[blparent] topic of paying or not paying baby proofing experts

[Dena Wainwright]

The implication that any blind person who hires a baby-proofing expert to come to their home is "admitting they don't know how to take care of their own baby" is simply ridiculous! That's like saying anyone who takes a first aid class is admitting that their baby won't be safe around them, because it's only a matter of time before their child stops breathing or chokes. Have you ever heard of the concept of prevention? 

For the record, I did not have a baby-proofing expert come to my home, but if I were adopting a child, going through a custody battle, etc., I would absolutely want that documented proof that I went the extra mile. Any blind person who is remotely successful in a predominantly sighted society doesn't get that way without realizing that sometimes you just have to play the game and jump through the hoops. Is it right that we often have to do more to prove ourselves as capable parents? No, it is not, but that is the reality, and if you think otherwise, than you're either luckier or more delusional than most of us. 

There is a thriving baby-proofing industry in this country, and given that we (meaning blind people) make up only the tiniest fragment of the parenting demographic, someone has to be keeping that industry alive, and I'm guessing it's not us. And, just so you understand what a baby-proofing expert does, it isn't all about them coming into your home to tell you how to care for your own baby. They will actually install baby-proofing products for you, such as gates, locks, etc. I don't see how this is any different than hiring a contractor to do something around your house that you either couldn't do, or didn't feel comfortable doing. 

They can also identify potential dangers that, as a never-before parent, you might not even realize are there. This has nothing to do with blindness, and everything to do with lack of experience with children. Until I lived with a child, I had no idea how many creative ways she could come up with to try to damage herself. That is why we installed locks on our maintenance and exercise room doors. Do we really think we'll be clued out enough to allow our child the opportunity to get into either of those areas of the house? No, of course that is not our intention. But I would rather eliminate that possibility all together than find my child crushed under the weight of an exercise machine, or burned because she thought the pilot light in the furnace looked pretty.
 
I personally would rather ask for help from someone with more experience than myself, than walk around in a little "I can do it all myself, damnit!" bubble at the cost of my child's safety.

Dena