ParentingU

Is your teen getting enough sleep ? Or are they trying to "catch up" on the weekend? Or do you worry they're sleeping too much, staying in bed as much as they can? Teens and tweens have different sleep needs than toddlers or young adults. Natalie Derouen, MD joins host Stephanie on the Season 4 premiere of ParentingU podcast to talk about sleep for teenagers. Sleep habits and sleep routines can be...

As temps fall, we all experience the instinct to bundle up. Not so fast for our littlest passengers. Rachel Dewey, DO , family medicine physician with Our Lady of the Lake Physician Group, shares why parents should remember to remove children's coats before buckling them into a car seat in this ParentingU Extra Credit episode. Read more about car seat safety on our blog: https://health.fmolhs.org/...

As children grow up, they gain more independence and autonomy in every aspect of their life, including healthcare . Nicholas George, MD , pediatrics and internal medicine physician with Our Lady of Lourdes Health, shares the advice he gives parents to help ease the transition from pediatric to adult primary care. Dr. George emphasizes that it's normal and natural for adolescents to want more priva...

Kids can get sick anytime, including outside of business hours. In this ParentingU Extra Credit episode, Brian Bailey, MD, pediatrician with Our Lady of Lourdes Children's Health, walks parents through what they should consider when trying to decide where to go to receive the right care . Questions Answered on the Episode - When should I take my child to urgent care? - How do I know an illness req...

Technology use and screen time increase for kids as summer break begins. Nicholas George, MD , pediatrics and internal medicine physician with Our Lady of Lourdes Health, shares the advice he gives parents about screen time as tweens and teens begin to use social media. Dr. George emphasizes how parents serve as role models for our children in many ways. We should watch our own technology use to d...

Lent is a special time of year for Christians worldwide. Rob Tasman , Our Lady of Lourdes Health vice president of mission integration, shares some ways parents can talk to youngsters about what Lent means and offers some practical ways families can celebrate Lent on this special extra credit edition of ParentingU. Tasman emphasizes the many ways to have age-appropriate discussions about Lent and...

Fever is always a hot topic for parents, and there are lots of myths and phobias . It's one of the most common reasons parents bring their kids to the doctor. Knowing what qualifies as a fever and how to respond are important for parents to understand. Paige Guillory, MD , joins us again to share some ParentingU Extra Credit about children's fevers. Additional Resources on Kids and Fever Read our...

No one likes a headache! Even kids can get a routine headache from time to time, but when are headaches something we should bring to our pediatrician? Yash D. Shah, MD , a pediatric neurologist with Our Lady of the Lake Children's Hospital offers some ParentingU Extra Credit, sharing some tips about headaches in kids. Additional Resources for You Stay healthy this season! Read our post: Avoiding C...

Happy Holidays from ParentingU! To keep your littlest ones safe this season as they receive lots of toys as gifts, we welcome Paige Guillory, MD , to provide some safety tips about button batteries and magnets . Important Message If you believe a child has swallowed a battery or magnet , treat it like an emergency Additional Holiday Resources for You Christmas is right around the corner! Get some...

A seizure sounds like a scary event for any parent to witness in their child, but it's important to understand that a seizure doesn't necessarily mean there's a scary diagnosis in a child's future. Kenneth Habetz, MD of Our Lady of Lourdes is a pediatric neurologist and has a focus on childhood epilepsy. Dr. Habetz joins us on ParentingU to explain what a seizure is ; how they are different to epi...

Happy Holidays from ParentingU! To help keep all your holiday travels safe and sound, we welcome back Grant Clinkingbeard, MD to provide you some practical tips for staying safe as you travel with children to Grandma and Grandpa's (or wherever you travel this holiday season!) Additional Holiday Resources for You Stay safe through whatever weather we get this year: Family Safety Tips as the Weather...

The diagnosis of cleft lip and palate is much more common than you might realize, but the treatment is accessible, advanced and comprehensive! We can't quite say that cleft lip and palate is "no big deal," but we can say an entire team of doctors , surgeons , dentists , speech therapists and social workers are trained and experienced at making this diagnosis as low-impact and manageable as possibl...

The possibility of gestational diabetes can bring about a lot of fears for many expectant moms (and dads!). From stories of unpleasant glucose testing, concerns about "failed" tests, blood monitoring, pregnancy weight gain and worse—there are lots of questions when it comes to the facts about gestational diabetes and how to properly manage this condition. Returning to ParentingU is Carmen Alexis M...

