Hi Patricia,

To answer your question, we of "modern" society, have created surgeons to
heroically save at-risk mothers and babies.  We created engineers and
manufacturers to invent gadgets to aid challenged mothers and babies.  We
created LC's and other experts to help mothers and babies use the gadgets
wisely.  We created marketing programs to educate mothers and babies of the
availability and the need for the surgeons, gadgets, and experts.  This is
all really good stuff!  This great stuff saves our society countless
heartaches every day.

However, because there are really very few mothers and babies that are
at-risk or challenged, we somehow needed to convince more/most mothers that
they should need or want to pay for this stuff.  We have done an amazing
job.  So well, in fact, that we must now go back and tell these mothers that
most of them really do not need all of this stuff.  But now we are
financially invested in this industry.  Look at the books, magazines, and
web sites that the typical mother is inundated with.  What she ~expects when
she is expecting~ is to have every complication, every intervention, and
every problem in ~the book~.  (If you have not read ~the book~, you should.
It will answer your questions.)  She is convinced that she needs a battery
of experts and professionals and gadgets to insure the safety of her
"medical condition", the survival of her "medical event", and the continued
success of her "medical miracle".  Try to put yourself in her position as a
brand-new pregnant consumer, and try to find anything in her world that is
telling her that she probably won't really need all that stuff.  She is the
consumer, she has a choice, she does not need to buy all of that stuff.

I am a mom of 5, ages almost 9yo to 16mo, and I have never pumped my breasts
and my babies have never had a bottle.  I was one of the lucky ones.  Slowly
and surely we are coming back.  We are a quiet revolution of fierce and
gentle mothers.

There are lots of us out there, but since breastfeeding works well most of
the time without professional support, there is little reason why those of
us "easy" mothers would ever grace your doorstep.  Maybe we should.  Maybe
we should stop by or call once in a while just to say thank you for the work
you do for our less fortunate sisters, and to let you squeeze the cheeks of
a chubby, happy, breastfed baby.

Give a call to your local LLL Leader.  Tell her you would like to hear some
boring ol' happy stories for a few minutes, or better yet, ask if you can
come to a meeting and see for yourself!

Thank you for the work that you do for my less fortunate sisters.  Please
send them to a LLL meeting.  Give them a list of better books and magazines
and web sites to explore.

May you be richly blessed!

Corrine Flatt
Las Vegas NV

             ***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html