SERVICES OFFERED
• Support
• One-on-one counseling
• Help with combining breastfeeding with work or school
• Link families to services
• Telephone consultations
• Home visits
• Breast pump program
Are you pregnant and considering breastfeeding? Are you a new mom currently breastfeeding and looking to learn more?
Come to a B.I.B.S (Breast is Best Social) meeting to share and learn from moms like yourself.
The group meets at 6:30 p.m. every Wednesday at the Health Department. 200 Maine St. in Lawrence.
Click here for a flier featuring Lawrence family practice physician Dr. Larisa Kimuri >>
Click here for a flier featuring Lawrence family practice physician Dr. Tiffinie Mercado >>
ADDITIONAL COMMUNITY RESOURCES:
La Leche League- click here for more >>
Lawrence Memorial Hospital Breastfeeding and New Parent Support Group- click here for more >>
ABOUT BREASTFEEDING
Why breastfeed your baby?
• Milk is always fresh, clean and warm
• It's easy to do anywhere
• Makes night-time feeding faster
Formula-fed babies are more 
susceptible to colds, flu and
other health
conditions, including:
• Colic
• SIDS (Sudden Infant Death Syndrome)
• Tooth decay
• Colds, coughs
• Ear aches
• Allergies
Click here for more >>
Breastfeeding helps protect moms from:
• Breast and ovarian cancer
• Brittle bones (osteoporosis)
• Blood loss after birth
Click here for more >>
Breastfeeding reduces:
• Money spent on formula, extra bottles
• Number of sick doctor visits
• Mom's tummy sooner
• Time missed from work/school
Click here for more >>
WIC'S BREASTFEEDING PEER COUNSELORs
A peer counselor is a mother just like you.
She lives in your community, has breastfed her own baby and has been on WIC.
Click here to learn more >>
CARY & elizabeth
Cary, right, has four children and is currently breastfeeding her youngest child, Ida. She is a certified Breastfeeding Educator has served as a peer counselor for three years.
Elizabeth, left, is the WIC program's newest Breastfeeding Peer Counselor. Elizabeth is fluent in Spanish and joined the Health Department in February 2010. She is currently breastfeeding her youngest son, Emmet.
WORTH THE CHALLENGE – NICHOLINA'S STORY
When her son was born with a cleft palate, Nicholina Chronister knew that the decision to breastfeed her baby, Aivan, would be a challenge.
A phlebotomist by day, Nicholina enrolled in WIC during the first trimester of her pregnancy. The WIC program itself was an education, she said, and the printed info was very helpful.
“… One of the first things (the nutritionist) asked was, ‘Are you planning on breastfeeding?’” Nicholina said. “It was really early on in the pregnancy that I was actually thinking of breastfeeding… (I thought) ‘Is this what I want to do, how’s it going to work with the job, that sort of thing.’”
Nicholina admit
s she was nervous at first and that trying to breastfeed was challenging for her and Aivan. Hospital staff assumed the Nicholina wouldn’t even try to breastfeed Aivan when he was born with a cleft palate and tried artificial nipples and a tube supplement.
But Nicholina wasn’t discouraged.
“He would get so frustrated,” she said. “I think part of it was that he had gone through five types (of nipples).”
We really struggled at first. I wasn’t sure it was going to work, but we figured it out.”
“I am actually able to help position him and kind of use the tissue of my breast to close up the cleft a little bit. We have to work together,” she laughs. “But, it’s definitely worth it, especially for cleft babies.”
Babies born with cleft lips or cleft palates are often born with other conditions, such as heart problems. Research has shown that mother’s milk passes on important antibodies that help boost a newborn’s delicate immune system.
Nicholina said she enjoys the connection she has with Aivan through breastfeeding.
“The majority of people that find out that I have been breastfeeding exclusively since he was born are very surprised,” she said. “It’s funny how many (people) just assumed that I wouldn’t because of the cleft.”
“It’s important. It’s very important.”
