Breastfeeding made easy (The Telegraph, London, 23 Feb 04)

Breastfeeding made easy

Clare Byam-Cook has been a boon to many new mothers. Judith Woods meets the
former midwife who takes the pain out of feeding time

As Emma Freud was being wheeled from the labour room on to the ward, after
the birth of Spike, her fourth child, her instinctive reaction was to reach
for her mobile. But Freud, the girlfriend of Love Actually writer and
director Richard Curtis, wasn't joyfully contacting her family, friends, or
even her mother. Instead, she was frantically texting Clare Byam-Cook.
Similarly, when Helena Bonham Carter gave birth to her first baby, Billy, in
October, it was Byam-Cook she summoned urgently to her hospital bed. Along
with a host of other high profile women, Bonham Carter and Freud regard
Byam-Cook as the answer to every new mother's prayer.
The former midwife and author of What to Expect When You're Breast-feeding
and What if You Can't? has an old-fashioned firmness and a quiet insistence
that there is a correct - and, by extension, an incorrect - way to feed a
newborn.
As a result, Byam-Cook, who has just brought out a video, Breast-feeding
Without Tears, cuts something of a controversial figure in the
breast-feeding world, where she has ruffled feathers with her outspoken
views on the need to educate mothers, rather than just letting nature take
its course.
"Breastfeeding is natural, but it's still a skill that most mothers need to
learn," she says. "About 50 per cent of mothers give up because they're not
shown how to breastfeed correctly. Women give up breastfeeding because it's
too difficult, not because they can't be bothered."
Although Emma Freud had already breastfed three babies, she still felt she
needed Byam-Cook's advice, urgently, as soon as she gave birth, just before
Christmas.
"When my daughter Scarlett, now aged eight, was born, breastfeeding was a
total and utter nightmare," says Freud, 42.
"I grew the largest breasts known to mankind, and trying to latch a small,
cross baby on to breasts the size of Yugoslavia was not possible. I couldn't
work out how to cope with milk production which was rivalling Unigate
Dairies and a baby who was basically furious."
After two weeks, during which time every feed was preceded by up to an
hour's screaming, Freud contacted Byam-Cook, who visited that day. In two
hours, she sorted out every problem; how to get the baby to latch on, how to
feed her without getting painful backache, and when to feed her during the
day and at night.
"Rather pathetically, when my sons Jake and Charlie were born, two and six
years later, I found I made all the same mistakes again, so a fortnight
after their births, Clare came round again," says Freud. "That's why I asked
her to come round the day Spike arrived, and the breastfeeding has, for the
first time, worked from the first day. What's interesting is that she's not
particularly mothering about it - she's fiercely practical, logical and
serious, which feels more appropriate than someone cooing and gushing."
And Freud is not the only fan of her straight-talking.
"I like the way she doesn't mince her words and says 'No, no, you're doing
it all wrong'," says Bonham Carter, 37. "As a first-time mother, it's very
easy to feel inadequate and it's quite a relief to know you're doing
something right."
Bonham Carter, who is the girlfriend of Big Fish and Planet of the Apes film
director Tim Burton, gave birth at St Mary's, Paddington, where Byam-Cook
regularly visits mothers.
"Breastfeeding is one of those things you go through life assuming to be
natural and easy and that you just pop baby on, but when I was pregnant I
began to hear lots of horror stories about bleeding nipples and awful pain,"
says Bonham Carter. "So I booked Clare to come and see me as soon as Billy
was born, by way of a pre-emptive strike. It was fantastic. She showed me
how to place the baby at the right level using a pillow, and pretty early
on, I was able to feed her, hands free.
"When you're breastfeeding, you're pretty much stuck there, but I had a
mobile office set up on my pillow with my phone and my Filofax, just getting
on with things."
Byam-Cook has little truck with the laissez-faire attitude prevalent in most
hospitals, where mothers are left alone with their babies until they both
"get the hang of it".
"When a mother complains that her nipples are sore, midwives will tell her
that it's normal and will get better, but it doesn't. Sore nipples aren't
normal, they mean that the baby isn't latching on properly, and that can
cause enormous problems," she says. "Too many babies are being sent home
from hospital - NHS and private - before feeding has been established and
either the baby ends up being admitted with severe dehydration, or the
mother is in such pain and gets so distressed, she gives up breastfeeding
altogether."
A mother of two teenagers, Byam-Cook bottle-fed her babies because she
didn't have enough milk, and has a briskly anti-establishment attitude to
the prevailing wisdom that breast is best.
"Midwives discourage women from occasionally using a bottle because a young
baby will get 'confused' between the nipple and the teat. This is utter
nonsense, and I can't understand why midwives are so out of date. The theory
has been disproved by several studies."
Byam-Cook's fellow professionals may brindle with indignation at her
dismissiveness, yet she has no shortage of clients, who track her down via
word-of-mouth. A session costs around £100, once her travel costs are
covered, but one session is usually enough.
"The reason I had to bring out a video was because I have far more work than
I can cope with," she says. "Everything a mother needs to know is in there."
But there will always be a demand for the personal touch. Cristina Odone,
deputy editor of the New Statesman, describes Byam-Cook as a "life-saver".
By the time Odone, 43, telephoned her, breastfeeding was such a misery it
was beginning to affect her bond with her daughter, Isabel, now five and a
half months old.
"I was in such awful pain, I was starting to regard my daughter as the
enemy, rather than my precious little baby," admits Odone. "My nipples were
bleeding and I was in unspeakable pain."
Odone claims her difficulties started in hospital, when her midwife advised
her that the baby needed to suck, in order to stimulate milk production.
Whenever she took the baby off her breast, she was urged to place her back
again, so for 12 hours her daughter was "glued" to her breast until her
nipples were raw.
"It was horrendous," says Odone. "But as soon as I called Clare, she put our
minds at rest, and advised us to give Isabel formula milk until she could
come to see us. Clare was very efficient and head-girlish and began by
saying 'If this doesn't work, you'll have to be one of those mothers who
bottle feeds', but she did make it work and, after two sessions, Isabel and
I were both enjoying breastfeeding."
Bonham Carter's son is now four and a half months old, and while she no
longer breastfeeds exclusively, she says she owes a great deal to the woman
who guided her over the first daunting hurdles of breastfeeding.
"I'm now giving Billy lots of bottles, but I still feed him morning and
evening and I don't want to give it up," she says. "Breastfeeding creates a
very particular bond between a mother and her baby and it's wonderful to
have that closeness."

