Just lately I have had several Moms who will 'try' to breastfeed, do well for a day and then quit for no discernable reason. One Mom told me that she felt that her baby must be starving because he wanted to nurse all the time and that she must not have any milk for him. I offered to let her pump so that she could see the colostrum for herself but she firmly declined. When her sister came in I recognised her as a patient from a year ago. She shook her head and said that she had no milk either because she had a c-section. I reminded her that I had been her nurse too and I recalled that she had colostrum dripping out of her breasts!
  Denial ++ but I am puzzzling as to why. These women express a wish to breastfeed but quickly stop despite lengthy teaching and support. The patient then seems to create another reason for quitting in her mind - maybe to appease her concience.
  Nothing that I can say changes their minds.
   
  I am also coming across patients who want to pump and feed their babies breastmilk from a bottle. This seems to me a very time consuming method of feeding the baby that is also doomed to fail because the supply will not be adequate for very long. These moms deny any history of sexual abuse. The benefits associated with breastmilk are obviously on their minds but they shudder at the notion of actually putting their child to their breasts.
  I find this interesting. 
   
  I live in a small town in SW Virginia that is a very socially deprived in places.
  I always mention that breastmilk is the 'ultimate convenience food' to my moms. No mixing, no warming, no sterilizing, no buying, no bother.
  When I comment on the cost of formula they just shrug and reply that they "have WIC".
  <sigh>
  Julie Taylor
  ( hoping to be IBCLC in 16 days!)



 		
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