"Grass doesn't grow faster if you pull on it
Let me start with a less glorious example of my own career as a father: We were on holiday and I thought, now I have to teach my child how to do a Köpper from the edge of the pool. My plan ended in a huge argument and a terribly bad mood.
The child had no ambition or need to learn a Köpper now - only I thought that now was the time. Fortunately, I then realised that there was no point. And: a few weeks later, the child was doing the most beautiful clappers. Not because I wanted to, but because the time was ripe and the need was there to be able to do it.
So, keep reminding yourself that most of a child's development happens more or less by itself. Earlier for one child, later for another. To come back to the grass: It's not as if grass grows all by itself. It needs water, light and nutrients. And that's also what we need to offer children: An environment in which they can develop and grow healthily. However, if we try to speed things up excessively, it usually ends in frustration on both sides and doesn't speed anything up.
Last but not least: If you have the feeling that your child is very far behind in one area or you are so very unhappy or unsure about something, then it is of course our job as paediatricians to advise you and see whether therapeutic help, such as speech or occupational therapy, is necessary. However, this is actually far less often the case than is generally thought.
Further interesting tips
Ticks
My conclusion after almost 15 years as a paediatrician in private practice: tick-borne diseases are probably the most overestimated health risk - at least from the parents' point of view.
Nature never disappoints
I once read this sentence in a parenting book and I have to say: it's simply true. With my children, too, it was sometimes a fuss until they were dressed, they whinged that they didn't want to go out and it took forever until we were outside. But when we were outside, in the snow, by the stream, in the meadow, somewhere in nature, it was always great, the children always had fun discovering something, something that interested them.
Foreskin inflammation
Once again an "unfair" topic, because it only affects boys. It's about balanitis or foreskin inflammation, a common condition in young boys and one that often makes parents extremely anxious. It is also often wrongly regarded as an emergency, although it is not usually such a dramatic story.