Once again I have been presented with a physician recommendation
to wean because of the "stress on your system" while a mother is dealing with
a chronic medical condition. While I can present numerous studies refuting
her physician's claim that "breastmilk has no benefits past 6 months anyway",
I do not want to simply ignore the possibility that lactating could be a
stress on some mothers dealing with illnesses like MS, Lupus, chronic
fatigue, etc. In my experience, mothers have shared that weaning and then
dealing with the facts of no longer breastfeeding (bottle cleaning and prep,
hormones, sick babies, etc) feels more stressful than breastfeeding. Some
mothers have seemed to have more symptoms while breastfeeding but persist and
things improve.  I am interested in hearing what others have seen in practice
or can explain medically the impact of lactation on a mother who is coping
with a serious illness.
Debra Kearney, IBCLC

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