Halloween is right around the corner, and ParentingU has some extra credit for you. Grant Clinkingbeard, MD is a pediatrician with some tips to help keep your kids' Halloween happy and fun—not scary! Additional Halloween Resources for You Boo! Stay healthy at Halloween: Your Guide to a Healthier Halloween Halloween safety tips for the whole family: A Snapshot of Halloween Safety Safety treats, not...

When you're having a baby, it's good to have a solid team on your side. Meet Ashley Conner, RN, BSN , a Pediatric Nurse Navigator and   Evie Robison, RN , a Pregnancy Navigator —both Our Lady of Lourdes Women's & Children's Hospital . Conner and Robison join ParentingU host Stephanie to talk about how to pick a pediatrician, why you should make the choice before your baby is born—and how to get he...

It could be happening any day now: the arrival of your baby! So much excitement and anticipation… but also some anxiety and lots of questions. How can expectant moms get ready for the arrival of their baby? On this episode of ParentingU, host Stephanie is joined by Evie Robison, RN , a Pregnancy Navigator with Our Lady of Lourdes Women's & Children's Hospital, to explain all the details of giving...

Healthy eating habits and a positive attitude about food can start early in a child's life. In honor of September being Childhood Obesity Awareness Month , ParentingU spoke with Carmen Alexis Miller, LDN —a dietitian with Our Lady of Lourdes Women's & Children's Hospital. Miller shares how food and eating is a very personal matter—what we eat is part of how we care for ourselves . Food becomes an...

September is Childhood Obesity Awareness Month, and ParentingU is ready to help families with practical information about nutrition, activity, excess weight, and the resources available to tackle this sometimes sensitive and tricky topic. Pediatricians Katie Queen, MD and Melissa Holland, DO both see patients at the Our Lady of the Lake Children's Health Weight & Nutrition Center . The statistics...

Can babies being cared for in the NICU (neonatal intensive care unit) breastfeed? On this episode of ParentingU, we welcome back Becca Miller, SLP , a Certified Lactation Counselor to address the process of breastfeeding NICU babies. A baby being in the NICU doesn't mean a mom can't start her breastfeeding journey if she chooses to. Host Stephanie asks all the questions expectant parents would wan...

In our last ParentingU episode, we talked about how breastfeeding is a journey. One of the stops on that journey is pumping breast milk . How does pumping fit in with the overall baby feeding plan? On this episode we speak to Dr. Gregory Gelpi, MD FAAP , an Our Lady of the Lake Children's Health pediatrician with special training in breastfeeding, and Becca Miller, SLP , a Certified Lactation Coun...

S3E1 Parenting is a journey, and breastfeeding a newborn baby is one possible step on that journey. Many new moms have lots of questions about breastfeeding, and first time Moms often need support and encouragement as they start to breastfeed their baby. On this episode we speak to Dr. Gregory Gelpi, MD FAAP , an Our Lady of the Lake Children's Health pediatrician with special training in breastfe...

Please note: This episode was recorded February 2, 2022. Bonus episode: Parents have lots of questions about the COVID-19 vaccine for their children, and Our Lady of the Lake understands and encourages parents to seek out the information they need. On this special episode of ParentingU, we answer many of the most common questions that arise about COVID vaccination, and even have part of the show d...

Bonus episode: The final countdown to Christmas is on, and we chatted with Meaghan Myrick, Child Life Specialist with Our Lady of Lourdes Women's & Children's Hospital , and Lisa Baumgartner, Pediatric Chaplain with Our Lady of the Lake Children's Hospital , about holiday traditions and ways to make the season meaningful for our kids and focus on the love, peace, joy and hope. We hope you find thi...

"Drowning is silent but we will not be." ~ Mazie's Mission Heather, mom of Mazie , joins us on this important episode of ParentingU. At just shy of 18 months old, Mazie drowned in the family swimming pool. Now, mom Heather and her family are committed to helping other families learn more about water safety. Louisiana has the difficult distinction of being fourth in the nation for drowning deaths o...

Water is fun! Let's keep it that way with some tips from Dr. Michael Odinet , Emergency Room physician at Our Lady of Lourdes . Dr. Odinet isn't here to rain on our parade—he's a water fan himself, having a family pool and a water-side camp. Dr. Odinet offers lots of practical tips for families to stay water safe: from where an adult should be when it's pool time to how to talk to friends to asses...