Chris gave you information on Rescue Remedy and I will tell you how I use
it.  It has many uses that I knew about before I began recommending it to
nursing mothers.  My daughter is a singer and if she has a solo she puts 4
drops under her tongue and she doesn't get "butterflies" in her stomach.  I
have used it for the same purpose when speaking before groups.

I began using it with mothers because of all of the stress they were
experiencing with Instant Motherhood.  It is recommended for crisis times
and times of great frustration, so it seemed appropriate.  One mother who
had a 4-year-old, a 2-year-old, then twins found that it helped her get
through the day.  She said that what happened didn't change, but when she
took Rescue Remedy before each feeding she could take the challenges of the
day with some ease. She used it until everyone settled into the new routine
of two little ones. I recommended it before feeding only so that she could
remember to take it.

One mother was so uptight that her seemingly bountiful milk supply wouldn't
"let down."  So we tried RR, and she called the next day and said that it
had increased her milk supply.  It doesn't do that, but it helped her relax
so that the milk was released. That's what gave me the idea for using it
with mothers who are pumping if they find they have trouble with an MER and
a breast pump.

I was working with a newborn once and the middle child (2 yrs) awoke from a
nap with nigh terrors.  No one could stop his screaming. I put 4 drops of RR
under his tongue and in half a minute he happily ran off to watch TV with
his brother. It doesn't always work that fast; the more extreme the
agitation the faster the effect. And there is no "felt" effect like with a
sedative or tranquilizer.  One just notices that she feels more at ease.

It is not a drug, nor a sedative, nor habit forming, nor does it solve all
problems.  I use it at night when I awake stewing about a client and can't
get back to sleep.  It helps.  That's actually how I discovered it. I also
found it most helpful when I was flying from Nashvelle in March and the tiny
airplane that I unwisely chose to fly home in, was tumbling around in the
storm.  I even shared it with my seat-mate.

It has a calming effect when a person is anxious.

As Chris said, the original came from England and many health food stores in
the USA still carry the original Rescue Remedy ( trade name). I use Five
Flower Formula made by Healing Herbs in the USA.  I find it as effective as
the original and less expensive.

Well, that's about it.  Don't ask me for references from medical journals as
to its effectiveness.  All of my success in using it is anecdotal, sort of
like cabbage leaves and fenugreek. It is totally safe and I find it most
helpful in my LC work. I know that many of you have constraints on what you
can recommend to a client, but if a client mentions it, you can say that you
have heard of its use with breastfeeding mothers.

Patricia Gima, IBCLC
Milwaukee
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