Judy wrote a few days back:

>Do you believe that a double message is being given to moms? I know when
>I stop to "listen" to myself, I tell them that breastfeeding is
>instinctive, which they have heard anyway from umpteen other sources. BUT
>I also say that the baby has to "learn" how to breastfeed. I think that
>we may be confusing them. However, I am not sure about steps to take in
>order to resolve this confusion. I think that this may be extremely
>important when we instruct hospital staff on breastfeeding, also.

I try to remind mom's that the reflexes are instinctive -- the desire to
suck and the rooting are innate, it's the skill of latching on correctly and
draining the breast while coordinating breathing and swallowing that are
"learned" -- thus covering both aspects while not confusing the mom's with
mixed messages about "breastfeeding".  I think when you break down the
behaviors involved seperately instead of calling the whole thing
"breastfeeding" it's more clear and any problems become clearer as well...

See my recent FTT case where mom is saying baby is breastfeeding 40-60
minutes at a go, but he's not really breast*feeding* bc he's not latched on
correctly and he's falling asleep, there's no swallowing going on, etc. Mom
is using term "breastfeeding" or "nursing" to mean any breast - mouth
contact regardless of intake or proper latch...

Semantics make a big difference here.
Anne E. Robb, MAT, LLLL
Off on a Tanget, Oregon, USA
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