From the Mouths of Professionals. 2-7-12

Odd things I heard in the hospital from nurses and other health professionals:

·         We’re all trained in lactation.

This was from the nursing staff. I had asked to speak with a lactation specialist, and this was the response I received. I asked multiple times for a lactation specialist, but I didn’t get to speak with one until I laid down the law with the pediatric nurse practitioner on consult. After a week, the lactation specialist was quite upset. Folks sometimes overstep their boundaries—just like when they say that the physician assistant at work is doing genetic counseling. I feel the lactation specialist’s pain. We lost critical time.

·         You don’t need to burp a breast feeding baby.

This was said by the nurse who was trained in lactation. Everyone thought this was crazy. Unfortunately, now that Boop is not feeling well, she’s swallowing a good bit of air. I suspect her latch isn’t good.

·         That clicking sound is a good sign.

I’m still not sure about this one. The lactation specialist said the clicking sound when nursing is a sign of a poor suck. I have noticed that Boop has been a fair bit more gassy since she’s been clicking while nursing. I suspect it’s due to the cold.

·         You should only nurse for 20 min. at a time.

I think this came from the first pediatrician or the pediatric nurse practitioner. This was followed by an explanation that any sucking after this point would cause Boop to expend more energy than she is taking in. The problem with this is that babies will suck on pacifiers and fingers with no energy return. I read in the Nursing Mother’s Companion that some babies nurse for 45 min., and the lactation specialist advised nursing until she was ready to stop.

·         Your baby is just using you as a pacifier.

This is along the lines of the previous bullet point. Boop does fall asleep at the breast a lot, and nursing does calm her when she’s crying. There are alternate explanations, though. First, Boop is hungry. Second, she is in ‘milk coma.’ Breast milk often makes babies sleepy.

·         I’ve never seen nipple confusion.

Multiple groups do not recommend pacifiers in newborns, and at least one does not recommend a bottle in the first month. After Boop had a pacifier, she did not nurse for 8 hours!