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From:
Rachel Myr <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Lactation Information and Discussion <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Mon, 27 Jul 2009 14:03:11 -0400
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While I agree with Nina Berry on gadget dependency, I am very happy to see 
that someone has finally actually looked at the question of how to best 
establish milk supply in a systematic way amongst new mothers.  Perhaps the 
next study could look at how exclusively hand expressing compares with the 
combination of pumping and hand expressing that was used in this first study.

That said, I will once again whinge about the Stanford video on hand 
expression technique, which drives me berserk every time I view it.  I don't 
like the way the staff handle the women's breasts nor do I like the patronizing 
tone of voice used while they do so, and I am absolutely convinced that the 
technique shown in the Danish video Nikki mentioned, or the Marmet technique 
as shown in animated graphics on Victoria Nesterova's website, would have 
the mothers in the Stanford video yielding many times the volumes we see 
there.  I'm not at my usual computer and don't have the link to the latter but 
it's been mentioned on LN so maybe you can find it in the archives if you 
search.

The Danish video does not show hand expression of colostrum, if I recall 
correctly, but it is esthetically pleasing, there are no staff in white uniforms 
talking down to the woman or putting round band-aids way back from her 
areolar borders to mark the spots to compress (OUCH!!!), just a nice soft 
breast that fills the screen and emits streams of milk as the woman expresses 
by herself.

The latest version of Breast is Best (Norwegian classic, IMO vastly better 
before revision in nearly every way) shows a mother expressing milk on her 
own, with technique that looks quite good to me.  Unfortunately that segment 
comes several segments after a bit showing someone other than the woman 
expressing milk from her breast, and that one is the one people see first, 
reinforcing the notion that women's lactating breasts belong to health 
professionals and that women are less competent to handle their bodies than 
health professionals are.  I've always found women are quick to catch on to 
how to express their own milk so it is (again, IMO) counterproductive to use 
footage of some really experienced staff person doing hand expression on 
someone else, in a film aimed at women themselves.  Staff should learn how to 
teach hand expression in live sessions with real mothers who volunteer to be 
models.

As I write this, many of you will be sitting in exam venues fretting, and all of 
you in Europe and points east of Europe but west of the international dateline 
will have finished.  I'm on vacation and have scarcely thought about you until 
I read through the archives for the past 5 days just now, but now I hope that 
you did give feedback on questions you found ambiguous or downright 
misleading.  I helped write questions for the 2006 exam, as the European rep 
to the IBLCE exam committee in 2004, and must say it increased my respect 
for this particular exam.  The high scorer among first-time candidates will be 
invited to sit on the next committee, as will reps from various professions and 
geographic regions of IBCLE.  And remember, the lowest passing score is 
usually well under 70% :-)  Now you should just do your best to forget all 
about it until mid-October.

Rachel Myr
enjoying moblie broadband from a boat at the guest marina at Käringön, Orust 
kommun, Bohuslän, Sweden
 

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