Dear Friends:
    I visited a young, first time mother today who has  no insurance. She and 
her family are living with her cousin's family.
    Times are hard in Guatemala; a man can work all day  and earn $5, not 
enough to feed a family. She, one of 11 children, got to finish  3rd grade, and 
then had to stay home and help her mother. Her cousin translated  for us, as 
she doesn't speak English and my Spanish is not all that  helpful.
    She is breastfeeding on both sides, then giving 2  ounces of formula 
because she is interpreting a cluster pattern as meaning she  doesn't have enough 
milk.
    We talked about life in Guatemala, where mothers  breastfeed and sleep 
with their babies, and about how mothers loose the habits  of their native 
country when they come to the States. 
    She took some coaxing, and did lie to breastfeed,  which was very 
comfortable for her.
    I  came out of the closet, finally. I  said that mothers in Guatemala 
were smart and that formula was not good for  babies, that it made them sick and 
increased the chances of them dying. We 3 had  a big discussion about this; 
the cousin had bottlefed because she had to return  to paid employment. This new 
mother can stay home with her baby. 
    We talked about the choice, and what kind of choice  is it between the 
best food for a baby and the worst?
    I am sick and tired of pussy footing around. I am  in her home as a 
healthcare professional, all the evidence is behind  breastfeeding, and I said 
that, strongly. I helped her to be comfortable with  breastfeeding, took my time 
(over 2 hours), gave her Spanish handouts from the  terrific Massachusetts BF 
Coalition website about making milk and s2s, and  talked about how life is hard 
enough, being an immigrant, with no close family  around, and being on public 
assistance. Breastfeeding is a way for this mother  to make her life a little 
easier. I hope she thinks about it.
    The cousin was at the birth. Can you believe that  at a major teaching 
hospital in PHiladelphia, a nurse asked her what birth  control she was using 
before she got pregnant............while she was in  labor! (She had an 
unmedicated birth, opening up all the way before the epidural  team could get going.)
And she was given a shot of Depo-Provera before she left the delivery  room!!
    No one asked her permission or gave her an  explanation. Both the mother 
and the cousin said that they were told she was  going to "get a shot to keep 
from getting pregnant" BOOM and it was given.
    still steaming..........
    warmly,
Nikki Lee RN, MS, Mother of 2, IBCLC, CCE
Maternal-Child Adjunct  Faculty Union Institute and University
Film Reviews Editor, Journal of Human  Lactation
www.breastfeedingalwaysbest.com

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