Popsugar Parenting Parent Shaming Hospital Sign Shames New Parents For Being on Their Phones Hospital Sign Shaming New Parents For Being on Their Phones Is Not What the Doctor Ordered 15 January 2020 by Murphy Moroney I’m on SCBU with my 5 day old. This poster makes me sad... pic.twitter.com/GYDgcgUtN2— Ash Cottrell (@dr_cottrella) January 5, 2020 Having a newborn in the NICU or a special care unit can be one of the most stressful situations a new parent can find themselves in. So when Dr. Ash Cottrell came across a hospital's sign shaming moms and dads for being on their phones in the Special Care Baby Unit (SCBU) — usually referred to as a Special Care Unit in US hospitals — he couldn't help but detail his frustration on Twitter. He snapped a picture of the sign, which reads: "Mummy & Daddy . . . Please look at ME when I am feeding, I am much more interesting than your phone!!! Thank you." As a parent who has a little one who needs extra medical attention, Dr. Cottrell said that the poster caught his eye for the wrong reasons. "I'm on SCBU with my 5-day-old," he captioned the photo. "This poster makes me sad." As soon as he shared the sign on Twitter, other parents quickly offered their two cents, and frankly many of them made some pretty good points against a sign like this and shaming new parents in general. Keep reading to get a look at some of the Twitter responses that address why new parents who have their phones out during feeding times shouldn't be considered the worst thing in the world. Related: All of the Baby Gear That Will Make Your Life Easier in 2019 Responses to Dr. Cottrell's Original Tweet When you've got a baby cluster feeding for hours it tends to get a little boring. There I said it! 😳😂— Lettie Head (@letties_MH) January 6, 2020 1 / 8 Yea babies are much more interesting than our phones but we also need advice or support or connect with other people when feeling very lonely in hospital. Babies are super cute but not great conversationalists and the middle of the night can feel very overwhelming x— Aimee Feltham (@AimeeRFeltham) January 6, 2020 2 / 8 If you can do the feed and phone already you are winning!! Congratulations! (For the baby and the multitasking)— Jo-Anne Tait (@joeybtait) January 5, 2020 3 / 8 I'm a single parent & was so *god DAMN tired* whilst feeding at bedtime that the only way to keep me awake & not squish my newborn was to actually look at my📱& check insta etc. Yes babies are lovely but actually theyre asleep within about 30 seconds of feeding so they get boring— Hollie Cape (@HollieCape) January 6, 2020 4 / 8 Love this: “Our children’s needs are bottomless and primal, and yet we parents also need — even deserve — some time to live as ourselves and connect with others.”— Emily Marriott-Lloyd (@snoworm) January 6, 2020 5 / 8 I don't agree at all. Whatever gets you all through the night is fine. SCBU/NICU parenting is stressful enough, let people find connection and distraction wherever they want to. And manage their own lives. No guilt for not gazing at baby 24/7, thanks— 𝙲𝚊𝚝𝚛𝚎𝚎𝚎𝚎𝚗𝚊 (@Catreeeena) January 6, 2020 6 / 8 When your baby is in SCBU you have no option than to sit and look at your baby. All day. For hours. You can’t take them home & cuddle & snuggle & be mum. If, for some of those hours, you look at your phone to relieve the tedium of hours on the ward, nobody should tell you off.— G Paris (@WifieParis) January 6, 2020 7 / 8 Dr. Cottrell's Original Tweet I’m on SCBU with my 5 day old. This poster makes me sad... pic.twitter.com/GYDgcgUtN2— Ash Cottrell (@dr_cottrella) January 5, 2020 8 / 8 Parent ShamingNewbornFamily Self-CareBabies