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Showing posts from 2012

Psychology and Breastfeeding...

As a psychology student and a breastfeeding counsellor the opportunity to attend a seminar merging these two interests (boobs and brains as a friend indelicately put it) was far too good to pass up.     Abigail Locke is a visiting social psychologist from Huddersfield University in the UK, and presented her findings from a recent study exploring the tensions, expectations and realistic advice in early breastfeeding.   Abigail’s paper included interviews from 12 mothers with recent infant feeding experiences.   Abigail’s study used discursive methods, analysing the conversations for common themes and interactions in the various experiences of mothers. Each of the 12 mothers had been positive about breastfeeding during their pregnancies, and expected to breastfeed.   They articulated the knowledge that breastfeeding was great for babies and mothers and breastmilk was nutritionally superior.   By six weeks, almost half had switched to infant formula, in line with the UKs national stati

It's a great story...

Not sure what it is about the human being that likes to make great (fictional) stories about things that happened.   Children particularly are so ego centric that many of us make internal attributions for the actions of others.   ‘Dad left when I was 8’ becomes ‘I am going to be abandoned in the future'.    Mum’s question about the 2% missed in a 98% maths mark, internalises to ‘I’m not good enough’.   Aunty Elma’s comments about a chubby 14 year old internalise to 'hating my body'.   The tragic death of a sister, age 4, is translates in our immature mind to 'life is unsafe and sad' during a time of incredible grief.   We then drag the ‘what happeneds’ and the feelings we associated with it into our future.   Future unrelated events are tainted with the same feelings.   And we all do it.   We drag around the baggage of events that may or may not have meant what we felt about it, and then associate those debatably incorrect associations onto our current and future wa

And they call me a breastfeeding nazi...

I am a breastfeeding counsellor.  I talk with women (and fathers, and grandmas....) every day... on the phone, in their homes, at public meetings, at the school gate about feeding their babies.  I have researched for many years; books, articles, conferences, formal study, on and offline info for hours to find solutions and suggestions for women with feeding issues.  I listen to their struggles, cringe at their physical and emotional pain, cry with them, make food for them, encourage, endorse and empower them to make informed choices, because a choice is only a choice if you have more than one option. And yes I know how hard breastfeeding can be, and that it doesn't work for some, and that it's not the right choice for everyone because I face it daily.  I walk it, I talk it, I learn it, and I might just know something about something.  And yes I am equally mortified with criticism of any parent for just going about the business of feeding their baby – equally mortified with an