How exciting, Julie!! You can use one TV appearance to get across so much information to mothers. I am asked very often to appear on various morning shows, and health shows. I have some rules: 1. I always try to show a good latch. I always bring my cloth breast, and a doll and no matter what they ask me, I will get one good latch in there. 2. Decide what information you want to get to mothers, and write down the points that you want to get across. If they ask you something stupid, such as can men breastfeed, or you should not make mothers feel guilty, be ready with an answer that switches the subject to what you want to say: e.g. can men breastfeed? I answer: " Even if they could, why should we give them one of the nicest pleasures of being a woman. If they could, let's keep it a secret!! Let's show women the right way to do it so that men won't have a chance...( at this point I start latching my doll correctly" ) Q Those poor mothers who can't breastfeed feel so guilty. Don't you think that breastfeeding campaigns add to this guilt? My answer: I think that you are confusing guilt with frustration. Most mothers want to breastfeed, but because they do not get enough help, they have problems and they feel frustrated. Let's give them the help they need. For example: sore nipples are one of the main reasons that mothers give up. They can prevent sore nipples by latching the baby correctly on the breast, like this.... You can always switch any question to latch: " That is an interesting question, but I think that most mothers would like to understand better how to latch their baby on the breast, and here is how to do it." I once did an interview and just took over the whole show with latch, position, and hunger cues. I think the interviewer only asked one question, and after than, I just took over with what I wanted to say. Lately, I bring those belly balls with me to show just how much babies really need to eat in the first 3 days. Find out who is appearing on the show with you. If it is a doctor, know something about his specialty so that if he says something stupid, you can gently correct him. Find out what he thinks about breastfeeding. I appeared on a health show with a gynie who has a reputation for thinking that lactation consultants are missionaries, and force women at gun point to breastfeed. I prepared for him the latest information on mastitis, which was a one page handout, telling him how some gynies were telling women with breast infections to stop breastfeeding, which is like telling someone with a urinary infection to stop peeing. While we were waiting to go on camera, . I overheard him say that his wife makes fun of him because he does not see the difference between good champagne, and cheap wine. I also heard him tell someone that today there is really no difference between breast milk and artificial milk.(he was saying that to make me annoyed.) I just laughed and said that this is coming from someone who thinks that there is no difference between a good French champagne, and XXX wine ( I named a really cheap Israeli wine). He turned red, and did not dare say anything about breast milk on camera because he knew that I would have said that on the air. When we were on camera, of course the guilt issue came up, and I made the comments that I gave in the example above. After that, he was a pussy cat and started quoting all the things that he learned from the handout that I gave him. After the show, he invited me to come to see his hospital and said that if all lactation consultants were like me, he would not have any complaints. Just be professional, and do not let anyone get away with anti-breastfeeding rhetoric. Let us know how it goes. Be cool. Dress in power colors, and do not let anyone walk all over you. Esther Grunis, IBCLC Lis Maternity Hospital Tel Aviv, Israel *********************************************** To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or digest) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet All commands go to [log in to unmask] The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(R) mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to: http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html