Mom Stopping Family Seeing Baby Until She's at Least 6 Months Old Backed

The internet has backed a woman who recently banned her husband's family from seeing her newborn baby because they are "selfish." In a post shared on Reddit earlier this month under the username u/Unusual_Stomach_5574, a new mom said that she had given birth to her baby six weeks ago. A few days after her mother-in-law and sister-in-law recently visited them, her baby was ill. "[She was] super congested, fussy, puking, etc. I bring her to her doctors, she's fine but has [an] upper respiratory infection. Doctors tell me to continue to breastfeed on demand and they gave her an RSV vaccination," the Redditor said, referring to her in-laws. The poster's husband called his mom to break the news while on speakerphone, and she revealed that she had been exposed to the flu and that her sister-in-law's husband had recently had COVID-19. "Neither of them told us this when making the decision to come meet our daughter. In fact, I specifically asked them if either of them were sick/around anyone who was and they said no," the Redditor wrote. "So they lied to me about it and continued their facade while at my home because my husband's other sister called while [mother-in-law] and [sister-in-law] were at my home and I told her she couldn't come over because her daughter had the flu and I wasn't chancing it. "[My mother-in-law] and [sister-in-law] heard me say this on the phone and still made out like they hadn't been exposed to anything. Needless to say, I confronted them both via phone and I was met with a 'you need to build the baby's immune system, blah blah, it's not a big deal, she will be fine' etc etc."

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So the new mom decided to ban them from seeing her baby until she's at least 6 to 12 months old, saying that because they are "selfish," they are no longer welcome around. Her husband, however, didn't take it well. "My husband is absolutely pissed right now," the poster wrote. "He says I'm going to isolate him and make him depressed (he has a history of depression) and that he needs his family (big family man) and that I'm selfish to do this to him right before their big family holiday celebrations (Thanksgiving and Christmas). I basically told him I didn't care." Psychiatrist Dr. Carole Lieberman told Newsweek that this mother has a right to be angry at her in-laws, not just for their giving her baby a respiratory infection, but for lying to her about having been exposed to illness. "They have proven that they're not only irresponsible but also untrustworthy. If her mother-in-law had transmitted COVID-19 to the baby, it could have been a life-threatening situation," Lieberman said. "It's no wonder that she doesn't want to expose her baby to them until she's at least 6-12 months old. Her in-laws were being selfish and thoughtless when they came to visit, putting their desire to see the baby above what is in the best interest of the baby." Lieberman added that it's disappointing that the baby's father isn't equally as upset about his mother's lying and her exposing his baby to illness. "He should stand up for his wife and enforce the ban. If he wants to be with his family over the holidays, he can go by himself for part of the holiday time while spending most of it with his wife and new baby," she said.

The post went viral on Reddit, receiving over 11,200 upvotes and 4,200 comments. One user, numbersev, commented: "My newborn almost died because of RSV. Look out for your baby, no one else is." RandomlyMethodical said: "A friend of mine is a neonatologist (pediatrician that works in a NICU), and would not let anyone touch his kids until after the first round of vaccinations around 2 months old. "He was also super careful anytime they left the house or came home from shopping. I don't remember the diseases he was concerned about, but he'd watched too many babies suffer and die and it wasn't worth risking it. His mom was super offended at first, but she calmed down." Newsweek reached out to u/Unusual_Stomach_5574 for comment. We could not verify the details of the case. If you have a similar family dilemma, let us know via life@newsweek.com. We can ask experts for advice, and your story could be featured on Newsweek.