On Tue, 31 Oct 1995, CATHY LILES wrote:
> These students had lots of questions and I'd love to hear some
> responses from some of you.
> What do you tell a woman who says she doesn't want to breastfeed
> because it makes her have sexual feelings?
I would explain to her the relationship between the breasts, the hormones
(specifically oxytocin) and the rest of the reproductive cycle. Then I
would tell her that nature [God] made breastfeeding pleasurable for both
baby AND mom so that we would *want* to do it! Let her know that these
feelings are normal and not perverted, and that she can use any arousal
to advantage with her partner! (a shortcut for sex? ;-)
> Is it all right for a breastfed 4 month old to sleep through the
> night?
IMO, if baby is growing well, gaining weight, and the milk supply is
well-established, this should be no problem. I do like to make sure,
however, that the baby is nursing at *least* 7-8 X a day, especially when
exclusively bfd, to ensure continued adequate supply. This usually will
occur as a "cluster feed" since baby is taking a long period off.....
> How do you counsel a mother who wants to continue smoking since the
> AAP drug lists includes it as a contraindicated drug of abuse?
This is a hard one! I find out how strongly she desires to breastfeed,
then explain to her the possible consequences. I tell her that cutting
down to 10 or less is good, and quitting is best; I give empathy for the
difficulty of trying to do either, and give her encouragment that it will
be well worth it. And then I leave the decision up to her.
> Does a nursing 3 year old still get immunites from human milk?
"Immunities" are always in the milk; it is the quantity that decreases
over time as consumption diminishes. Unless you are down to the
"tablespoons a day" level, many toddlers seem to continue to benefit from
the immunity boost, and moms will notice a difference in health when they
wean. (Difference is greater with the earlier the age of weaning) It's
amazing how a toddler can increase your supply when they are sick and not
eating their solids well!
> How long should you nurse?
Babies need special "baby" milk for at least the first year of life. Milk
becomes the supplement, and not the mainstay of the diet, in the second
year, but still offers many benefits. There ISN'T a right answer to "how
long should you nurse?", but rather I like to address the possibility of
meeting the baby's needs, and balance that against our own.
> Is there any age for a woman to be that she shouldn't nurse? (young > or old)
Nope- as far as age is concerned, whatever human milk you can produce is
of value to your baby over ABM! If she can make a baby and produce milk,
then she should nurse.....
> If a baby wakes up while you are having sex and wants to nurse, will
> your arousal affect the baby in any way?
Personally, I think that breastfed babies have an innate sixth sense and
just KNOW when something is up! I think that nature programmed them this
way to possibly stave off another conception, which could compromise the
milk supply (an oft-fatal consequence in the old days if baby was too
young) The only affect your arousal is likely to have, however, is the
readiness of your milk; an MER may already have taken place, yum-yum!
> If a mother wants to wean while she is pregnant, what should you tell
> her?
I always start by respecting the mothers feelings and exploring her
reasons. Are they emotionally based, or based on incorrect information,
like "I don't want to cause a miscarriage"? If emotionally based and she
is pretty strong about it, then I counsel her on how to wean gradually,
also letting her know that her supply will diminish on its own and many
babies will naturally wean on their own during this time. (Note: I said
*many*, not *all*) If her decision is based on faulty information,
however, I gently give her the "latest" info, and see how she then feels
about it.
> Is there any way to stop a letdown?
Dam it up. ;-)
Seriously, I don't think so. Once the hormonal cascade has started, the
milk will let down. (does anyone know if a sudden scare or something like
that might abort it? But still, some of has already occurred)
> If your "ducks" are plugged what should you do?
Use a duck plunger and unplug them! (Guess I'm getting tired :-)
> When is the best time to introduce a bottle if a mother is going back
> to work?
I want to see other answers on this one, too. My own are: at about 3-4
weeks postpartum, but not before breastfeeding is well established and
any problems ironed out.
Thanks for the fun, Cathy!
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Lisa Marasco, BA, LLLL, IBCLC
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