My Breastfeeding Story, Part Two

The World Alliance for Breastfeeding Action (WABA), whose mission is “to protect, promote, and support breastfeeding worldwide,” holds World Breastfeeding Week every year in August.  This year they are celebrating the 20^th World Breastfeeding Week starting today (August 1^st).  

WABA is working on a number of projects, including a campaign to spread awareness about the environmental consequences of formula production and use: “Breastfeeding is a valuable natural resource that is under threat from formula companies.”  Other initiatives include educating about the health risks of formula use for both mother and child (there are twenty one risks on their list), training disaster aid workers in breastfeeding support, and development of workshops and textbooks for medical students about infant feeding and nutrition.

Original artwork by Chaz Maviyane-Davies, courtesy of WABA

I chose to highlight the image above as a reminder that those of us who are committed to greener living should include breastfeeding as part of that commitment.  Also, breastfeeding exclusively for the first six months of life, and continuing to breastfeed long after other food is introduced provides natural and optimal nutrition for babies, and is an important element in Natural Family Planning, the subject of my last post.  You can read WABA’s list of environmental concerns regarding formula here (in English y español).  This list is included on the back of printed copies of the poster image above.

As I highlighted in last year’s WBW post, a crucial link in breastfeeding awareness is for women to talk to others about their breastfeeding experiences.  Last year, I shared my story about breastfeeding my first child, an experience that was frustrating and difficult, partially because I was afraid to ask for help and to talk to other women about my problems.  To continue the discussion and hopefully encourage other women to breastfeed, this year I will share my breastfeeding story about my second child.

Before my second child was born, I renewed my determination to breastfeed, and I decided there was no other option because I would not have time to pump (like with my first baby) with a four year old and a newborn to care for.  I educated myself about my previous problems, I talked to my friends who had breastfed their babies, I looked up lactation consultants who did home visits, I explained to my family that I wanted to avoid bottles so the baby and I could learn what to do, and I visited a La Leche League meeting when I was pregnant so I would feel comfortable going and asking for help after the baby was born.

The second time around, I knew my baby would not starve while we learned to breastfeed, so I asked everyone to back off and let us learn instead of pressuring me to give her a bottle.  Since my first birth, I had also changed doctors, and therefore delivered at a different hospital.  The nurses there were much more supportive of my efforts to breastfeed, and the lactation consultants visited more often.  I hired a consultant for a home visit right away and things were going pretty well.  The baby wanted to nurse often, and I had plenty of milk, so she did not take any bottles.  

But, like the first time, I was using a nipple shield to substitute for my flat nipples because the baby had too much trouble latching on without it.  Once my supply was well established, I stopped using the nipple shield and that is when breastfeeding became painful.  My baby had to learn how to nurse without the shield, and in the meantime she was fussy and I was hurting and frustrated.  I e-mailed with the LLL leader a few times, and I attended meetings of two different LLL groups to get advice and help.  I talked to my friends and sought advice from websites.  I was exhausted, hardly left the house except to go to a LLL meeting, and cried a lot, but my baby was nursing, and she was growing, a fat happy little bundle with a mouth that wanted to suckle constantly, including cluster feedings in the evenings.

After two months, we finally got it right!  My pain went away and I was still nursing her exclusively.  While that may seem like a long time to keep trying to get breastfeeding right, the effort was worth every minute.  My baby was growing well, developing well, healthy, and best of all, I did not have to spend my time between feedings cleaning bottles or pump parts like with my first child.  While there is plenty more to this story, I’ll save that for another time.

Please note that my difficulties were not unusual, but my story is atypical.  Most women who are determined to breastfeed can do so with less difficulty; however effort is often necessary, especially at the beginning.  New mothers need to know that breastfeeding is not an automatic activity; there is a learning curve, but that is time well spent and worthwhile.  That is why it is so important for women to talk about their breastfeeding experiences.

Now it’s your turn.  Share your breastfeeding story, your efforts to promote breastfeeding, or your thoughts on societal attitudes toward breastfeeding.  I look forward to our conversation.

In 2013 I am linking with: Breastfeeding Support & Tips, Motivational Monday, Better Mom Monday, Welcome Home, Healthy2Day Wednesday

In 2012 I linked with: Catholic Bloggers Network, My Favorite Things, True Stories, Tiny Tip Tuesday, Pay It Forward, Your Green Resource, Tea with Saint Anne

Fertility is Not a Disease

During Natural Family Planning Awareness Week, I encourage you to learn more about your fertility.  A new website with this aim has just launched, and this is the perfect time to tell you about it.  IuseNFP already has a wealth of information, including instructional resources, statistics, personal stories, graphics with promotional messages, and more. 

Here is a phrase from their mission statement: “Through the use of NFP we desire that men and women see themselves as equal partners with the responsibility to prudently manage their family, to recognize their bodies as deserving of the respect which only NFP promotes, and gain self knowledge which will lead to greater overall physical and emotional health.”   Seriously, what other fertility program offers all of that?

This new website aims to educate everyone about Natural Family Planning from “a non-religious, non-sectarian” perspective.  If you are looking for resources about NFP from a Catholic perspective regarding marriage and family, you can find information and links at this post.

I chose to highlight the button above because in the women’s studies course I teach I strive to counter the idea that women’s body processes are diseases.  Modern medicine sees menstruation, pregnancy, lactation, and menopause as “conditions” that require “fixing,” usually in the form of pharmaceuticals or surgery.  Known as medicalization, this attitude has convinced women that doctors and pharmacists know more about their bodies than women ever could, and that the working details of their fertility should remain mysterious.

