us. There's a part two coming soon with an OT's take on all of this too. 👀
⏱️ Timestamps
(00:00) Meet the OG pediatric PT: my mom, Susan
(02:00) What sleep and tummy time looked like before Back to Sleep
(05:30) How the baby container industry capitalized on new parent fear
(08:15) What container baby syndrome actually means
(12:00) The rise in torticollis, plagiocephaly, and baby helmets
(16:00) What cultural differences taught her about early movement
(19:30) Screens, tablets, and losing the instinct to just play with your baby
(23:00) Milestone ranges then vs. now, and why crawling quietly disappeared from screenings
(27:30) Why crawling matters more than people realize
(31:00) Growing up anxious in the social media era vs. her generation
(34:30) Her advice for new moms and new therapists
