We live in an era of shrinking families and growing anxiety. The kids we do have are generally raised—as children always have been—with much love and careful attention; but too often in the present day, that love and attention is accompanied by outsized angst. The fewer children we have, it seems, the more we worry about them. A generation ago, in the face of routine childhood illnesses, parents were often comfortable with a “wait and see” attitude before seeking medical attention. But now worried parents clog our pediatric emergency departments, with every new fever, ache, or malaise perceived as a DEFCON 1 emergency.

This book is an attempt to tackle that anxiety, using short-snapper and easily digestible stories and examples drawn from Dr. Les' real-world professional and personal experience. Dr. Les demystifies common pediatric issues such as fever, colic, antibiotic use, and breast-feeding, but he also addresses thornier subject matter such as the impact of divorce, ADHD, child discipline, exposure to pit bulls, choosing a career, the loss of a child, and so on.

The goal of this book to restore the joy in parenting by dialling down the thermostat of worry. Dr. Les' perspectives are offered straight from the heart, and where appropriate, infused with a touch of humour; and they are informed by his twenty years as a pediatric emergency physician and by his experiences raising, together with his wife, four children of his own. Dr. Les hopes to leave parents with a framework via which they can begin again to engage in the richness of raising children, unencumbered by fear. Because in the final analysis, having children is well worth the “risk”.