Breastfeeding 1-2-3

La Leche League Charity Auction

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 23:20:51 PDT

Want to get a good deal and benefit a charity in the process? Bid on the items in LLL USA’s charity auction running now through July 15, 2009.

The money raised will help fund World Breastfeeding Week Celebration Grants to support the important work La Leche League Leaders do in the United States. So visit the “LLL USA page” on eBay. LLL USA reports that some items to be auctioned throughout the next several days include an Ergo baby carrier, a Glamourmom ® Nursing Bra Tank, and an assortment of historical transcripts from early LLLI conferences. Be sure to check back often and get your bids in!

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Win “Spanish for Breastfeeding Support”

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 11:09:12 PDT

A wonderful new book has just been published! Check out the accomplishment of my friend and fellow blogger Tanya Lieberman and her co-author Diana Glick: Spanish for Breastfeeding Support.

I had the honor of reading one of the first drafts of the book so I can report first-hand that it’s a great resource for lactation professionals. Whether you speak no Spanish at all, remember a little of your high school Spanish, or you speak the language well but need to expand your lactation-related vocabulary, Spanish for Breastfeeding Support will teach you to communicate effectively with Spanish-speaking mothers. Lactation consultants can even earn over 12 CERPs for working through the practice exercises in the book!

To hear some excerpts from the audio portion of the book and to enter to win a copy of the book before July 17, 2009, visit Tanya’s contest post. She also has a book website set up with extra practice exercises and a place to ask “how do I say this” questions.

Congratulations Tanya!

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Getting Organized

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Sun, 05 Jul 2009 23:58:28 PDT

As the mom of three children, I need to be efficient with my time and energy. Over the long holiday weekend, my husband and I unpacked and organized some of our belongings. Generally I like to stay away from plastic tubs for organizing things, but the laundry baskets and plastic bags weren’t cutting it to store all of my three daughters’ hand-me-down clothes. It’s hard for each girl to let go of her things as she outgrows them, and I would get everything organized only to find that sneaky hands had stolen into the baskets and plucked out old favorites, leaving a pile of other clothes on the floor. I finally gave in, and here is the result:

Tubs for hand-me-down clothes, diapers, and ski clothes

My 11.5-month-old now wears size 12-18 months, so I set aside all of the smaller clothes to go to my nephew (he arrives in October) or the thrift store. The rest I organized in tubs for each size: 12-18 months, 2T/24 months, 3T, 4T, and 5/6. There’s an extra tub for cloth diapers not in use, and out-of-season ski clothing. Each tub is also further organized by category: pants, dresses, shirts, jackets etc.

4T clothes organized by type

What’s your best tip for getting — and staying — organized?

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Sometimes I Miss It

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Sat, 04 Jul 2009 22:56:34 PDT

Today was a big day for my little 11.5-month-old nursling. She couldn’t be torn away from the excitement of the day for a silly thing like napping, so her usual three naps were reduced to two. That meant by dinner time she was nearly ready for bed. We celebrated the 4th of July holiday with a backyard barbecue of shrimp and salmon, fresh pineapple slices, and grilled vegetables. As a special treat for dessert we made an improvised strawberry smoothie from pureed and whole frozen strawberries from our u-pick adventure earlier in the year, along with more pineapple and some fresh-squeezed orange juice and lemon juice. My nursling slurped up this tangy treat from a spoon and held out her spoon for more!

By the time we headed to our balcony to watch fireworks in the distance, she was ready to give in to sleep. She rested her head on my shoulder (one of best feelings in the world) and eventually drifted off to sleep as the fireworks boomed around us. I carried her into the bedroom and set her down on the bed, and she didn’t even stir.

Baby boy sleeps on his mom's shoulder (Photo by Ewen and Donabel)

That is such a different experience from my first nursling who would not go to sleep without nursing. I can remember being very frustrated by that at times, especially when I would try to break the latch and my baby would startle awake and I would have to start the process all over again. However, I must confess that now I sometimes miss those bedtime cuddly nursing sessions when my nursling happens to fall asleep without one. While it’s great that she can drift off peacefully without nursing, I enjoy nursing her and I feel peaceful afterward (even as I’m giddily sneaking away from a sleeping baby to type on the computer!) I needn’t have worried tonight however. She has already woken twice in the hour since I put her to bed. She doesn’t like to sleep when her older sisters are still awake, and she’s not too sure about the noise of the fireworks. So, I’ve nursed her back to sleep twice, and I’m about ready for sleep myself!

