Politicians aren't the only ones who need good PR

The pro-breastfeeding lobby really needs to improve its marketing and public relations. Take for example this quote from a list of breastfeeding myths by one of the current gurus of breastfeeding, Jack Newman:

6. A mother who bleeds from her nipples should not breastfeed.

Not true! Though blood makes the baby spit up more, and the blood may even show up in his bowel movements, this is not a reason to stop breastfeeding the baby. Nipples that are painful and bleeding are not worse than nipples that are painful and not bleeding. It is the pain the mother is having that is the problem. This nipple pain can often be helped considerably. Get help.Sometimes mothers have bleeding from the nipples that is obviously coming from inside the breast and is not usually associated with pain. This often occurs in the first few days after birth and settles within a few days. The mother should breastfeed! If bleeding does not stop soon, the source of the problem needs to be investigated, but the mother should keep breastfeeding.

Uh, gee. How comforting that you can BREASTFEED THROUGH THE BLEEDING. Nipples that are painful and bleeding are not worse than nipples that are painful and not bleeding!? Spoken like a man who has never had personal experience with nipples that are painful and bleeding. Get help - such as help from someone who will tell you that don't worry, you can continue breastfeeding through the pain, and the bleeding! [full disclosure: I had a la leche league leader tell me this once in an attempt to make me feel better, I nearly hung up on her]

Yes, I know the point he's trying to make. But he really needs to learn more about marketing the point versus just stating it flat-out. Take into account the target audience, which I presume is women who are already something other than wholly committed to breastfeeding (and perhaps these women are also currently in pain or bleeding, yes?). Is that audience going to respond well to advice that says "don't worry about the blood, cheerio, spit spot!"?

Then there's the whole night-sleeping aspect. I recently ran across this gem ("Myth: good babies sleep through the night"):

One more thing. Who says 8 hours of solitary uninterrupted sleep is (1) normal, (2) healthy, or even (3) possible? I'm 52 years old, not trying to double my weight, and I wake up every 3-4 hours at night. I sleep with another human, a dog that snores, and occasionally a cat. So what? Does that mean I've failed to meet some standard of "Sleep Excellence?"

Again, who are you trying to convince? Chances are it is someone who is currently extremely sleep deprived. Your little "wake up, blink, turn over and fall asleep" twice a night does NOT compare. I could go on some more, but I've already ranted on this subject before. Let's just say it's a touchy issue.

KellyMom has a much more balanced take on the whole sleeping-through-the-night-as-a-goal issue, making the point that if mom and baby don't mind, then back the heck off. I'm totally down with that way of stating it.[1] What I think is ridiculous is the naive way in which these pro-breastfeeding messages are marketed to potential or current breastfeeding mothers. If you want more women to breastfeed, you should actually listen to them instead of just telling them what to do. When they're reading your pro-breastfeeding comments, do you think it's possible they might be sitting at their computers sobbing tired tears because they haven't slept more than 120 minutes in a row for five months? Or maybe they're doing that while simultaneously bleeding from the nipples? You're just not going to win them over with these types of messages.

Just so it's clear... I'm all for breastfeeding - iff it works for mom. If breastfeeding or pumping don't work or the mom doesn't want to, then can we just back the heck off and let mom make her own decisions?

[1] When I was struggling with breastfeeding myself, I found kellymom to be the best site around, mainly because it's very data-driven (see example), which is exactly what I want when I am researching such issues. It does get preachy, but I don't mind the preachiness as long as I can see the data behind it.

Comments

[Elizabeth]

I love kellymom. Jack Newman is scary, even when he has good info. I was very lucky that breastfeeding was pretty easy for me, although I did have some supply issues eventually with pumping. And you know what I discovered was the best possible thing I could do to boost my supply? Get enough sleep. Take that, you night-waking-isn't-a-problem zealots!

[Kendra]

Jack Newman, MD, of all people, should realize the non-common-sensicalness (not a word, I know, But I need it for my point :)) of his response. There's a little phenomenon in the biological world called the "fight or flight" response. In this response, if an organism is under attack (ie predator, pain, etc) the biological response is to stand its ground or GET AWAY FROM IT. I had painful bleeding nipples with my youngest.....he who would nurse every 1 1/2 - 2 hours around the clock. Basically - he would latch on, it would hurt, I wouldn't let down, he would become more aggressive trying to eat, it would hurt more, etc, etc, etc. Yes....you CAN (theoretically) nurse with bleeding nipples, but it's NO fun. And, if you don't know you are bleeding (ie on the inside of your breast) and your DC spits up blood, it tends to FREAK you out just a bit. :)

[Susan ~ Dances with Minivans]

Ouch! Reading about breastfeeding makes my chest hurt!
I've added you to my blogroll~

[Cynical]

Eliz: I have strong hopes it won't be so painful for me this time around. Crossing my fingers.

Kendra: I know the feeling very well :P I used to cry just thinking about how he would need to start eating soon.

Susan: thanks!

[dbt]

I read "Nipples that are painful and bleeding are not worse than nipples that are painful and not bleeding" and read that as not worse for the baby, i.e. you're not doing any harm to the baby if you're bleeding a little bit into the breastmilk.

[Cynical Mom]

Like I said, I knew what he was trying to say. But it's a stupid way to say it. Lead off on the positive note (aww you poor thing) and then end with the point (blood can't hurt baby).

Here's a suggested rewrite: "Of course, painful and bleeding nipples are not a good thing for a mother's body or emotions, and for any mother encountering them, are a variety of techniques you can use to figure out what's wrong and reduce the pain and stop the bleeding. Also, know that the blood *can't* harm the baby - there's actually small amounts of blood in breastmilk at all times."