OK, I finally have a real live contribution to the Stupid Things HCPs Say
to Lactating Women.

An old friend and I just got back in touch with each other a few days ago
and now chat via email. She had a baby in September and is nursing him!
She's the last person I'd expect to bf, but she is. She says she doesn't
enjoy it, but knows it's best for her baby.

She emailed me this morning (she's on the east coast) and said that she was
sick and her GP told her she had a sinus infection and then SAID: "I CAN'T
GIVE YOU ANYTHING UNLESS YOU STOP NURSING FOR A WEEK."

<Loud thump as Nancy's jaw hits the floor, followed by Nancy herself><Nancy
gets up and looks for the ON/OFF switch on her breasts, or at least a
faucet of some sort>

This same GP told her that she only had to nurse for a month, and after
that her milk would have no antibodies and not much nutritional value so if
she continued it would only be for the nurturing factor.

I had told my friend that my policy is not to criticize drs, and I
respected the fact that it is important to trust your personal phys. But in
my return email I basically told her to run, don't walk, to another dr.  So
she called her OBGYN, who couldn't believe the GP said to stop nursing for
a week, and said to call the pedi, since the baby was sick, too.  The nurse
was so incredulous at what my friend said that she put the pedi on the
phone. He wanted to know the name of the GP and he was furious!  And then
he told my friend to tell that GP (whose name my friend didn't provide) to
buy a copy of "Drugs and Lactation".

Perhaps we won another one here. My friend said I was a godsend; the rest
of you had better put your halos on too, especially you, Dr. Hale.

Cheers

Nancy Kramer
Rubbing her jaw and scratching her head at the same time....easier than it
sounds