Hi All!

I haven't posted in a while, I'm Linda Zeiner, RN, currently SAHM at
least for a while (yay!  I like being home with my little boy!).  I have
worked in Level III NICUs where we told Moms that Baby has to be
bottling all feeds before breast can be attempted, (also had my own son
in a Level II NICU where the neos ordered gavage or breast, no
artificial nipples of any kind for any reason -- I got to chop up a
vanilla pacifier that an unknown nurse had given him and put the cut
pieces into my bra so he'd agree to BF again); I've worked in Newborn
Nursery, and PostPartum.  I'm also the "Lactation Consultant" at my
Church--word has gotten around that I think Babies need to have their
Mommy's milk; I'm NOT an LC--I am always having to correct people,
saying "I'm just a nurse who knows a little bit about breastfeeding.
How can I help you?"

The thing about watching the clock has always pestered me--you want the
Mom to learn how to watch the baby, but sometimes the clock has a say,
too, as with a sleepy baby, a premie, a baby or Mom with any kind of
"not quite optimally normal" thing going on, whether it is temporary or
permanent.

Maybe the clock could be thought of as the music.  When dancing, if the
music changes, so does the dance.  It may change only a little bit, or
it may change dramatically.  If the baby needs 8 feeds in 24 hours
(roughly every 3 hour feedings), and it has been 2 hours, the music has
changed a little bit.  Work on waking the baby gently, offer the breast
to a still sleepy baby, whatever works for that Mom and Baby.  If it has
been 5 hours, the music has changed dramatically.  Someone has to lead
in the changing of the dance steps, getting the baby to nurse, or at
least EAT!

This analogy might work better if I actually knew anything about
dancing...

Thanks for Lactnet!  I learn bunches from you all!

Linda in Dallas   mailto:[log in to unmask]