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Is it Worth it to Nurse for a Short Time?

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Wed, 01 Jul 2009 02:23:33 PDT

If you knew you might only be able to nurse for a few months before you might have to be separated from your baby for an extended period of time, would it be worth it to breastfeed for those few months or should you formula-feed in an attempt to spare your baby from an additional pain of separation? That’s the issue raised by a military mother on the article U.S. Military Rules for Breastfeeding Mothers. Jami wrote:

Why is it that everyone but the Air Force is at LEAST 6 months deferment - The above article and all the profiles I have seen state that the deferment for deployment is 4 months - but we aren’t even eligible to PT for 6 months… umm… am I missing something? I have one daughter and am pregnant with my second…I did not breast feed with my daughter because of the simple fact of deployments… My now ARMY doctor is pressuring me to breast feed with my second one… but I argue the fact WHY? So I can up and deploy in 4 months and leave my baby stranded and alone wondering where his/her real food is? It would be heartbreaking to watch my baby be torn from my breast a short 4 months later… The Military is NOT family oriented… if they wont allow us women to adequately take care of our children, then I do not believe they should have allowed us to sign the contract in the first place. Not to mention a large percentage of the Miltary are Men - who like you other bloggers have stated… do not understand OR want to comprehend the aspects of breastfeeding. I would love to raise awarness on this issue - but where would you even start? The policy needs to be changed… period. Thanks for listening.

Hi Jami,

Here are a few thoughts for you and hopefully others will chime in as well. I can hear your frustration and I totally agree that the policy needs to be changed.

I do want to commend that army doctor for encouraging you to breastfeed. Every little bit of breast milk — a day, a month, or four months — is good for your baby and supplies lasting health benefits. It would be awful to have to leave a breastfed baby (any baby!) at four months, no doubt about it. There are ways it can be done to minimize the impact on your baby. Let’s think through some of the options.

- You might not be deployed.
- You will already be bottle-feeding for work, and you could build up a freezer stash that could last a considerable amount of time should you be deployed. Any necessary transition to formula could be done little by little.
- Bonding at the breast is wonderful. You could nurse for a couple of months and then switch to exclusive pumping if you are worried about making a sudden transition should you be deployed. It’s not ideal (as in, not easy to pump exclusively, or to switch to bottle-feeding alone) but it gives you that time and that option to continue.
- Your doctor sounds quite favorable to breastfeeding. Perhaps when the time comes she or he would be willing to write a note that says you need additional deferment.

I encourage you to talk to a local La Leche League leader for free to think through your feelings and your options. It’s not a good position to be put in, and the decisions are difficult ones. Congratulations on expecting your second baby!

Do any other readers have thoughts for what to do when faced with a potential separation?

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Night Terrors

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Mon, 29 Jun 2009 21:23:43 PDT

Your child has been sound asleep for an hour or so but suddenly starts screaming and crying. You try everything you can think of to soothe him, going down your list: needs to nurse, hot, cold, feverish, wet, in pain. Nothing you do seems to help, and what’s worse, your child does not even seem to know you are there, trying to help.

Photo by Dez Pain

That’s what happened to me last night when my 11-month-old had her first ever night terror. Night terrors are episodes of intense crying and fear in children who are sleeping and are difficult to arouse. I will leave it to the experts to explain more about night terrors:

Ask Dr. Sears: Night Terrors
WebMD: Night Terrors

Thank goodness I had heard about night terrors from friends who had experienced them with their children. Otherwise I would have taken the half an hour of inconsolable crying as a sign that I needed to take my daughter to the emergency room! Fortunately, my daughter eventually allowed me to nurse her back to sleep. She slept well after that and appeared perfectly fine in the morning. I, however, was a wreck! One of the things I love most about breastfeeding is that it “fixes” almost anything — hungry, thirsty, over-tired, cranky, lonely, ill. When my daughter was crying inconsolably and she arched her back away from me when I attempted to nurse her, I felt a helplessness I have never felt before as a parent.

Has a child of yours ever experienced night terrors? How often did they happen? Were you eventually able to prevent them? Did your child outgrow them? How did you handle them when they were occurring?

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I Want to Remember Today

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 23:13:04 PDT

Today my husband took my older girls to a major league baseball game while I stayed home with my 11-month-old. The minute her sisters (i.e., the entertainment) left she started fussing! Who wants to stay home with boring old mom anyway?! Now I say this in the most loving way possible: this child is like a dog, if only in the sense that she goes to the door, bangs on it with her hands and yells until I say we’re going out! She wants to be where the action is, there’s no mistaking that.

