I was trying so hard. And everywhere I turned, I heard that I was doing it wrong. What if, instead, you had been told this: You've done nothing wrong. You didn't cause this. You were given an instruction manual for a Ford and your child is a Ferrari. So, congratulations!

Lots of people are using complementary and alternative medicine (CAM) these days -- things like vitamins, homeopathic or herbal medicine, chiropractors, acupuncture or massage therapy. But they don't always tell their doctors about it.

The way you talk to your child about doctors' visits is important. Kids are sensitive to their parent's emotional state, so a calm and reassuring tone is important.

Stomachaches account for numerous visits to pediatricians' offices. Parents often worry that a kidney infection or appendicitis is responsible for the pain. Although serious disorders can cause abdominal pain, the problem is usually due to something less worrisome.

Pediatrics is an art unique in the medical profession. It is the simultaneous treatment of two discrete patients, each with different, often conflicting, needs -- a child who is either sick or healthy, and a parent who may or may not know the difference.

In the midst of the frenzy, hopes and expectations of the new school year, perhaps the best advice we can all follow is to relax and listen to our children.