Last week I got really depressed and thought about writing science fiction or
romance novels for a living  or opening that bookstore, instead of constantly
beating my head against a brick wall.
In one week I dealt with (and these are ones I can remember).  In each case I
had to explain the action or lack of action by another party:
a mom who had a bad experience with an "LC" and her last child.  The "LC"
missed insufficient glandular development and the baby was FTT--
a mom who was told to pump and dump for 10 days by someone in urgent care
because she was taking penicillin--
a mom with a breast abscess from inadequate treatment of mastitis--
a doctor who insisted baby get one bottle of formula per day "for the
vitamins" and the mom who believed the doctor--
a set of triplets discharged home "breastfeeding" after never being put to
breast---
Argh

I'm glad I am on vacation this week because I can feel the burn out coming...
I am tired of explaining why other people (in general of course), don't know
what I know.

Then someone sent me this quote that made me come to a decision to take it
easier.  I thought the quote was so apropos to the discussion we've been
having about various knowledge deficits that I'd share it with you all:

"Every man [woman] is a mixture of ignorance and knowledge: a tiny island of
knowledge in a vast ocean of ignorance.  The proportion of ignorance to
knowledge varies slightly from individual to individual; and the FORM of the
knowledge varies greatly."

Be thankful for the knowledge you do have, your patients are.

<<excuse me whilst I wax poetic for a moment with a metaphor>>
I have a picture of my island with the ocean lapping on the shore taking
pieces of knowledge away and depositing some with each wave.  My island has
withstood the storms because I have a strong foundation of knowledge that I am
adding to every day.   Now I'd rather be a volcanic island, then I could
really blow and build up a lot faster but volcanos destroy too.  People run
away from a volcano.  I am glad that I am a peaceful place to go for those
people who REALLY want to visit my island.
Marie Davis, RN, IBCLC