Lovely Advice I was given at Tucson Medical Center

I had Talia in the hospital because I thought something was wrong, everything turned out just fine. However, I got a huge lesson on what medical professionals are telling new mothers. As if being a new mother isn't scary enough...

From the nurses:

1. As she handed me a "breastfeeding" kit which included a 6 pack of formula, formula packets, a bottle and two nursing pads, the nice nurse explained to me, "You need to have formula around so that you can have a break and let your husband feed the baby. All new moms need to sleep. Also a lot of women have supply issues, so you might have to supplement."

Grrrrrrrrrrr

Healthy women rarely have supply issues. Mother's think their supply is low because their breasts feel empty but as long as the baby is gaining weight, wetting diapers and you can hear swallowing, chances are that your supply is just fine. I think it's a travesty that medical professionals perpetuate fears in new mothers.

2. Another nurse informed me that if I didn't give my 2 hour old daughter the Hep B vaccine then she could die.

Nothing like scaring the poop out of a new mom. As a well researched mom I knew better. Hepatitis B is a viral disease associated with risky lifestyle choices such as intravenous drug use or promiscuous sex. I highly doubt that my newborn would be at risk for that. Come on people!

My favorite "words of wisdom" were given to me by a geriatric pediatrician.

3. You can't nurse your 20 month old or your body won't make newborn milk.

Seriously!

I think my body knows what just came out of it. I can't imagine why he would tell me that or worse, why he believed it. Women have been nursing babies of different ages since the beginning of time, it's a natural bodily function.

One good piece of advice I got.

Talia was in the NICU when she was 4 days old for a few days due to severe, severe jaundice. The NICU nurses coaxed me to pump some milk for her. I was exhausted and wasn't allowed to sleep in the room with her. I was afraid to go sleep because she would wake up hungry. I was also afraid that she would get nipple confusion if she had a bottle. The nurses assured me that babies go from breast to bottle with no problem. I didn't believe them. By day 3 I was so drained that I pumped some milk and took a nap. I came back and Talia had taken the bottle just fine. I popped her back on the breast and she was content to nurse.

So thank you NICU nurses for pretty much forcing me to sleep, (which I desperately needed), and thank you for proving to me that Talia would not get nipple confusion. I am happy to report that at 20 months she is still nursing.

I am concerned about all the misinformation going around. I am a well informed mom but truth be told, a lot of new moms just don't do their homework. A lot of mom's take the health care providers word as gospel and don't question it.

I am here to say ASK questions, READ about your body and your baby and NEVER, EVER do something that you know in your gut is wrong.