I've considered this a lot and concluded that what LLL meetings and other
forms of peer support do most for breastfeeding is to normalize it and move
it from a hypothetical option to "wow, babies actually do latch on to
breasts and feed," which is something that we in the US just don't see up
close or frequently until we have our own children for too many of us. When
I was expecting my first child, I hadn't really seen a baby breastfeed in
close to 15 years (my mother breastfed all three of us for 18m-3years and I
am the oldest) and it did look odd at first, but going to LLL meetings while
pregnant set the stage for my own breastfeeding "career." I knew
intellectually that it could be done and vaguely remembered watching my
youngest brother nursing, but seeing the ease with which those other moms
cared for their children was worth more than words on a page or a
professional lecture to my own self-confidence and learning curve.

I'm sure we all remember the story about the zoo mammal (I can't remember if
it was a primate or what) who didn't know what to do with her new baby. The
zoo had nursing mothers come and breastfeed their children for this creature
to observe. So many human mothers describe their first feelings as new
mother as confusion -- "then they handed me this thing wrapped in a blanket
and I didn't know what to do with it."

Freyja May, LLLL, Fort Collins, CO



> . This doesn't have to be in the form of a LLL meeting
> (for example, a playgroup or mom's group with other breastfeeding moms
> might
> suffice), but LLL is certainly best organized to provide this important
> peer
> support.
>
> Chris Musser
> www.momsmilkanywhere.org
> www.reluctantlactivist.blogspot.com

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