Mothers keep calling us.
They are worried because their baby has lost weight, often over a pound.
The mother's wrists, hands, shoulders, back, and neck ache.
They have sore nipples, yet they keep trying to nurse.
Often, they are pumping to 'build up their milk supply'.
They have been told that their baby is having latch on difficulties.
They are told that their baby is having difficulty with 'milk transfer'.
They are sold pumps, nipple shields, milk collectors, special bottles that are more like the mother's breast, and supplemental nursing systems (SNS).
They buy special breastfeeding pillows, gel packs, and herbal supplements.
They spend hundreds of dollars on lactation consultants, or their
insurance covers it.
Sometimes they spend hundreds of dollars for cranial sacral adjustments
for their newborn.
They may be using cremes containing steroids for their sore nipples, that their newborn babies nurse on for hours every day.
The mothers are researchers. They have learned that breastfeeding is natural and has many health benefits, and they are trying to obtain those benefits for their baby, for themselves, their family, and for the planet.
They are doing what the professionals around them tell them to do and what many books and websites tell them to do.
And they are still having severe breastfeeding problems.
Many wean prematurely.
They grieve and wonder what happened?
What did they do wrong?
Is there something wrong with them?
Is there something wrong with their baby?
How will this disappointing breastfeeding experience affect the future relationship of the mother and the child, when the mother tried so hard
to make it work, and it looked like the baby was rejecting her?
What will the loss of the benefits of breastfeeding mean to the future
health of the baby? Of the mother?
How often will the problems caused by this breastfeeding misinformation,
add to post-partum depression, with horrifying results? We have seen this.
May JMH rest in peace.
In 1996, we started seeing mothers using the Cross Cradle Hold Position and other HSH (hand supporting the head and neck) positions (Football Hold and Log Hold) and suffering because of it.
We first saw it in 1996 at our La Leche League meetings, but later on I spoke to moms who used the Cross Cradle Hold in 1990 and suffered because of it.
The moms were doing what the books and lactation professionals told
them to do.
The rest of this website, Breastfeeding Sense.Com, provides the details.
HOW YOU CAN HELP MOMS EFFECTIVELY BREASTFEED
What I share here is for all people trying to help moms naturally breastfeed,
but is especially for lactation professionals.
Lactation consultants and La Leche League Leaders:
Please ask yourself these questions as you work with mothers.
-What breastfeeding position(s) is the mother using?
-What products are being used? pumps, milk collectors, nipple shields, SNS,
gel packs, nipple creme, formula, bottles, pacifiers?
-Was the mom told to 'harvest her colostrum' and feed it to her baby?
-Does the mother have sore nipples?
-Does the mother have sore wrists, hands, shoulders, or back pain?
-Has baby lost weight?
-What is baby's average weekly weight gain? Is it 4-7 ounces per week or less?
-Is baby having latch on difficulties?
-If you have babies, did you nurse them? For how long? What breastfeeding position(s) did you use? Did you use any products?
-Do you understand how to teach the Cradle Hold Position, as is shown in this website?
-Do the mothers that you work with end up with a natural breastfeeding experience, or do they end up with a product-oriented experience and wean prematurely?
-Do you do follow up with your clients and keep records of:
-how long they nursed
-what breastfeeding position(s) you taught the mother and the position that she used
-what products were used
-if the information that you gave solved the problems they had?
Something that is critical when helping mothers to effectively nurse, is to study the whole picture when a mom has a problem.
For example; by whole picture I mean even if a mom says that she has a problem like thrush, that doesn't sound like it is caused by positioning, because her nipples are sore, still ask her what position(s) she is using.
Ask where her hands are when she nurses on the right breast?
Ask where her hands are when she nurses on the left breast?
This will give you the information to know which position she is using and whether that position is one that helps or is one that hinders and causes problems.
She may also have thrush, which needs to be addressed, but correcting her position is basic to treatment.
If she is using any of the HSH positions, for any length of time, they are probably causing problems.
Other parts of the mother's 'whole picture' include all products and techniques that she is using, baby's weight info, health issues of baby and mother.
One needs to learn all the variables that may be contributing to the mother's breastfeeding problems.
Thrush might be a symptom of a bigger issue and the mom will continue to have problems until all issues are addressed.
Helping moms with breastfeeding issues takes a lot of time.
But this time is 'gold in the bank' for the mom's breastfeeding relationship with this baby and future babies.
Once a mom goes through the learning curve for natural breastfeeding techniques with one baby, those acquired skills can be used for her next baby.
It will be so much easier.
Please understand that breastfeeding positions are often called by different names. For example, we often have moms tell us they are using the
Cradle Hold Position, but when we see where their hands are on the baby, we see that they are using the Cross Cradle Hold.
So, I strongly recommend that you always ask where her hands are on the baby when nursing, and / or get a visual of her as she nurses.
You can see pictures of the different positions on:
Mothers can look at this website, Breastfeeding Sense.Com, while talking to you on the phone. Then you can simultaneously view the different positions.
And you will be able to use the same terminology to solve her breastfeeding problems.
This also goes for moms who are trying to help a friend to breastfeed.
Try talking on the phone with both of you looking at this website on a computer.
Look at the pictures and videos of the different breastfeeding positions, the different hand holds, and the in-depth information on achieving natural breastfeeding on BreastfeedingSense.Com.
If you still have questions after reading this website, feel free to use my contact page to send me your questions.
Priority will be given to nursing moms in crisis.
Allow me to repeat myself because this is very important.
