I just spent awhile catching up on my reading, and have made myself little
cryptic notes on things I would like to comment on.
     Antidotal - with my 2nd child she was 9lb8oz at birth and latched
herself on to bf before the cord was even cut. this wt(weight) put her in the
90+ percent.; by 6 mo. though she was petit ( and still is ) and had "fallen"
to the 10% wt.  A very wize female pedi told THIS worried mom " your baby is
to young to read those charts, so throw them away, she looks beautiful to me
!"
     Tea - we have in our health food stores a product called "Mother's Milk
Tea " it contains fenugreek, anis , lemon grass, pepermint, and a few other
things. Besides being a nice warm drink for mom, the ladies tell me it does
seem to help their milk supply.
      Birth Plan - about IV"S, they are the "norm " here for laboring moms.
But, I tell my CBE classes, remember you and your doc are a team, talk about
what you want, you are paying for his service and knowledge. Many can come to
a compromise of Saline locks and freedom to ambulate is they approach the OB
early in pregnancy with a realistic birth plan. ( but still can't get the ok
for liq. during labor, oh well.. )
     Syntocinon - could the question about oxyitocin as a milk inducer, be
confused with the assist with letdown moms got with syntocinon ( which by the
way is no longer availabe I understand )
     Bottlefeeds - I have had occasions to work with moms who were "forced "
to bf by md's, spouse, moms, ect.... I ask these moms, who sometimes are
crying about "having to do this " to give it 2 weeks of try, give them my
card with instructions to call me anytime they need support. At the end of
however long they try, many are still very unhappy with bf for whatever
reason, often to the point of interferring with bonding..  they look to me
for "permission" to stop bf. As a patient advocate, ( I know this goes
against some grains..) I tell them it is their choice, no one elses, and if
they are truly unhappy, they can certainly switch to bot feeds, that it is
important that they feel comfortable about feeding their baby. These are
ladies who have had the insruction, who know what is best, but still need
support if they don't choose "our " way.

Hope no one is to upset with the idea of saying it's ok to stop bfing, but I
think we also have to support the couplets emotional needs too.

thanks - Paula Ray RNC, IBCLC
             Longview, Texas

PS. Did I read someone has a LACTNET T-shirt, Where can I get one of those
???????