Breastfeeding in the Land of Genghis Khan

This article had me laughing out loud and gasping in horror. But mostly, I was just in awe. Not only is it well written but it sheds light on how breastfeeding is done in another part of our large world. How different views and life in general is.
It made me question my ...views and wonder why we here in the US are so uptight about breastfeeding and why we think we can pass judgement onto others based on what we think is "right".
My favorite part of the article is how the mothers deal with toddler conflict (the mental picture is hilarious, I promise you). Let me know what you think!!


Thank you for sharing Motherlove! So glad I saw this.

Not all of us truly love breastfeeding

I loved reading this post from the leaky boob on her true feelings of breastfeeding. I applaud her for her honesty and the fact that she had the courage to share with the thousands of women who follow her, knowing full well she would receive some backlash.
Breastfeeding is not always as easy or peaceful as people make it to be. In truth, I did NOT love breastfeeding the first few weeks I did it. It was painful, uncomfortable and a LOT of work! Then, we got into our groove, my son finally learned to correctly latch and then breastfeeding was amazingly wonderful. Pumping when I returned part-time to work was not though and the occaisional engorgement that came with it was definitely not. The days I had to pump I felt like breastfeeding was running me. But, on the days it was just my son and I, breastfeeding was amazing.
I know this is not everyone's experience so to all of you struggling new moms out there, read this experienced mother of six's personal account and know that you are not alone.


My favorite quote from the article that I feel is so true, "As her mother, there is an expansive satisfaction in making her happy that overwhelms even my own discomfort. I don’t see myself as a martyr, just as a mother who, like most parents, has to give up some of my own personal comfort for a time for the benefit of my child."

Breastmilk found to promote flora growth

Flora is something that is definitely not talked about enough. I had a good pediatrician who told me to sprinkle a probiotic in my infants milk/food when he had to go on antibiotics for an ear infection. But I am still amazed at how many people still do not know the benefits of probiotics and even more amazed/shocked that more doctors do not talk about it during visits! So hopefully this article will shed some light for those who do not yet know the importance of good intestinal bacteria. (I even give probiotics to our dog when she has loose stool....probably too much info there, but just a testament as to how much I love it...)

Do you regularly use probiotics too? Share your story...

Nicole

How often should I be breastfeeding?

I just found this great article about how often you should breastfeed, written by a mother of four. I love how this sheds light on just how different every baby is and incourages you to listed to medical professionals but to ultimately do what feels right for you and baby. My son always fed more than the recommended 4 hours. Never once did I push him to go four hours because someone else said so. If he cried, and there was nothing that seemed to be out of place (wet diaper, too warm/cold, etc) I fed him. Maybe that was why he was consistently in the 90+ percentile for weight?? Needless to say breastfeeding every two hours can be normal for your baby. Side note, my son slimmed down once he started toddling around so have to fear. A fat baby does not mean they will stay that size forever. :) Check out this article, it is such a great read for breastfeeding moms!!

link http://viewer.zmags.com/publication/5f3b8aed#/5f3b8aed/10 Nicole

But I only have two hands...

I have often wondered how my friends with multiple children did it. How do you get it all done in a day and make it look so darn easy?? Then, one day my friends asked how I did it. They did not know how I was able to work outside of the home, grow a business and have a family? Some days I did not know either, and some days I did not do well with juggling it all. But, our conversations made me realize that many of us struggle with the same things even if the situation is different; whether we are a working mother or a stay at home mother. How do we really do it?? I really like this article because the very first point says the truth and that is we cannot do it all (although I am always amazed at just how much we can do). So many people tell you to let the house work go. Well, for some of us that works ok but for others of us that is the quickest way to eliminate our patience. Last week I could tell I had had enough. I then spent three and a half hours cleaning the next day and felt surprisingly happy (now, cleaning toilets does not always have this effect on me). Overall, this article is packed full of great tips that lets you know that it is ok that you cannot "do it all" and tells you to embrace your differences and to do what feels right for you and your family. Finally! Let me know if any tip speaks to you... Nicole

With Memorial Day coming up I know many of us are spending more time thinking about the amazing job our US Military does for us and feeling grateful for their service. I recently read this article about Breastfeeding in the Military. I was SHOCKED with what I read. Some military members thought breastfeeding in uniform was "against military etiquette and discipline"! Now, I was a military mom who did breastfeed for a year while I served in the National Guard. I never had to do it in public as I was not deployed during my breastfeeding time BUT it made me remember the great lengths my husband and I went to in order to be discreet; which meant breastfeeding in our car on my lunch breaks and pumping in the bathroom! I think this article is well written so I just had to share! Thoughts??? Any other military moms out there?

Fathers and breastfeeding

I came across this article today and found it quite interesting. Not because of the results their research found but because I was a bit surprised at how they conducted their survey. I have to agree that a father has influence over a mother's decision to initiate and/or sustain breastfeeding. I myself turned to my husband when breastfeeding was not going as easily as I had hoped.

I also agree that "Working with the couple rather than simply with the mother in breastfeeding education is important." It should not surprise me that we have such low breastfeeding rates here in the U.S. compared to other countries because we do not have a great program that does this.

So, this article from the Fatherhood institute (based out of UK I believe) sites research that was conducted by giving fathers extensive classes on breastfeeding (see specifics below). This surprised me initially as I question how many fathers would really participate. I wish I could be a fly on the wall when they taught fathers how to prevent and manage the most common lactation difficulties! I think the idea is great though and hope this helps boost breastfeeding success rates. What do you think?? Was your husband a factor in your breastfeeding journey?
Check out some of their results:
• A randomized controlled trial of a two-hour pre-natal intervention with fathers consisting of infant care information as well as encouragement for fathers to advocate for breastfeeding and assist their partner, resulted in 74% v. 41% breastfeeding initiation among women whose partners had attended the class, in comparison with the controls (Wolfberg et al, 2004)

• In Italy Piscane et al (2005) found that teaching fathers how to prevent and manage the most common lactation difficulties had a marked, positive impact on breastfeeding continuation. Only 15% of mothers whose partners had been simply told about the benefits of breastfeeding were still breastfeeding at six months; but when the men were individually coached for just 40 minutes on managing common problems (such as pain and discomfort, fear that baby isn’t ‘getting enough’ and breastfeeding-issues when mum returns to work) the percentage of mothers still breastfeeding at six months was 25%. The impact was particularly strong among women who had reported difficulties with lactation (4.5% v. 24%).

• An established workplace intervention in the US offers fathers either two 45-minute group classes (which include observing positioning and attachment) or a one-hour, one-on-one coaching session (which includes use and care of a breast pump). A book on breastfeeding and other ‘take away’ handouts are supplied. The fathers are also invited to attend a men-only fathering session as part of an ante-natal course for couples. All the interventions result in higher-than-average breastfeeding rates, with the outcomes from the fathering session the most impressive. When fathers had attended the fathering session as well as the breastfeeding instruction,, 69% of the mothers were still breastfeeding at six months post partum,compared with a national average of 21% (Cohen et al, 2002).


Read the full article here: http://www.fatherhoodinstitute.org/2007/fatherhood-institute-research-summary-fathers-and-breastfeeding/