I have a situation here with a client who has had a history of having very
high thyroid levels. She had problems, initially, with her hcps telling her
that PTU was incompatible with bf ( this is not correct), and I helped her
with information on this subject. The PTU has not worked as well as they had
hoped, and she still has erratic thyroid levels, and has recently been
hypothyroid.  Mother is currently bf a 17 mo old. Very committed lady, and
does not understand how to wean him, and more importantly, does not wish to
wean. Has refused thyroid ablation with radioactive iodine due to impact on bf.

The surgeons and endocrinologists want her to have her thyroid removed, with
a week of Telepaque before the surgery, 3x daily.  She is being told that
she must wean for this, and because of this, she doesn't want to take the
medication that is being recommended before surgery.

Is this medication necessary as a precursor to the thyroid removal, and are
there other possibilities?  This mother is more upset at this time at the
attitudes of her hcps, who are judging her lifestyle, (ie telling her flat
out that bf is not impt when compared to her health problems at this time).
There may be no other solutions, but I do believe that these professionals
have a duty to be sensitive to her needs as a woman and a mother and a sick
person.

Thoughts greatly appreciated.

Kathleen

Kathleen B. Bruce, BSN, IBCLC co-owner Lactnet,TLC, Indep. Consultant
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