I want to kick off by saying that I follow many, many birth & baby practitioners and businesses on social media and the majority are doing brilliant things to inform, empower and support. But there are some popular influencer-type accounts who shout loudly as self-proclaimed experts and I worry about the impact they are having.
As a practitioner, I struggle with social media so much because I only want to be genuine and authentic, I don’t want to go viral or to be focused on the likes. I struggle with selling and calling myself an expert and I don’t want to be seen as being the same as the popular influencer gals. So, I quietly plod away in the background, while influencers earn a great deal of money peddling a mindset that I can’t get behind because I know some of it is dangerous, ineffective or simply not true.
Here’s the thing, I am an expert in my field - I have worked with parents for over 20 years, I know birth, I know babies, I know the different issues that impact parents and I know what reassurance parents need. But every parent I work is at the centre of my focus and I learn from every one of them - I am asked for my knowledge but it is always given with options and questions around what feels right for them.
Some social media accounts feel like they have identified a vulnerability around birth and babies (fear and exhaustion mainly) and are shouting very loudly about certain issues with not even a whiff of evidence or accountability.
The fall out from this is that parents can feel like they have got birth wrong or they end up battling with their baby because the routine they have read about/the course they have bought hasn’t worked. Both birth and babies are far too unique for there to be a one size fits all solution, there just isn’t a right way to do it.
My work is about conversations and listening to parents, not telling anyone what to do - my approach is calm, simple and understated, grounded by experience. And this is why I can’t get to grips with social media, which is all about big personalities, reels and empty promises.
Lately, I’ve been trying to find my voice more, to shout a bit louder about what’s normal, yet individual, about what can make a difference and how parents can manage the challenges. And this is why I am doing more on this platform and why I am looking at how I raise my profile as a practitioner who can be trusted.
Please do comment below, I really would love to read your thoughts.
Thank you!