By Molly Snyder Senior Writer Published Nov 19, 2008 at 2:18 PM

Recently, an ad campaign for Motrin suggested that moms who wear their babies on their bodies in slings or other carriers need pain relief medicine. This made a lot of moms irate, and the Internet buzz was so intense and angry, the ad campaign was yanked after a day or two.

I have thought about this for a couple of days, and I wonder why this caused so much commotion. To me, the ad isn't particularly offensive.

I certainly don't love the ad -- it sounds forced instead of conversational -- but what bothers me about the ad isn't that it downplays the importance of babywearing.

Before I go further, know that I "wore" my sons on my body -- sometimes one on my front and one in a backpack -- and indeed, I was often sore at the end of the day. However, it never occurred to me to take Motrin or any other pain reliever. I thought mild shoulder and back discomfort was just part of the job, like sleep deprivation or the inability to eat an entire meal without interruption.

That said, I didn't care for the ad, simply because, to me, it's lame to suggest ingestion of a pain reliever every time you "wear" your kid. After all, for many moms, that would mean taking a pill or two everyday. Didn't we learn from the Rolling Stones song, "Mother's Little Helper?"


Molly Snyder started writing and publishing her work at the age 10, when her community newspaper printed her poem, "The Unicorn.” Since then, she's expanded beyond the subject of mythical creatures and written in many different mediums but, nearest and dearest to her heart, thousands of articles for OnMilwaukee.

Molly is a regular contributor to FOX6 News and numerous radio stations as well as the co-host of "Dandelions: A Podcast For Women.” She's received five Milwaukee Press Club Awards, served as the Pfister Narrator and is the Wisconsin State Fair’s Celebrity Cream Puff Eating Champion of 2019.