When you know a mother is in great distress with a breastfeeding problem
and you have been asked for your opinion, the temptation to do something or
tell her something is very great.We want to help mums to breastfeed, it is
one of the reasons we take up lay breastfeeding counselling in the first
place. As  trainee breastfeeding counsellors in Nursing Mothers we are NOT
permitted to counsel and I believe this is wise. If there is no local BFC or
LC and "consults" have to be done over the phone, I can't see the difference
to an email consult. But I do stress the necessity of having passed the
necessary steps prior to doing so. If you have a mum who is desperate  i
believe that all you can do as a student is to provide her with empathy ,
support and encouragement, direct her to the relevent reading material and
the appropriate resource personnel nearby. As a new Counsellor / LC you will
often be in this situation anyway where your experience will not be up to
helping a mother and you will need to refer her. As we say in NMAA you are
reponsive to but not responsible for the nursing mother. Good luck with
your work ,Anna,
Ruth