The Motherwear Breastfeeding Blog

Book review: Breastfeeding Made Simple - Seven Natural Laws for Nursing Mothers

Ever think about the words of wisdom you take from parenting books you read?  Quick, identify the authors of these:  "Sleep begets sleep."  "The fourth trimester."  "You can't spoil a baby."*  These simple phrases can echo in your head for years.

Breastfeeding Made Simple (New Harbinger Publications, 2007) shares this kind of wisdom in the form of seven "natural laws" to guide mothers in breastfeeding. 

The authors, Kathleen Kendall-Tackett and Nancy Mohrbacher, distill the world of breastfeeding information down to the basics with phrases such as "babies are hardwired to breastfeed" and "more milk out equals more milk made."  This focus on these laws makes this book notably different from other breastfeeding books, and a very effective companion for nursing mothers.

Breastfeeding Made Simple is also distinctive for its anthropological focus on mothers and babies.  I don't know of any other breastfeeding books that focus as much attention on the topic of babies' instincts and the importance of skin-to-skin contact.  And I'm sure I've never read a breastfeeding book which discusses our infant feeding practices in the context of other mammals.  This intellectual tone is not for everyone, but for mothers who are inclined toward, or at least open to exploring, attachment parenting, this book is a treasure trove of fascinating information. 

When I read breastfeeding reference books I look for two things:  accurate information, and organization which allows mothers to find information quickly. 

The information presented in Breastfeeding Made Simple is comprehensive, current, research-based, and even incorporates fascinating new research about "baby led breastfeeding."  The authors also discuss broader topics such as the political factors which "interfere with the laws," and postpartum depression.

While Breastfeeding Made Simple is organized well, it does not have an index.  Since many mothers use reference books to search for answers to problems as they are experiencing, I do feel that this is a significant omission in an otherwise outstanding book.

* Healthy Sleep Habits, Happy Child (Weisbluth); The Happiest Baby on the Block (Karp); The Attachment Parenting Book (Sears)

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Check out Jen and Sinead's new projects.

Sinead, of Breastfeeding Mums, has been very busy.  A few months ago she launched B'Mums, a social networking site for mothers.  She's also created a great mp3 for pregnancy relaxation, which I got to hear while it was in development.  She's got the perfect voice and accent for a deep relaxation recording!  Sinead also just added a forum section to her blog, too.  Check it out!

You probably know that Jen, of The Lactivist, will do anything to raise money for the Mother's Milk Bank of Ohio.  You've probably seen her benefit t-shirts, and remember her run in with the Pork Board?  This time around, she's competing in a weight loss competition among search marketers.  They're all playing for charity and raising money through sponsorships.  The man and woman who lose the most compete in a vote, and the winner gets all the pledges for the charity of their choice.  Check it out here, and pledge!

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Motherwear's spring catalog photo shoot.

I got to stop by the Motherwear photo shoot for the spring catalog today, which is always fun. 

At the winter Motherwear photo shoot it was nearly in the 90's and today it's snowing for the spring shoot. 

To the left is Carmen, with two month old Cameron.  How many photo shoots take burping breaks (shown below)?

I also got to meet Jennifer and her baby Zoe, who will also appear in the spring catalog.

I included the picture to the left to show you how the pictures get magically transferred from the camera to a laptop.  For some reason this impresses me every time.

This photo shoot was done in the huge former mill building where Motherwear's administrative office is located.  The building has been turned into office space, and it has an aesthetic I love - super high ceilings, old pockmarked wood floors polished to a shine, and brickwork everywhere.

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Photo contest for World Breastfeeding Week.

The World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action is holding a photo competition for world breastfeeding week.  Winning entries get featured in their action folders and win $100.  The deadline is February 29, 2008.

The theme this year is Mother Support: Going for the Gold.  WABA is looking for photos that tell a story of support.  You may be the person who provided the support or the person who received the support.  Help may take the form of in-person support, online and phone help, a group of mothers helping each other, or any other illustration of breastfeeding support.  For more information, see the World Breastfeeding Week site. 

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Breastfeeding videos on this blog.

So there's a little quirk in Typepad, which I use to blog, which doesn't allow me to go back and edit old posts which have embedded YouTube videos.  All of the text disappears when I try.  Back when I posted some of these I didn't have a videos category so I'm listing them here to get them listed.

If you're a newer reader of this blog you may want to check these out! 

