Resources for Work and Breastfeeding

Good luck to our nursing/pumping mothers!  Below are some of the resources about working and pumping that we discussed at our  meeting today.  I hope some of them are helpful!

• Brochure you can share with your employer summarizing Indiana Breastfeeding Laws what they need to do to accomodate you.  A great reference sheet to give to your employer, along with your request for when/where you plan to pump.  The Indiana Perinatal Network also has a “Lactation in the workplace” door hanger that you can order from their store to hang on your door while you’re pumping.
• But how do I know how often I need to pump/how long I’m going to pump/etc?  The website Workandpump.com has lots of helpful info about the logistics of breastfeeding. Make sure to read the part about Managing Your Freezer Stash — It is a must read for keeping up your milk supply.
• Bottle-feeding as a tool to Reinforce breastfeeding
• Our earlier post How to Pump More Milk (links to info about pumping & hand expressing)
• Emotional Issues — How will my baby feel when I leave?  Will my baby miss me?  How will I handle being away from my baby?  Nursing Mother, Working Mother and Hirakani’s Daughters are two helpful books. Nursing Mother, Working Mother is more of a how-to, and Hirakani’s Daughters is a book of inspirational stories of nursing, working mothers.   Our Group meetings are a great place to come and talk about your feelings about working and nursing.  If you can’ t make it to our meetings, you might try the Castleton LLL Group, which meets at nights, and is home to lots of working/nursing mothers.

 

Is my baby is getting enough milk?

How can you tell if your baby is getting enough milk?  Here’s what La Leche League International recommends you look for:

How can I tell if my baby is getting enough milk?

This may be the most asked question for La Leche League Leaders. It is understandable, since breasts are neither see-through nor marked off in ounces. Thank goodness there are other signs that indicate baby is getting enough milk.

Typically during the first few days, while the baby is receiving mother’s thick, immunity-boosting colostrum, he will wet only one or two diapers per day.

Once mother’s milk comes in, usually on the third or fourth day, the baby should begin to have 6-8 wet cloth diapers (5-6 wet disposable diapers) per day. (An easy way to feel the weight of a wet disposable diaper is to pour 2-4 tablespoons of water in a dry diaper.)

In addition, most young babies will have at least two to five bowel movements every 24 hours for the first several months, although some babies will switch to less frequent but large bowel movements at about 6 weeks.

A baby that is sleeping rather than feeding every 2-3 hours or is generally lethargic may need to be assessed by a health care provider to make sure that he is adequately hydrated.

These are additional important signs that indicate your baby is receiving enough milk:

• The baby nurses frequently averaging at least 8-12 feedings per 24-hour period.
• The baby is allowed to determine the length of the feeding, which may be 10 to 20 minutes per breast or longer.
• Baby’s swallowing sounds are audible as he is breastfeeding.
• The baby should gain at least 4-7 ounces per week after the fourth day of life.
• The baby will be alert and active, appear healthy, have good color, firm skin, and will be growing in length and head circumference.

The physical act of breastfeeding is more than the quantity of milk that is supplied, as you will find once you hold your baby in your arms. Breastfeeding is warmth, nutrition, and mother’s love all rolled into one. Understanding and appreciating the signs of knowing when your baby is getting enough to eat is the one of the most important things a new mother can learn. If you have any concerns regarding your baby, they should be addressed with your health care practitioner.

If you do need to increase your milk supply after keeping track of wet diapers, bowel movements and weight gain, there are several options you can try to increase your milk supply. See our FAQ on “Increasing Your Milk Supply” and refer to our Web resource page on milk supply issues or further information. Keep in touch with your health care provider if your baby is not gaining well or is losing weight. In most cases, improved breastfeeding techniques will quickly resolve the situation, but occasionally, weight gain may indicate a health problem.

From How can I tell if my baby is getting enough milk? at the La Leche League International website. If you have any worries about whether your baby is getting enough milk.  please don’t hesitate contact one of the Leaders of this Group.

For an in-depth overview of milk supply, at the La Leche League International website you can listen to a podcast with Diana West, author of The Breastfeeding Mother’s Guide to Making More Milk, and co-creator of the helpful website Low Milk Supply.

 

Online Resources for Weaning off of a Nipple shield

ONLINE RESOURCES FOR WEANING OFF OF A NIPPLE SHIELD

• Nipple Shields from Kellymom — an overview of what nipple shields are, and lots of ideas on weaning a baby off of a nipple shield.
• Nipple Shields … Friend or foe? by Kathy Parkes, IBCLC an overview of pros and cons of using nipples in various situations.  Written for La Leche League Leaders.
• Online resources for getting a good latch — Babies who are used to nipple shields often learn to latch on to the breast better when they take the lead.  You can find links about how to do this under the heading LET YOUR BABY GUIDE YOU TO A GOOD LATCH.  (We have an excellent video on this topic that you may borrow from our Group library.  For more info, please contact one of the Leaders.)

PLEASE NOTE:  Nipple shields have been shown to decrease the milk supply of women with  inverted or flat nipples. The nipple shields may keep the baby’s tongue from compressing the breast enough to get the milk flowing.   If you have inverted  or flat nipples, it is recommended that you only use a nipple shield under the supervision of a lactation professional.

 

How to pump more milk

Do you really need a breast pump? Many mothers (even working mothers) manage just fine without one.  Some links:

• Do all breastfeeding mothers need a pump? by Kellymom
• Hand-expressing breastmilk (video) from the Stanford School of Medicine.

