Karen-

The "very best" you can do for her is support her till your teeth hurt and
praise the *good* things she does right through the roof! In terms of
breastfeeding, it wouldn't hurt to help her focus on enjoying the baby -
cuddling, lots of skin-to-skin, doting on the baby, getting easy with just
letting the baby nurse whenever it wants to,etc. - and tell her that all the
time she spends mooched up with the baby & getting to know each other will
help her body to make all the good milk her baby needs. (This is assuming,
of course, that you, grandma, etc. are keeping a good watchful eye on output
& other signs of thriving baby, and teaching her the signs that the baby is
getting enough.) Don't shoot me out of the water here, my friends, but I
think that it's probable that this young woman will make enough milk; more
important, though, is that she feel that she's being a good mom to her baby,
and that she enjoy her baby to the max. In my experience, what's usually the
kiss of death to young BFing teens is that no one really thinks they can
manage, that BFing is "just too much", and stuff along those lines. I've
seen girls this age do a great job of nursing over the long haul, and I've
also seen them get off to a pretty good start but realize that it isn't
really what they feel the most comfortable with. It really is up to HER, and
she needs to have her confidence bolstered for the very big job she's
facing. I'm not saying that breastfeeding is any less important, just that
she needs to know she has your support and approval no matter which way she
ends up going with the feeding. I know she'll learn a lot from your support
and help! Don't let her young age throw you - the equipment all works pretty
much the same as it would if she were 20, including her brain, she's just a
little less advantaged in experience and years. (So wow, by my age I must be
REALLY well-advantaged!)

Cathy Bargar, RN, IBCLC