• Seven women who changed the world
  
• Wouldn't you like to see this ad here?
• Formula for disaster
• Nurse-ins across America
• Sesame Street had it going on. This video is now back up!
• Nursing in a Hotsling
• They're lies!
• General anesthesia and breastfeeding
• Happy new year, everyone!
• Watch this one now in case it disappears (more Sesame Street)
• The Motherhood Manifesto
• More classic Sesame Street
• If Dr. Seuss had been a breastfeeding advocate
• The breast crawl (unfortunately, this one is no longer available)

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Join the next breastfeeding carnival: What's so funny about breastfeeding?

How about a little breastfeeding humor to brighten up this winter month?  This month our theme is breastfeeding humor, or "What's so funny about breastfeeding?"  Posts could be on your own funny breastfeeding story, something you've seen online, or even a few breastfeeding jokes (G-rated, please).

Email me your submission by February 19th, 2008.  The carnival will be on Tuesday, February 26th, 2008.  Please note that, if your post is selected for inclusion by our reglular group of bloggers, you will be asked to link to each of the other participants in the carnival.  We reserve the right to choose posts for inclusion.  Examples of past carnival posts can be found here.

We'll be looking for posts that are:

• Well written and grammatically correct
• Thoughtful and directly on point for the carnival subject
• Submitted from blogs related to breastfeeding or parenting

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Motherwear Podcast: Postpartum depression, breastfeeding, and why you need your Omega 3s.

I'm very pleased to bring you another Motherwear Podcast!  This one was very eye-opening for me, and I hope you'll learn as much as I did.

My guest is Dr. Kathleen Kendall-Tackett, a psychologist and professor at the University of New Hampshire.  She is also a lactation consultant and La Leche League leader.  She has written several books and articles on postpartum depression in new mothers.

This interview was long, so I've divided it up into two parts.  Both address the growing recognition that depression is related to inflammation.

Postpartum depression and breastfeeding, Part 1

The first part can be heard above or downloaded, or downloaded at our free iTunes store.  This part answers these questions:

• What are the causes of postpartum depression and post traumatic stress disorder following birth?
• Why is postpartum depression unheard of in some cultures?
• Is there such a thing as depression during pregnancy? 
• Is a mother has been depressed with one child, will she be depressed with subsequent children?
• What is the relationship between breastfeeding and postpartum depression?
• What is the depression risk for mothers who are having breastfeeding difficulty?

Postpartum depression and breastfeeding, Part 2

The second part can be heard above or downloaded, or downloaded at our free iTunes store.  It answers these questions:

• Is there a paradigm shift happening in our understanding of the causes of postpartum depression?
• What are the treatment options for breastfeeding mothers with postpartum depression?
• Why do Omega-3 fatty acids work in the treatment of depression, and how much are women recommended to take?  Which brands are recommended?  Why are pregnant and breastfeeding mothers likely to be deficient?
• Are anti-depressants truly safe for use during breastfeeding?  What are the medications of choice?
• Are there effective and safe alternative treatments for treating depression?
• How can women advocate for a breastfeeding-friendly treatment plan?

Here are a few more resources from Dr. Kendall-Tackett on breastfeeding and postpartum depression:

• The breastfeeding and depression page on Breastfeeding Made Simple.  It includes the Edinburgh Postnatal Depression Scale - a quiz you can take to see if you are having depressive symptoms.
• "Can Fats Make You Happy?"  A handout explaining the relationship between Omega-3s and depression, with a list of recommended brands.
• A handout on how other cultures prevent postpartum depression by creating a distinct postpartum period.
• A curriculum for health care providers on breastfeeding and postpartum depression from Dr. Kendall-Tackett and the New Hampshire Breastfeeding Coalition.  You may want to print this out and ask your health care provider to read it.
• Dr. Kendall-Tackett's article on inflammation, depression, and breastfeeding in the International Breastfeeding Journal.
• Two books mentioned in the podcast:  Medications and Mother's Milk (note: this book is updated every two years and the current edition is 2006), and A Medications Guide for Breastfeeding Moms.

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Help needed on federal breastfeeding legislation.

Rep. Carolyn Maloney's Breastfeeding Promotion Act of 2007, H.R. 2236 would protect breastfeeding and pumping women from discrimination in the workplace, create tax incentives for employers who establish lactation programs for employees, and create a tax deduction for breastfeeding equipment. 

H.R. 2236 currently has 23 co-sponsors, but needs 200 to move forward.  You can see a list of current co-sponsors here.

To urge your representative to co-sponor the bill, use this link from Moms Rising.  If you live in Massachusetts (where only two of our Reps are sponsors) you can also use this link from the Children's Hospital advocacy page.

Photo credit:  Cairo Mama, who attended last May's rally in support of the bill. Want to get email updates from the Motherwear Blog?  Subscribe here.  Want an RSS feed?  Click here.