Thank you, Virginia, for clearly stating what was in many of our minds who lived through that time of unclear definitions.  The unintended negative consequences of not having clear descriptors took many long years to overcome, and we don't want to lose this now!

I can well understand the desire to value the great effort put by many moms I have helped to "at least" provide their babies their breast milk.  I quite purposefully put this in a quote, because that is how THEY (the mothers) view it, while I view it for many as a truly heroic effort after many frustrating and difficult weeks and months - and I spend a great deal of time providing them with praise and reflection on what they HAVE accomplished despite all their barriers.

However, when documenting these cases so that they could be used in research, it is important to clearly state how the infants received their milk.  Which were the babies who received breast milk from the breast, (primarily, exclusively)?  

We are now aware of the changes in the milk and its flow that naturally occur as the breast empties, the differences in interaction that occur when a baby stops sucking and a mother looks down to see what is going on because she felt the change, the difference in oral stimulation, sensation and even shaping that may be occurring in the infant's mouth, and many other differences too numerous to mention...and many more we don't yet know.  Perhaps in the future we may want to identify and separate these cases.  You never know...

However, this does not mean we would ever say to a mother "well, of course you're not really "breastfeeding", you're JUST "breast milk feeding"...  NEVER!!!!

Among us as professionals, it is important to be precise - just as when we are describing in our notes the location of the breast lump, nipple soreness, or the palate's shape and the extent of the rugae, etc... 

I, also, was hesitant to enter into the "fray" when emotions were running so high - and would encourage everyone to remember that most everyone on Lactnet is here due to our own passion for the work we do - and deserve the opportunity to vent, speak our mind, and not be judged - we get enough of that "outside"...

Jeanette Panchula, BSW, RN, PHN, IBCLC
Vacaville, CA
And to share what it is like "outside":   after all these years, my brother in law still does not understand what I do, and asked me what I had "taught" a young woman I started talking to in Monaco who was breastfeeding her 15 month old child during the changing of the guard!  My answer - I taught NOTHING - I was learning from HER - she is Italian and got all her breastfeeding support on-line!  

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

Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask]
COMMANDS:
1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail
2. To start it again: set lactnet mail
3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome