I just wanted to say thank you for all the wonderful responses to my question about non-nutritive sucking. I'm not sure who came up with the phrase non-nutritive sucking, but I think it should be renamed. It has unfortunately led some to believe that it is unimportant. Probably because our society does not value infants being comforted at the breast. Everyone is worried that the "baby will use me like a pacifier." It is not accurate as well, as babies do get some milk during this phase, but not as much. I like the idea of telling parents that it is comfort sucking, except I worry that for many people this will unfortunately have a negative connotation, as they have been conditioned to believe that comfort sucking is to be avoided at all costs. An LC told me she uses the terms "stimulating sucks" and "drinking sucks." I think I will be borrowing that. It's a very good way to explain to patients how this suckling is important as well. And it is not a good idea to take the baby off the breast and give a pacifier. I really appreciated especially Debra's post about the importance of sleep and how it helps babies develop motor learning, including learning to suckle. It made me think about how counterproductive it is to wake normal, healthy babies who are sleeping and try to push them to the breast. It's working against their learning to feed. Thank you again.
Tricia Shamblin, RN, IBCLCGurnee, IL

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