Thanks to all of you who sent posts & e-mail re: my battles w/nipple
confusion & local hospital policies.  I saved all of the ideas in a separate
file, so that I can go back to refer to them for later use.

I empathized w/Kathryn Dettwyler's thoughts on parents taking responsibility
for their experiences in the hospital, as well as to later comments re:
vulnerability & disempowerment of new parents.  I can say that I feel I have
done the most good w/ my premie moms, who come, looking shell-shocked, to
pick up their pumps.  Because many of these babies are not yet on oral
feedings, I have a chance at educating the moms before they put baby to
breast.  Our local hospital is a secondary level nursery, so we get mostly
transfers from the city hospitals once the babies are out of NICU.  So, I can
reccomend readings on Kangaroo Care, talk about what to expect from early
feeding sessions to prepare them.   While this hospital uses bottles to feed
their SCN babies :-(, some of the moms have had luck requesting bottles be
delayed for a week or so while baby gets "initialized" at the breast & having
mom basically camp out in the SCN while baby is there.  One mom (now on her
2nd 30 wk. premie) was finally successful in getting a room to stay in so
that she and her baby had a real chance to get in synch before going home
:-).  So, I do feel good about having made some changes at least for the
premies.

I liked the idea about  educating through some local peds.  Does anyone have
a good reference for nipple confusion?  My husband does some graphics on the
computer & is thinking about how we might make an alternative feeding methods
poster.  Have any of you LCs w/ photographic talents thought about doing
this?  I can imagine Chele doing a great job...

It was such a boost to be reminded that I was not the only one on the planet
to believe in b/f.  You made it possible for me to return to the trenches.

Ro K. Andersen, IBCLC
Winchester (near Boston), MA
Ro [log in to unmask]