Dear all:

Here's some thoughts on how to handle the Liz Lange campaign via info.  Time is of the essense 
since I just learned from one of our colleagues that there is an opening her in Manhattan on 
Wednesday.

I need a review of the accuracy of my information and if anyone remembers the magazine in which 
Brooke Shields talked about her postpartum depression and how nursing helped her and what 
restrictions if any there are on quoting that article in a flyer.  Feel free to slash away at typos, bad 
ideas, misinformation, and or provide better examples.

I was thinking of a simple skinny flyer with the following information:

What is best for mom when it comes to infant feeding decisions?  

Research has shown that:
1) Breastfeeding releases hormones that relax a mother while she is nursing.
2) Mom's who keep their babies in the room with them at night right after delivery get more sleep 
than mom's who send the baby to the nursery to be fed artificially.  (Nursing your baby in the early 
postpartum period is a safe and natural sleep drug)
3) Breastfeeding can help moms cope with high stress circumstances.  Low income women who 
had very tiny and even premature babies felt empowered when they were given help to provide 
breast milk for their babies.  They did not feel guilty.
4) Remember that Brooke Shields recently talked about how breastfeeding helped her through her 
postpartum depression.

Most new moms feel stressed when they are learning the basics of baby care.  If you feel stressed 
while breastfeeding, get some qualified help from an International Board Certified Lactation 
Consultant or a La Leche League Counselor.  Asking for help doesn't mean you're a wimp, it means 
you're smart.  Even the gorilla in the Chicago zoo, who was raised in captivity, couldn't quite get 
how to breastfeed until human mothers showed her how.

Other ways in which breastfeeding is best for mom include:

1) Mom's risk of breast cancer is reduced when she chooses to breastfeed.
2) Mom's risk of osteoporosis is reduced when she chooses to breastfeed.
3) Mom is more likely to lose those prepregnancy pounds faster when she breastfeeds. 

Come on, give it a try for a day, a week, a month.  By that time you'll probably be a pro and be 
able to continue for as long as you want which may even be what the American Academy of 
Pediatrics recommends!  There's a lot of evidence to show its best for you.

Besides, what't best for you baby IS ALSO what's best for you.  Remember, breastfeeding is likely 
to mean fewer nights up with your baby from ear infections, diarrhea, and other illnesses.  Who 
really would want to choose that risk if you had enough help and support to avoid it?

******************************

What do you think?

Best, Susan Burger

             ***********************************************

To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail
To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest)
To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
All commands go to [log in to unmask]

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