Tuesday, September 06, 2005

Tales from the milk bar (Minnesota Women's Press)

Andy Steiner had no clue that breastfeeding could be tough. As she writes in the introduction to Spilled Milk: Breastfeeding Adventures and Advice from Less-Than-Perfect Moms, according to all the baby books she’d read, the instant her baby got to the nipple, “we’d be transformed into an efficient, loving nursing team.”

That wasn’t the way it worked out. Her baby had trouble latching (getting a proper mouth-hold on the breast). Improper latching can lead to infection, which is what happened to Steiner: she had three mastitis infections in the first three months.

Just as intense as the physical pain was the feeling of being alone, said Steiner. “I started looking for books, trying to find advice. I wanted something to say, ‘You’re not the only person in the world this happens to.’”

Eventually she turned to a lactation consultant at her hospital and got the support and advice she needed, and she and Baby did come to enjoy some efficient, loving nursing moments. But in those early, painful hours, the idea of a book was born.


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