Dear Laura,

I prefer the above label to read "Religion and Infant Feeding".  Simply
because we have all seen our share of restrictive feeding in various
cultural milieus religious or otherwise.

I agree with you.  My tendency is to "scare the Hell out of them".  But
unfortunately this turns them off completely and trust is lost.  When
our warnings on restrictive parenting are not heeded supplementary
feedings invariably follow until the infant is completely artificially
fed.  A parent will and must make their own decisions whether they come
by it gently or otherwise.

I work with nurses who have what we call the "grandma sense".  They say
"Now listen to me!  You just need to keep that baby at breast whenever
that little one wants it.  Let me tuck you in and you two have a little
snooze."  And the new moms just love that nurse.  Then there are the new
moms who just cringe when someone tells them what they should do.  These
are the moms who need control.  So we show them a means of control (this
is why they cling to such a program of restrictive feeding. They need to
feel they are in control Christian or not)....set them a goal.  Example:
Your baby will BF on cue for about the first two weeks, one day 8X, one day 12X, etc.  But after about two weeks you (meaning mom) will be so good
at feeding that you will find your baby to be fairly predictable and a
happy camper at that.   You (meaning mom)  have done such a good job at
meeting the baby's needs everyone is happy.

Sincerely,

Trina Ammar, RNC, IBCLC
Monterey, CA