Some useful links on pumping more milk:

• I’m not pumping enough milk — what can I do? from Kellymom
• Maximizing milk production with hands-on pumping (Video) from the Stanford School of Medicine
• Milk supply pages at Work and Pump

 

The History of Breastfeeding

Two very interesting articles have been published recently that delve into the history and culture of breastfeeding.

• Baby Food:  If Breast is Best, Why are Women Botting their Milk? by Jill Lenore for the New Yorker.  There’s a neat ad for a very vintage breast pump.
• Nursing Times by Paul Doolan in History Today.

Enjoy!

 

Links from our meeting today: Vitamin D, Growth Charts, babies with teeth, milk storage guidelines

Here are some of the links on a variety of topics that we talked about at our meeting today.

VITAMIN D

• La Leche League’s Oct. 08 Press Release on Vitamin D

WHO GROWTH CHARTS FOR BREASTFED BABIES

• Growth Charts for Breastfed Babies (Make sure your baby’s pediatrician is using these)

MILK STORAGE/BOTTLE FEEDING

• LLLI Milk Storage Guidelines
• How much expressed milk will my baby need? (Kellymom)
• Discuss Milk Storage with other mothers at the LLLI Forums
• Discuss Pumping with other mothers at the LLLI forums
• Discuss Working and Breastfeeding at the LLLI forums

TEETH/BITING

• LLLI FAQ on teeth

• LLLI FAQ on biting

 

New study reveals how breastfeeding protects baby’s immune system

A brand-new Harvard/BYU study uncovers information about how  breastfeeding protects a baby’s immune system.  Read about it here.

 

Online resources for getting a good latch

Getting a good latch and position is essential for comfortable, effective breastfeeding. For most mother-baby pairs, pain and discomfort melt within hours or days of finding a good position and latch.

But how to find that great latch? Your local La Leche League Leader is someone who will help you find the position and latch that work for you and your baby. Also, here are some great online resources for finding a good latch. Thank you to LLL Leaders Norma, Joni, and Joy for contributing these links.

POSITION AND LATCH BASICS

• How do I position my baby to breastfeed?
  
• When Latching by Jack Newman
• The Mother-Baby Dance

ANIMATED LATCH

• Animated Latch 1
• Animated Latch 2
• Animated Latch 3 (with article)

VIDEOS

• Dr. Jack Newman’s videos of nursing babies
• Latch on (article + video)
  By Nancy Mohrbacher, IBCLC, Ameda Products
  

LET YOUR BABY GUIDE YOU TO A GOOD LATCH

• Infant Self-Attachment Teresa Pitman LEAVEN, Vol. 38 No. 6, December 2002 – January 2003, pp. 123-125.
• Baby-led Latching: An “Intuitive” Approach to Learning how to Breastfeed [PDF]
  By Mari Douma, DO
  Assistant Professor of Pediatrics, College of Osteopathic Medicine,
  Michigan State University
  
• Baby-led Attachment
  
• Breast Crawl Video
• Suzanne Colson’s web site at: http://www.biologicalnurturing.com/ (You can email her and ask her for a copy of her article Optimal positions for the release of primitive neonatal reflexes stimulating breastfeeding)
  

SPECIAL SITUATIONS:

• When the baby refuses to latch on
  Handout #26. When the baby refuses to latch on. January 2005
  Written by Jack Newman, MD, FRCPC. (c) 2005
• Nursing Lying Down (with pictures)
• Too swollen to latch on?
  Reverse pressure softening

 

Breastfeeding News Round-up

Here’s a motley collection of the latest breastfeeding news.  Enjoy!

• On the cover of Chemical & Engineering News:  Unraveling Breastmilk
• PETA urges Ben & Jerry’s to use Human Milk
• Breastfeeding for Blokes:  New Australian video targets dads
• New research on breastfeeding and trust
• Health:  Breastfed babies more receptive to tastes, say food research scientists

 

Introducing Toddler Meetings

We are excited to offer a new option to all of you mothers nursing toddlers. We are creating a new Group, the Indianapolis Toddler Group, which will be a place to gather and support other mothers of nursing toddlers and older children. It is open to any woman who is interested in nursing a toddler, no matter what age your nursling is.

The first meeting will be held this Friday, September 19 at the First Mennonite Church (46th and Knollton Road) at 9:30 a.m. MAP. We will hold meetings there the third Friday of every month.

Some Toddler Meeting Topics Include:

The Advantages of Nursing a Toddler

What’s in it for mother? Dealing with mother burnout and finding time for yourself; tricks of the trade; setting priorities in nursing a toddler; advantages during an illness; communicating with a toddler; how toddlers assert their independence; and building the toddler’s self-esteem.

The Family and the Nursing Toddler

Finding time for everyone; sibling relationships; tandem nursing; sleep habits of a typical toddler; the family bed; fathering; father’s and siblings’ feelings about a nursing toddler; and toddler safety.

Challenges of Nursing a Toddler

Nursing patterns–what’s “normal”; how needs and wants change; setting limits on nursing or continuing nursing on demand; special situations–restaurants, church, traveling; using a code word for nursing; appropriate activities for toddlers; separation anxiety; potty training; loving guidance and how to shape behavior; temper tantrums.

The Nutrition and Weaning of a Nursing Toddler

Toddlers’ nutritional needs; eating habits; snacks; mealtimes; how long should I nurse? the weaning process; how to handle pressure to wean.

For more information, please visit the Indianapolis Toddler Group website or contact one of the Indianapolis Toddler Group Leaders.

We hope that you stop by to check out the toddler meetings and see if they are for you!

Warmly,

The Indianapolis Toddler Group Leaders

Sara, Marie, Natalie, and Cassidy