An earlier post on this subject stated

>This is a
>debilitating disease and as LCs you may need to realize it is far more
>important for the mother to be on meds than breastfeed.  Each cycle
>causes more damage to the mother.

Drs. Hale and Newman have already addressed the use of copolymer medications
so I won't revisit that issue.  I do want to add some additional thoughts
about MS because it is a vastly misunderstood illness.

MS *can* be a debilitating disease and the chronic-progressive form of MS
does reuslt in "more damage to the mother" with each exacerbation (episode)
of symptoms.  If I recall my reading correctly, somewhere around 20% of
people with MS have this chronic-progressive form.  Another note, there's a
new term that has replaced "chronic-progressive" but I don't recall it and
dont have my materials handy to look it up.

However, most people with MS have relapsing-remitting forms and do in fact
regain complete or almost complete functioning of the affected areas when an
exacerbation has subsided.  Over a longer period of time, there is often
some progressive deficit, but the time span being measured here is many
years rather than a few months.  The early postpartum period is a
particularly challenging one for exacerbations.

The clinical trials of these new meds for MS are certainly exciting but they
are not a cure nor do they *eliminate* recurrence or *halt* progression of
the disease - they *can* in many cases slow it and that is a good thing.  A
mother whose MS causes physical challenges for her should be helped to find
ways in which she can breastfeed.  This may mean help to get enough rest (a
common MS symptom is fatigue), assistive devices if she has weakness that
makes it difficult or impossible to pick up or hold her baby, and so on.
The range of possible symptoms for MS is mind-boggling and thus the
assistance needed by a new mother with MS requires a lot of support and
creativity on the part of all her health care providers.

The erratic, unpredictable nature of MS can cause a great deal of mental
anguish and stress.  The new mother with MS may feel wholly inadequate.
Breastfeeding is something which will *not* create any more difficulties for
her than if she were caring for her bottle-fed baby - to the contrary! - and
breastfeeding can give her a well-deserved sense of accomplishment.

If I may add a personal note, I'll explain why I jumped so readily onto this
soapbox.  Five years ago I experienced *very scary* neurological symptoms
that were finally labelled "postviral syndrome / possible MS."  Four years
ago I had another occurrence.  Maybe I do have MS, maybe I don't.  Nothing's
happened since.  In the meantime I've read everything I can get my hands on.
When I first got the speculative diagnosis, I figured I was in for a
wheelchair, early death, you name it - worst case scenario all the way based
on the popular perception of the disease.  What I learned was that 75% of
people with MS don't *ever* use a wheelchair, and most have a normal life
expectancy.  There are a heckuva lot of people walking around with MS and
you do not know who they (we?) are.  Maybe I have something to prove, but I
like to try and promote the idea that people with MS are the same as anyone
else - and breastfeeding moms with MS need the same kinds of creative help
and support that other moms may need.

Hopping down from the soapbox now, before I fall asleep and crash!

Mary Renard
Vienna VA  USA

posting for myself, not my employer....
=====================================================
Mary Riley Renard, RN, BSN, IBCLC
CERP/Recertification Coordinator
International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners
P O Box 2348
Falls Church  VA  22042-0348  USA
Phone   703-560-7330
Fax     703-560-7332
E-mail  [log in to unmask]
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