My baby in the Baby Jogger stroller

So we headed out the door for a nice long walk. I put her in the Baby Jogger, and of course then she was all smiles! Part way through the walk she fell asleep and I stopped to read a book on a park bench underneath a pepper tree. When my daughter woke up flushed from sleep and the heat, I pulled her into my lap and she nursed contentedly until she popped off and beamed another big smile at me! We set out again, and she stayed happily in the stroller for another fifteen minutes or so. Then it was back to my arms for the rest of the way home. We must have looked quite the sight — me holding the baby in one arm and pulling the Jogger with the other (it was too hot for the sling I’d brought) because a kind woman pulled her car over to ask if I wanted a ride. I was quite happy and near home anyway, so I politely declined. The baby and I continued, with one more pit stop to play on the grass in the shade of the trees. All in all we were out for over an hour and a half. I had brought water for me, my cell phone and keys, a book, and some diapers, but that was enough to see us through for a grand adventure!

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11 Month Old Baby Update

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Sun, 28 Jun 2009 07:42:19 PDT

May I take a moment to ask the universe to slow my life down from “Warp Speed” to just “Really Really Fast”? My 11-month-old daughter is keeping me very busy these days. I still maintain that having a baby who can walk is easier than having a baby who cannot. For me, it’s not quite as hands-on and is less physically intense. I do need to protect her from eating things she shouldn’t, and from climbing up or down the stairs, but in general she entertains herself quite well now that she can walk (and go wherever her sisters go)! I do recognize that this experience is quite different than the one I had with my first daughter, who was glued to my side until she was about 3.5 years of age (there are advantages to that by the way, and I found that by recognizing and accepting her need to be near me until that time, she gained the confidence to become quite independent later. She’s seven now!)

One down side of my 11-month-old’s independence? The ability to cause trouble. Can you believe that this little cherub:

My 11-month-old playing with a doll stroller

is the one who did this:

Blue crayon scribbled on the wall and door

Yes, that’s blue crayon scribbled on two places on my white bedroom wall and door (that happens when you have two older children who like to color and a mobile 11-month-old who is confined in your bedroom but manages to find the only crayon while you put away clothes in your closet). Thank goodness for the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser. I don’t recommend the product for older paint because it does take some paint off or dull the sheen, but for newer paint or for the situation where it’s better to clean off the crayon or pen or permanent marker than to leave it there, the Mr. Clean Magic Eraser works wonders! Just make sure to test it in a remote corner if you are concerned about wearing away the paint. And then enjoy your creative toddler!

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Breastfeeding Advocacy around the World

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Sat, 27 Jun 2009 23:37:20 PDT

The vast majority of Breastfeeding 1-2-3 readers are from the United States, with nearly 10 times as many visitors from the U.S. than from the second country on the list. Can you guess what the next four countries are? I will give you a little hint:

Google Analytics map for Blisstree's Breastfeeding 1-2-3 blog

The next four countries are:

2. Canada
3. United Kingdom
4. India
5. Australia

I have been talking a lot about breastfeeding advocacy opportunities in the United States, so tonight I would like to share a breastfeeding advocacy opportunity for each of the other four countries listed. Please feel free to leave a comment if you are from any of those four countries and you have resources you would like to share!

Canada

“Join INFACT Canada and INFACT Quebec and sign on to the ‘Protect Breastfeeding Petition’ at http://protectbreastfeedingpetition.ca/. You can make a difference for mothers and children, sign the petition, share the petition and join us for a better world for all of us.”

United Kingdom

In the United Kingdom you can read and sign the Breastfeeding Manifesto, an eight-page document that outlines seven objectives that support breastfeeding. The Manifesto notes:

The UK Governments and the World Health Organization (WHO) recommend that babies be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life, yet fewer than 2% of babies in the UK are exclusively breastfed at six months.

India

The Breastfeeding Promotion Network of India works to protect, promote and support breastfeeding in that country. You can endorse your views on an infant’s right to food by entering your name and email address.

Australia

The Australian Breastfeeding Association has a page dedicated to breastfeeding advocacy which includes a link to the incident report form for the marketing of infant formulas in Australia.

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Your Protection against Trouble

Angela White, J.D., breastfeeding counselor — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 02:13:30 PDT

Love, love, love this WPA Federal Art Project poster by artist Erik Hans Krause, circa 1936-1938. It’s all still true: “Nurse the Baby: Your Protection against Trouble.”

Photo of poster by Bobster855

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