Hi, ladies. This is my first post after several months of lurking. I can't
tell you how much I've learned from this list.
Anyway, I'm a breastfeeding support volunteer with a local non-profit in
Austin, Texas. I do follow-up calls with breastfeeding moms at 1 week, 3
weeks, and 3 months. I've been seeing what I think is a disturbing trend
lately, and I'd love to get your feedback on it.
It seems like a lot of the moms I work with are being given nipple shields
at the hospital as a quick fix to deal with latch problems, rather than
receiving any real help with getting their babies to latch. Often, they are
given next to no instruction on how to use the shield, and even less
instruction on how to transition away from it. This week alone, I talked
with several new moms in tears at 1 week PP, who were absolute wrecks
because the baby wouldn't latch without the shield, barely latched with it,
they couldn't get the shield to stay in place as they nursed, and they were
getting deeper and deeper into the downward spiral of pumping and
bottlefeeding EBM instead of nursing at the breast. Often, these babies are
showing clear signs of nipple confusion already, and the moms are
supplementing with formula because the baby seems like he's not getting much
due to the ongoing latch problems. In all of these cases, the nipple shield
has clearly done more harm than good and threatened the sustainability of
the nursing relationship, and in all of these cases, there have been easy
and clear alternative ways of dealing with the underlying problem that
should have been tried before resorting to the nipple shield. And none of
these moms were getting ongoing lactation care with regard to the nipple
shield use, or had any idea how to get away from them. I know that nipple
shields have their place, but I am getting so frustrated with the cavalier
overuse of them that I'm encountering.
I'd love to hear your thoughts on this.
-Koren Martin, breastfeeding support volunteer
Austin, TX
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