FAQs
Will my baby be too dependent if I breastfeed?
Your baby may actually show greater independence since his/her needs are being met.
Will breastfeeding take all my time?
With breastfeeding there is no bottle to prepare, so you may actually end up with more time if you are the one preparing the bottles. Plus, you will be able to stop whatever you are doing and rest while baby is breastfeeding. Think of it as nature’s way to help you slow down and breathe.
My mother didn’t have enough milk, does that mean I won’t either?
As long as you are well hydrated and nourished, you will produce the amount of milk the baby needs. The experience of your mother will not affect how much milk you produce. Since the 1930s, mothers have not received a lot of support for breastfeeding and were even given the ill-advice to not breastfeed; this unsupportive culture likely affected how successful she was with breastfeeding.
I am small breasted, does this mean I won’t produce very much milk?
The size of a woman’s breast is based on the amount of fatty tissue she has more than functional breast tissue. Size usually has no affect on the amount of milk produced.
If I breastfeed, does that mean I won’t be able to eat whatever I want?
Breastfed babies generally tolerate whatever foods the mother consumes unless there is an allergy or intolerance to a certain food. You should stay well-nourished and hydrated for optimal energy and milk production. As in the womb, your baby is learning about new flavors as she breastfeeds and this experience will help shape food preferences and acceptance as she begins solid foods.
If I deliver by cesarean birth, will I still be able to breastfeed?
How you deliver your baby should have no affect on your ability to breastfeed Be sure to let hospital staff know that you are breastfeeding.
Will breastfeeding drain me of all of my energy?
Parenting can be tiring no matter what, however, when you are breastfeeding your baby, you are able to rest and sometimes sleep while reclined or lying down with your baby, providing a much-earned rest time. Breastfeeding hormones also help you to feel more relaxed. Have healthy snacks and interesting books on hand so that you can read and snack while baby is feeding and sleeping.
Will I lose my figure and get sagging breasts if I breastfeed?
Pregnancy and aging are what contribute the most to sagging breasts, not breastfeeding. Breastfeeding helps mothers get back to their pre-pregnancy weight faster.
My mother and partner want to help me take care of the baby, but if I’m breastfeeding what will they do?
Lots! Feeding your baby is not the only way to help! Here is a list of ways a partner, mother, friend, etc. can help a new mother: prepare meals and healthy snacks (feed mom!), throw in a load of laundry; burp baby; rock baby; walk baby; talk and read to baby; play with baby; change baby’s diaper; give baby a bath, bring baby to mom when hungry, visit mom, babysit while mom gets coffee with a friend, etc.
Will I have to wean when I return to work?
Separation from your baby does not mean you have to wean. There are several options if you are going back to work or school. You can provide the caregiver expressed milk (ideal) or you can have the caregiver feed formula during the time you are separated. When you are with your baby, unrestricted breastfeeding will maintain milk production for the times you are together. Your workplace may have a policy encouraging pumping milk since a baby fed breast milk is less likely to become ill, which means mom doesn’t have to take sick time.
Is formula just as good for my baby as breast milk?
Breast milk is a living food that provide immunities against disease (e.g. if you got the flu shot – so did your nursing baby, without the shot!), provides essential substances that a human baby needs (not a calf) and cannot be replicated in a laboratory, and changes as the baby grows depending on her/his needs.
But breastfeeding is much more than just a way to feed your baby since it provides a stronger bond between you and your baby, burns calories to get your shape back, releases hormones that relax you and much more.
More FAQs from La Leche League >>
HELPFUL LINKS
Click here for the 10 Steps to Successful Breastfeeding >>
Click here for the 10 Steps to Being a Breastfeeding-Friendly Father >>
Click here for 10 Steps for a Breastfeeding-Friendly Child Care >>
Best for Babes - Helping moms make an informed feeding decision, to be cheered on, coached and celebrated without pressure, judgment or guilt, whether they breastfeed for two days, two months or two years.
