I encourage everyone to read the December 1995 issue of CONTEMPORARY
PEDIATRICS. Frank Oski's editorial (short, one-page) is Excellent and
speaks to the issue of viewing guilt as a positive emotion, one that
encourages behavior (change) and/or action on the part of parents on behalf
of their children.

Too often, we tend to view our feelings in negative terms. This is
especially true for "guilt". He suggests we view it from a more positive
perspective.  I'll bet if we took that approach, far fewer of us would
worry so much about engendering reactions in clients about things we share
with them.

For what it is worth, I tell my clients that I will be honest with them
about whatever they ask, and tell them if I am not the best source of
information they are seeking. I have yet to have someone tell me they did
NOT want to know about the risks of artificial feeding. All expressed
concern that no one else had said anything like that to them and they were
glad to know what to look out for when they had to supplement/wean the baby
to the stuff.

PS. I also ask them to taste the stuff; most comment that they cannot
imagine how a baby could take it, it was so awful!  Don't most mothers
taste food they give to their children? Why do we not do this with formula?


PPS. I still run into mothers who do not know that formula is really
adulterated cow milk!  When I ask them what thye think it is made of, they
draw a blank, shrug their shoulders and say they don't know, but they
thought it was supposed to be good for their babies because the doctors
suggested using it.

One mother asked (and I thought it an excellent question): If my doctor
doesn't want my baby to be exposed to cow milk for one year, why is he
telling me to use formula?  duh.  Got me.




Def. of LC service: "We are all faced with a series of great opportunities
brilliantly disguised as impossible situations."
Kathleen G. Auerbach,PhD, IBCLC (Homewood, IL)- [log in to unmask]
WEB PAGE: http://www.mcs.com/~auerbach/lactation.html