Breastfeeding, midwives, homebirth

Greatly enjoyed the conference yesterday by Dr. Christine Smilie on baby led breastfeeding. I purchased her CD to show to my classes, and the books, "Pushed" by Jennifer Block, and "Mother's Milk: Breastfeeding controversies in American culture" by Bernice Hausman. I look forward to reading them both. As is the case with most conferences, the best parts can be what happens between sessions.

I got to meet some of the local hospital-based CNMs. I was chewing the fat (as we Midwesterners say) with one of the local homebirth midwives when a CNM stopped by her booth to chat with us. It's always nice for me to see CNMs and CPMs getting along and being nice to one another. Sometimes I feel like a child of divorce since I consider CNMs and CPMs to be equal parents to my dream of being a birth advocate. I hate to see the two camps go at one another. Especially when I know they have more in common than they have differences. Anyway we all made introductions and had a nice chat. It made me realize there are just too few venues for midwives of all types to meet and greet in our city. That is why I love MANA so much. MANA (Midwives Alliance of North America) is having their conference next month and I can't wait to go. It will be in Monterey CA this year so the surroundings should be exquisite. MANA is one American organization that warmly welcomes midwives and birth advocates of all kinds and varieties (and trust me you see some of everything at their annual conference). Its an experience like no other. A lot of midwife organizations segregate by midwife type, but not MANA. Midwives have enough outside opposition without fighting against one another in my opinion, but that's what it's come to- unfortunately. I spent my morning viewing this video that aired a couple of days ago on the Today Show. It's an attack on homebirth (for which I am a staunch supporter) but in all fairness, it shows a bit of the other side as well. All in all it wasn't as bad as I thought it would be. But with ACOG nipping at our heels, we really should be kinder and gentler to one another.

Thanks to the Doulas of Greater Kansas City who put on a wonderful conference yesterday, with a really informative speaker. Lots of food for thought on how we approach lactation education with parents, and learned lots of new stuff. It gave me a new perspective that just as with birth we may be too interventive instead of allowing nature to work as it was intended.