Hi Debi,
        I asked Miriam Labbok at the LLLI Conference about how many women
fit the classic 3 criteria for LAM to work -- she said about 60-70% meet
those three criteria for an average of 11 months with the normal range for
ammenorrhea being 11-14 months and for these women it's 98% effective. But,
that does leave a rather large percentage (30%+) of women (myself included)
for whom even total breastfeeding (especially co-sleeping and night nursing
which result in higher prolactin levels...) does NOT result in the desired
contraceptive/ammenorrhea effect.
        When you add the tremedous usage of pacifiers and babies sleeping in
other rooms, and mom's going back to work at six weeks and use of
"supplemental bottles" (even if from EBM, pumping is NOT effective for
ammenorrhea according to the LAM method  -- though everyone's mileage varies
on this one).... I think the Redbook article is not too far off -- I wonder
if they got their 8 week data from the notion that any bleeding for 56 days
after birth (8 weeks!) is considered "normal" postpartum, locchia
bleeding???? Wish these articles would give references for their stuff like
they do for where the clothes in the pictures can be purchased!!!! Agggghhhhh!
Anne E. Robb, MAT, LLLL
Off on a Tangent, Oregon, USA
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