First off, happy 50th, Linda!

Many of the stories about the choice to breastfeed have a theme to them -
that *seeing* someone else breastfeed was a very important turning point. I
am editor of the NMAA 'Newsletter' (Members' magazine) and I have recently
used a letter (with permission) written by Naomi Stadlen, of LLL(GB) of
London, England, for her LLL News (of which she is also editor), that
refers to this. When I read it, it sounded so true, and she said it in such
a lovely way, I wanted to share it with Australian breastfeeding mothers. I
think it is really important that we encourage mothers to feed their babies
in public, and amongst family gatherings, etc, so that as many people,
especially younger ones, *see* breastfeeding. The stories we have seen
posted on Lactnet *prove* that it does make a difference.

I suppose I should add my story - I really never considered anything else,
but after reading a book called 'Dicovering childbirth and the joy of
breastfeeding' by Pauline O'Brien (an Australian book, 1974), I was totally
convinced. It tells the story of Pauline's two birth and postpartum
experiences - the first full of interventions and everything going wrong,
and the second a natural birth which was a good experience, with successful
breastfeeding. I am also originally a zoology graduate, so knew a fair bit
about the biology and physiology involved, and worked as a medical
laboratory technologist for 10 years. In addition, *I* was breastfed for 9
months. My mother's instructions from health professionals in 1952 in
Western Australia were that the baby was to have 9 months in the womb
(well, I actually had 9 and a half, ;-), and 9 months on the breast. So
being an obedient mother, that's what she did! Mind you, she had 'failed'
miserably at breastfeeding my older brother, as he had been a sleepy baby,
which led to bottle-feeding in the first few days.  Although I must have
been drugged to the eyeballs (mum could not recall the actual birth - she
was out to it from drugs), my mother described me as a 'leech' when I was a
newborn - and a very *determined* baby/child later. (So what's changed?
<grin>)

Joy Anderson IBCLC, NMAA Breastfeeding Counsellor
Perth, Western Australia
[log in to unmask]