I agree that bf during something like a blood draw is a good idea.  I 
remember bf Joseph while a heel stick was done, and he didn't even flinch!  
I also bf Julia through quite few things, when she had RSV, at 13 months 
old.  Because she was born with a congenital diaphragmatic hernia, the RSV 
was a bigger threat to her than to most kids that age, so she was 
hospitalized.  After spending her first four months lying in a hospital, 
having three surgical procedures, and certainly countless painful procedure, 
she was terrified of hospitals and anyone in a white coat.  She would scream 
if she even saw anyone in a white coat looking at her.  During the time I'd 
had her bottlefeeding well, from shortly after I got her, at six months, 
until I finally figured out how to get her to accept the breast, at just a 
year old, she had taken comfort in sucking at a bottle, in general, but the 
bottle did not distract her from noticing hospital procedures.  However, the 
breastfeeding made a huge difference!  She didn't seem to care who was in 
the room, and didn't get upset about having vitals taken, which had been 
traumatic during her hospitalizations before.  Bf didn't keep her from 
noticing a blood draw, but her veins were pretty hard to work with, and it 
took them quite some time to do it.  However, she would settle right down, 
as soon as she latched on.  We had been told to expect her to be in the 
hospital for about two weeks and I could tell that the ped was a bit afraid 
that she might not survive, because of the combination of the RSV and the 
condition of her left lung, due to the CDH.  However, she was out of the 
hospital two and a half days later, on portable oxygen, but happy as could 
be!  We just got a real long length of tubing and she scooted and played all 
over the place!  Of course, I am convinced that she would not have bounced 
back nearly as quickly had she not been breastfeeding, and was even more 
thankful that I had stuck with it and finally gotten her to accept the 
breast!  I believe both the breast milk and the fact that it helped keep her 
from being nearly as stressed by the whole experience helped a great deal.

I am not so sure it would be a good idea to have moms bf through anything 
extremely painful, though (like circumcision), for fear that a baby might 
develop an aversion to bf.  I am sure we have all seen babies who have 
developed aversions to the breast, from a traumatic experience during 
efforts to get them latched on, breastfeeding when they are sick, etc.. I 
have seen lots of cases where babies adopted at an older age have develped 
an aversion from having a traumatic experience at the breast.  I believe 
that a traumatic experience with Julia, when I first got her, contributed 
alot to the fact that it took me over five months to get to accept the 
breast.  Although I am all for anything that would lessen the trauma of 
something like circumcision, it would sure be sad if a baby ended up with an 
aversion to breastfeeding because of it.  I know that it is possible to 
overcome things like that, but not that many moms have the support, drive, 
patience, etc., to hang in there long enough to overcome such a thing.

Does anyone else have any thoughts on this?

Aloha,
Darillyn

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