One thing that is critical to understand, for lactation personnel and all those trying to help moms breastfeed, is that to help mothers having problems from the Cross Cradle Hold (or Football Hold or Log Hold), takes a lot of time.
One must help the mom to learn the Cradle Hold Position, correctly, or
the Lap Nursing Hold.
Then the mom needs to learn natural breastfeeding techniques.
Remember, probably everything that the mom has learned about breastfeeding, has been misinformation, and the mom needs time to wrap her mind around this.
They are using the Cross Cradle Hold and other HSH positions that cause problems, but they are not told that those positions are causing the problems.
They are told to not use the Cradle Hold, which would solve their problems.
The HSH positions cause problems, and the moms are told to use products to solve the problems.
But using artificial nipples before baby is six weeks causes more problems and moms are not told that.
They are not taught that using artificial nipples before baby is 6 weeks old, interferes with the supply and demand mechanism of breastfeeding.
They are rarely taught about the amazing way the mother's body produces antibodies to any illness she is exposed to and passes those antibodies to her baby via her milk.
(Facts like this go a long way in helping moms persist in solving their breastfeeding problems.)
It takes the moms time to wrap their minds around what I am sharing.
I tell the moms that they don't have to believe me, I just ask them to try
the Cradle Hold Position for a period of time (6 or 12 hours) and not to use the Cross Cradle Hold or other HSH positions and see what they think.
When I teach moms the Cradle Hold Position over the phone, or in person, many immediately say how much more comfortable the Cradle Hold Position is, they say 'I can do this!'
Once the moms are using the Cradle Hold Position and are NOT using
the Cross Cradle Hold (HSH) or products, the other problems start to heal.
If she has sore nipples, they start to heal.
If she had a low milk supply, it will start to build up to baby's needs.
Please remember that whenever there are breastfeeding problems, one needs to get back to basics: mom, baby, natural breastfeeding techniques.
Lactation personnel; please help the moms and babies.
Please stop teaching and writing information that sabotages mother's efforts to breastfeed.
You have seen babies losing dangerous amounts of weight.
You have seen 'latch on' problems.
You have heard the mothers describe their sore nipples, sore wrists, arms, shoulders, and backs.
You have probably sold products to moms, including pumps, nipple shields,
SNS, etc.
You have seen many mothers wean prematurely.
Please make the connection.
These problems are often caused by the Cross Cradle Hold Position, that the mom is using.
The mothers are doing what the lactation professionals and literature are telling them to do and that information is causing their problems.
We have seen this since 1996. Professional lactation groups and magazines refuse to print our information.
When lactation consultants hear our information they ask each other, 'Have you seen the Cross Cradle Hold cause problems?'
And the other lactation consultant says 'No, I haven't.'
But they have taught moms to use the Cross Cradle Hold and have seen those mothers have many problems.
They have seen babies losing dangerous amounts of weight, moms with sore nipples, weaning prematurely, etc.
The lactation consultants either are not making the connection between the breastfeeding position used and the resulting problems, not doing follow up with the moms, or they are denying it as part of a cover up.
I say, ask the mothers who are suffering because of the Cross Cradle Hold and other HSH positions.
Ask the mothers what positions they are using, the mothers are the ones that should be asked, not other lactation consultants.
I personally, have helped and documented my work with hundreds of moms who suffered because of the Cross Cradle Hold and the Football Hold.
See "Mothers Testimonials" for a small sample of these moms.
Mothers are taught the Cross Cradle and Football Hold Positions, have problems, and pay lactation consultants for help.
When the lactation consultants can't solve their problems, can't help the mom to get back to natural breastfeeding, some moms make their way to us.
We are usually their last resort.
The solution is not difficult, we teach them how to nurse in the
Cradle Hold Position (or Lap Nursing Hold).
It is not rocket science, it is what we were taught in La Leche League with our babies in the 1980's.
People are making money from the poor positioning information, the 'misinformation'.
Books are sold that teach the HSH positions, the hand supporting the head or neck holds, Cross Cradle, Football and Log Holds and the Laid Back Nursing Position.
The problems arise and products and lactation services are sold.
Many mothers end up pumping and feeding their breast milk in a bottle.
This is far from the natural breastfeeding experience that mothers seek.
Seven busy mothers founded La Leche League in 1956, to help families who sought natural breastfeeding information.
They did this at a time when society was telling women that bottle feeding was just as good, if not more scientific, than breastfeeding.
LLL grew into an international organization because it helped families learn about the gift of natural breastfeeding, for free.
Unfortunately, today lactation support has regressed back to where the LLL founding mothers started in 1956. While we have the advantage of knowing about many of the benefits of natural breastfeeding, we now have a generation of mothers whose efforts to breastfeed were sabotaged by misinformation.
We have a generation of lactation consultants and LLL Leaders that are teaching poor breastfeeding information and when the problems arise, they don't know how to fix those problems.
When we don't study and learn from history, we are destined to repeat those same mistakes.
This website, BreastfeedingSense.Com, explains the issues and how to help moms learn natural breastfeeding techniques.
For free.
Please share BreastfeedingSense.Com with all women who are pregnant, who have a baby or are thinking about having a baby.
Please share BreastfeedingSense.Com with all family, friends, grandparents, doctors, nurses, childbirth instructors, moms at Church or Temple, moms at work or school, lactation professionals, and any stranger in the grocery store that may be helped by this website.
Perhaps consider sending this website to all women in your address book.
You may save many breastfeeding relationships.
May God bless you and your loved ones.
May God's gift of natural breastfeeding be a blessing to you and to all people.