FOURTEEN years ago the late Dr. Joseph Brennemann addressed this society on "The Menace of Psychiatry."1 With the wit and graceful phraseology of which he was master, he discussed the dangers of child psychiatry in the hands of amateurs. What he said fourteen years ago remains true today: There are still too many mothers playing psychologist to their children. Some experiences of mine along this line can, I am sure, be matched by those of any pediatrician.
Recently a mother called to ask a question about her 5 week old baby. The patient had been referred to me by a psychiatrically minded pediatrician who had entered the armed forces. The mother said that for the past three days her baby had been crying during the late afternoon. She wanted to know whether she had not started to socialize the baby a little too early.
Another mother stopped the breast