As I am a long-time LLLL, you may find this reply a bit odd, but here goes.  I really don't see what one's beliefs have to do with providing breastfeeding assistance.  And who is it that decides what is "normal" anyways?  And what exactly are "our beliefs?"  And since when don't human beings work for economic reasons?

As Kathy D. pointed out much more eloquently than I, women have been breastfeeding since the beginning of time in endlessly different settings.  Yes, I stayed home with my kids - couldn't imagine leaving them or adding on outside job to my load.  Does this make me more "normal" that my friends who chose different paths?  Does this make me somehow better or nobler than them?  One of the things in LLL that has bothered me the most through the years is the ever-present implication (sometimes very subtle, sometimes not) that you can't really be a good mother (or a Leader) unless you are home with your baby 24/7.  I believe in better mothering through breastfeeding.  Period.

My job as an LC is to help women who may be experiencing difficulty in breastfeeding, for whatever reason.  It is not my job to change her lifestyle or her belief system.  I provide information and help her to devise a care plan that will work for her.  Now we all know that many women (and men) do experience profound changes in the way they view their lives and the world after they have children.  But those changes are very personal and different for everyone.  After all these years one thing I do know for sure is that I never know for sure what is really happening in another person's life or why.  And I also know that when you have an agenda, sooner or later it comes out in the way that you interact with people - it may be subtle, but it is there, even when you think that you are bending over backwards to be accepting.  I think that breastfeeding should be an LCs only agenda.  We give out accurate information.  What a mom does with that information is entirely up to her.

If I were a working mother and decided I needed to put my child in daycare, I would love to know which ones are respectful of breastfeeding - most likely, they will be more respectful of the child in general.  How about also enclosing a card from the local LLL stating that in addition to books about breastfeeding, nutrition, going back to work, and parenting the library contains a section with very practical help for moms who have decided to stay at home. Maybe you could include a very small exerpt from one of the books as an example.

The message is that anyone can breastfeed.  There are no prerequisites.  We know that a certain amount of breast emptying every day is necessary to ensure an adequate milk supply.  However the mom figures out how to do that is up to her.  And my job, should she ask, is to help her to find a way if she is unable figure it out by herself.  If we are successful, we end up with a healthy and happy mother and baby.  That's it.

This is not meant to be a personal attack on anyone.  Mixing causes has been an issue in LLL forever and I think it is one for many LCs as well, on all ends of the spectrum.  I have very strong beliefs about many things and sometimes I am not as successful as I should be in not letting them color how I handle certain situations with my clients.  It can be quite a struggle at times, but it is a matter of ethics that we all need to keep considering.



Warmly,
Sharon Knorr, BSMT, ASCP, IBCLC
Newark, NY (near Rochester on Lake Ontario)
mailto:[log in to unmask]

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