no, really, i didn't intend it to be simply rant the first time around, just
letting off steam. nancy is right, that was a post meant to be read by "us"
and not something to try to convince an unconvinced hcp with. but, let me
speak frankly here - not everyone agrees with me, i feel sure many people sit
around reading my posts and thinking, oh, she just doesn't know anything (as
in "are you a nurse" - any doctors been asked this lately?). the problem is,
i DO know something. i know a great deal. and the problem with NICUs is not
universal (of course not), but it is at a significant enough level that it is
a major problem.

many people who have lactation credentials of some kind or another don't
think formula is bad. they think breastfeeding is some kind of indulgence,
and if things get tough, it can be thrown overboard as extraneous. hospitals
that don't have enough staff to help moms breastfeed AND get chest tubes in
babies when there is an emergency are short-sighted in some unfathomable way,
but so are staff who think that breastfeeding is expendable in a way that a
baby's ability to breath is not expendable. of course the research supports
my "opinions." its called "science."

and elaine's experience is quite common (unfortunately i guess it might be
hard to plan a preemie so we could plan to have them in the vicinity of nancy
or deanne's hospitals). naturally no one probably believes this, but in
person i am nice, kind, understated, conciliatory, polite, and respectful.
but at the same time, i am persistent, offer the kind of patient
recommendations i believe in and don't "tone them down" to suit an
institution whose knowledge is - how do we say this politely? - behind the
times. that means i am often supporting a mother who wishes to breastfeed,
kangaroo, etc., and she meets complete resistance.

 how do you handle that? this is a good question. other than supporting the
mother (who must work out the relationship since i am not a hospital staff
person), the only other recourse parents have besides changing hospitals is
to deal with the hospital patient representative. this doesn't do much good
either, from what i can see.

mostly people have a terrible experience and if they are lucky, they manage
to "get over" it more or less, afterwards. i think most do not. after all,
there are a LOT of "lactation persons" out there who believe mothers are
gratifying their own emotional needs by breastfeeding. and in a certain
sense, OF COURSE THEY ARE. isn't it supposed to be a relationship? aren't
people supposed to love their babies? even love changing their diapers,
giving them baths, etc.? the fear expressed by the phrase "satisfying their
own emotional needs" refers to only one type of need, sexual needs. it is
disgusting to me to even consider that someone in the health profession
actually sees a mother breastfeeding as "doing" something "sexual" to her
baby.

of course diane is not paranoid, there is a great deal of anger and disgust
about breastfeeding, and it has to do with breastmilk being a bodily fluid
and breasts being for SEX. now, can you imagine a urologist who responded to
everything in his or her profession as relating back to sex? "doctor, i have
trouble urinating" "oh, that's disgusting, you must be gratifying some kind
of sexual need through this activity, you want me to cure the problem? gross,
can't you just quit?" this is exactly what happens when HCPs see a mother
breastfeeding as *only* something sexual.

and for the refutation of the sex part, we now switch  back to the kathy
dettwyler channel.

carol brussel IBCLC

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