No, Jay, I am not referring to your book, but perhaps I could have been.
Had a call recently from a mother who had sought help on a weekend for her
situation.  Baby was one month old, had been feeding frequently for a week
or so, as in every hour.  Weight gain OK.  Mother frazzled, unhappy,
sleeping miserably, and starting to use formula to satisfy baby without
increasing number of breastfeeds.  Was assessed by a midwife on my ward who
listened to her, reassured her about her own production after examining the
baby, accepted her need for some sleep, gave her a number of options to try,
and invited her to get in touch on a weekday when I would be there.

Mother told me that another HCP had advised her to get the baby on more of a
schedule, with longer intervals between night feeds.  As far as I could tell
the impetus for this came from the HCP, not mother.  The strategy for this
was to move baby out of the parental bed and for mother to get up to feed at
night to avoid falling asleep with baby still in her bed.  Mother called
after the visit to my colleague to say thanks, make a follow-up appointment,
and report that the following night had been the best in ages.  The
difference?  Baby was back in mother's bed so she could nurse before baby
was entirely awake and upset, and then could fall asleep afterwards.  Baby
was much happier and guess what?  So was mother!

Why do we try to make it so complicated for mothers, I wonder?  It is SO
much easier to mother by heart than by clock.

Rachel Myr
Kristiansand, Norway

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