Dear friends,

I am hopelessly behind in my reading but I feel I needed to respond to a few
subjects that have come up.  My problem is that this is such good food for the
mind and sole, I have not learned to skip anything.

I have what I call a curse but have now found it a blessing.  Every time I make
a statement , "I will NEVER", "I don't know HOW PEOPLE CAN", "MY CHILD WILL
NEVER", I have a child who would show me that life is full of individuals and
must be treated as such.

Thumb sucking:  number one son sucked his thumb in the hospital.  Would often
check out breast and thumb and go for thumb leaving me with a nice letdown.
Number 3 daughter had intestinal surgery at 6 and 9 months.  Was sick the whole
time between.  She was often denied food for 24 hours.  She sucked a blister on
her pacifier.  I just knew that she would be sucking it in college.  She spit it
out as soon as she was back to the breast full time.

SIDS and others:  I have a good friend who was a LLLL and did everything right
with her children.  Her bigger healthier twin died of SIDS at 4 months.  She was
talking about solids but had not started them.  I was glad she hadn't because
she would have blamed the solids.

Diabetes:  Another one of this same friends children developed diabetes at age
12.  She had been breastfed for 2.5 years.

Take my advice and never say never.  Climbing off soap box.

Diane Herforth, BAE, IBCLC, ICCE
Tacoma WA