Among causing other problems, such as a high maternal death rate when giving birth (the U.S. has the highest rate in the developed world), the medicalization of a women’s fertility also discourages interest in Natural Family Planning, a low cost, organic, health promoting method of fertility control based on science.  When you learn how your fertility works, and see the signs of hormone cycles acting in your body, you participate in your own healthcare.  You can be confident that you are healthy when your body is working as it should.

On the other hand, pharmaceutical contraceptives discourage knowledge of the fertility inherent to women’s bodies, and cause side effects that negatively impact women’s health, all at a monthly cost.  In addition, contraceptives are meant to stop your fertility from working as it should, causing a hormonal imbalance that can take up to a year to return to normal.  There is also evidence that the contraceptive hormones not used by the body pass through the urine into the water supply, thus exposing many more people as well as animals and plants to artificial reproductive hormones, with negative consequences that we are only beginning to understand.

In a world where organic food, farming, and living are gaining more advocates, Natural Family Planning should be included in our efforts to live naturally and greener.  For those of us who believe that fertility is not an illness, this moment is the perfect time to share our knowledge of NFP with others.  Learn more about your fertility, and share what you have learned with others interested in a healthy lifestyle.

In 2013 I am linking with: New Evangelists Monthly 

In 2012 I linked with: Catholic Bloggers Network, Tea with Saint Anne, Welcome Home, Your Green Resource, Mom–Me, Tiny Tip Tuesday

Natural Family Planning Awareness Week

If you are Catholic, you have probably heard of Natural Family Planning (NFP).  This is not the rhythm method of times past. NFP uses scientifically proven observations of a woman’s body to gain awareness of fertility.  For those of you who haven’t heard of it, NFP gives you the knowledge to make decisions about your fertility.  Should you use it for that purpose, it is the only natural method of controlling family size and the only method that follows church teachings about marriage, children, and fertility.  Some of the benefits of NFP that anyone can appreciate are:

•  100% natural (no side effects)
•    nearly free (may be a minimal charge for training classes)
•     fertility control that is 100% immediately reversible
•     body awareness and understanding
•      improved marital communication

NFP requires you to record the fertility signals that result from changing hormone levels during a woman’s monthly cycle.  In addition to regulating ovulation, changing hormone levels affect a woman’s basal body temperature (checked upon waking) and affect the amount and type of cervical mucus present.  Both of these signals, along with a few others, can be interpreted to determine a window of fertility.  The key to avoiding pregnancy is abstinence during this fertile window.

While abstinence is counter-cultural, self denial is a part of life for Catholics.  We are encouraged to give up food, pastimes, and income during lent every year.  We are asked to abstain from meat on Fridays during lent and to fast on Ash Wednesday and Good Friday.  These self-denials remind us of the suffering Christ endured.  Sexual abstinence is no different.  Self denial is not easy in a culture that prizes immediate gratification, but we can grow stronger in our faith through these periodic abstinences.

Courtesy of U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops

If you want to learn more about Natural Family Planning, check with the Marriage and Family Life Office of your local Catholic diocese.  There is some basic information at the website of the U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops.  You can read about international efforts to promote and teach NFP by the Couple to Couple League, an organization that trains married couples to teach NFP to other couples.

You may be wondering: can you really use a natural method to prevent pregnancy?  Yes.  While my husband and I are still considering another child, we have been postponing pregnancy for the last two years.  The church’s recommendation of responsible parenthood asks each couple to thoughtfully discern their ability to parent another child each month.  These conversations strengthen the marital bond by requiring couples to respond to and consider their partner’s concerns, and to honestly assess their family life.

For those trying to conceive, knowledge of your fertility and the hormonal changes of a woman’s cycle can give you the tools to maximize success and to be confident of your fertility.  Often, borderline fertility can be improved with proper nutrition, and the improvement can be detected during monthly observations.  For more information about nutrition’s role in fertility, I recommend the book Fertility, Cycles, and Nutrition by Marilyn M. Shannon.

I used Shannon’s advice myself to improve my hormonal function and enhance my ability to maintain an early pregnancy after suffering two miscarriages.  Despite my nutritional efforts, my cycles have not been regular since my first pregnancy, perhaps due to my age or insufficient exercise.  Fertility awareness enabled me to understand when my cycles were normalized enough to try for a pregnancy, thus eliminating further disappointment.

Fertility awareness also provides exact knowledge of your conception date, giving you more certainty about your due date.  For women with gestational health issues, such as diabetes, sure knowledge of your due date can help you negotiate in favor of a natural birth.  Because I was certain of my due date, and I was able to control my gestational diabetes, I convinced my obstetrician to wait rather than inducing birth.  While this may not be possible for every health scenario, it made an enormous difference for me.  Fortunately, my doctor is also respectful of my use of Natural Family Planning.  If you are unable to locate a doctor that respects NFP, consider using a midwife; a midwife will also respect your wishes for a natural birth and for immediate breastfeeding (more on these topics in later posts).

Although the Catholic Church only teaches NFP methods to engaged or married couples, I believe everyone can benefit from some fertility awareness.  Our bodies were designed by God in his image, and learning how they work can encourage respect for the power of our fertility and the gift of our sexuality.  Such respect can give fortitude to those who practice abstinence and can encourage others to respect that choice.

While NFP has the reputation of encouraging large families, not all users have many children.  I have two, and I may have another someday.  But, both of my parents come from large families, and I am sometimes sad that my children will not experience the joys of very large family gatherings, as I did during my childhood.  Since I have two siblings and my husband has three, we tend to have medium sized family gatherings, so I shall have to write more stories about my large family events for my children to read about.

During Natural Family Planning Awareness Week, I encourage you to learn more about your fertility, share the information with others, and give thanks for the gift of this knowledge.