Someone posted,

> I have to assume that those of you that work with large numbers of Moms and
> babes must be consulted regarding this type of problem, if not "scheduling"
> than how  do you advise?
>
I want to see the mom/baby dyad that are nursing "all the time" -- most
often, this baby is not getting enough to eat.  If the baby is getting plenty
-- fat & cranky, then the next option is generally too much switching back &
forth, so I recommend using one breast for several feeds, and then switching
to the other breast.  I've found that if the goal of the mom is to space
feeds, that works fairly well, and baby spaces on her own without listening
to her wail for the hour that we are waiting to feed again.

And not infrequently I find that mothers are interpreting every 2 to 3 hours
as "all the time" because they are of the mind set that babies eat every four
hours.  (Had one of those today, in fact!).

I will discuss with moms that they don't have to put the baby to breast at
every whimper.  If the baby is settled by snuggling, cuddling, walking around
and talking to her, then she doesn't necessarily need to be fed.  Often it is
a situation of teaching mom how to "listen" to her baby and understand what
baby is telling her.

But in 17 years of being in the biz, I don't remember the last time, if ever,
I told a mother to not feed any oftener than X number of hours.

Jan Barger, RN, MA, IBCLC -- Wheaton IL
Lactation Education Consultants
www.lactationeducationconsultants.com

             ***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html