In a message dated 4/17/97 12:01:00 PM, you wrote:

<<This mom breastfeeds her babies for a long time but
since her 2nd birth she has had a disquieting phenomona. As soon as her
milk comes down she feels a feeling of sadness and agressiveness. She
cannot bear anyone to come near her, not even the children. This happens
at each breastfeeding session for two or three weeks, and then
disappears.>>

Toby,
I haven't heard it described this way, but I'm wondering if this mom
experiences these emotions as she lets go of the last baby and must bond to
the new.  I remember feeling guilty about displacing my oldest child, and
with each subsequent child (I have 4) there was always that sadness and guilt
that the previous child was no longer the "baby"--- even worse because they
were spaced rather close together.  I wonder if mom experiences transient
anger over these mixed emotions; they of course are probably mediated by the
fluctuating hormones, and then as hormones settle down and a new existence is
established, they fade away.  Very interesting.

-Lisa Marasco, BA, IBCLC