My mother always told me she tried to breastfeed me, but that she didn't have
any milk.  That made a big impression--that she tried and wanted to nurse me.
 Then once when I was about 8 or 9  we were visiting relatives.  My older
cousin had her 3rd baby then about 4 weeks old.  Mother told me to go
upstairs and watch her feed the baby.  She was nursing lying on the bed and
invited me over to look.  The baby was almost asleep, dozing and nursing
lazily.  They both seemed so warm, content and just happy, and neither in a
hurry.  She was smiling down at her little one and  I remember she commented
when he would suck a bit that "there is always just a little bit more."  That
was my first lesson in supply and demand and why I think I never worried
about my supply when my babies nursed alot.   Other than seeing my dog and
cat nurse their puppies and kittens I never saw another mother nurse until
nursing school.  Then I taught a woman to nurse, with a stop watch!!  5
minutes on this side, now 5 minutes on the other, not a second more.  Well
that's what my instructor told me to do.

Then in 1975 with my first pregnancy, we went to an early pregnancy class
where they had some books for sale!  I bought the old blue copy of The
Womanly Art and  somewhere I also got a copy of Karen Pryor's book and read
them both cover to cover.  They made such perfect sense, so logical.  My
husband is "exquisitely allergic" according to his allergist (about his
highest rating I think) and I wanted to minimize what  I had done to my
children by choosing such an allergic father to provide 1/2 their genes.

My first baby, Scott WOULD NOT LATCH ON!!!!!  We had a totally natural birth.
  I was baffeled, but extremely stubborn.  I tried for 2 weeks and he lost a
pound below his birth weight.  Thank goodness he had been over 8# at birth.
 If I only knew then what I know now.  (Don't we all wish that?)  After
visiting the pediatrician at the 2 week check and being told "Mrs. Bradshaw
you don't have enough milk", I went home and fed my starving child a bottle
of formula.  At that point my husband walked in.  Now you have to understand
that he had just completed his Dairy Science course, and had to groom and
train a cow as part of that class.  If you ever want a personal opinion about
how dumb cows are just ask him.    I remember jumping when her thundered:
"WHAT ARE YOU FEEDING OUR CHILD!!!"    That did it.  I was going to find a
way to make this work.  After the first decent sleep I had had since giving
birth I tried to nurse again and HE LATCHED ON!  I think the "super sign" of
the bottle stimulated his palate , which I had never done, never though of
putting my finger or anything else in his mouth.  Anyway to make a long story
short, by 4 weeks of age he was 2 # over his birth weight, and we nursed over
2 years.   Nursing my next 2 children was looong and joyful.  Baby #3 tried
to have latch on problems but after 5 days of strong persuasion and 4 hands
(my husband helped with his arms around me)  stuffing him on the breast, he
"clicked on" and decided nursing was OK after all.  I didn't go to LLL
meetings until my first was 6 weeks old and our problems were pretty much
solved, but loved all the support and began learning, and learning and
haven't stopped yet.  Happy nursing just makes you want to share it with
others.

So everyone is important in the life of a young girl, and books as well as
strongly opinionated husbands help too.

Jane Bradshaw LLLL, RN, IBCLC
Private Practice in Lynchburg