Clare Byam-Cook's breastfeeding tips

"When placing the baby to the breast, ensure his mouth is lined up with the
nipple, so he can latch on properly.
"You need to shape the breast in order to direct the nipple and surrounding
aerola into the baby's mouth.
"Place as many pillows on your lap as is necessary to rest the baby at the
correct level, so you can feed him without having to support his weight.
"Never lean forward to bring the nipple to the baby; this places strain on
the back and can result in chronic pain.
"If feeds are overly long or you have sore nipples, the baby is not latched
on properly.
Clare Byam-Cook's Breast-feeding Without Tears is available by mail order,
£12.99. Tel: 01483 721000

yikes, at first this sounded really good, then the stuff about she didn't
have enough milk and there is no such thing as nipple confusion would make
me run a mile!

Anne Rogers wrote:

yikes, at first this sounded really good, then the stuff about she
didn't have enough milk and there is no such thing as nipple
confusion would make me run a mile!

I know. *Studies have disproved nipple confusion*? Try telling that to
Richard's Micaela and all the others whose parents have reported this
problem.

Another thing I found odd about this article--which "breastfeeding
community" finds the idea of teaching mothers to bf controversial? Isn't
that what LCs, LLL chapters, *this ng*, etc. exist for--education and
support?
--
Belphoebe

Richard wrote:

Belphoebe wrote:
I know. *Studies have disproved nipple confusion*? Try telling
that to Richard's Micaela and all the others whose parents have
reported this problem.

WhaaaaaaaaAAAAAAAAH! Don't get me started! There's a pediatric
resident working locally who had better not be spotted, not by me.
As far as I'm concerned, he committed a Class One Felony
(http://tinyurl.com/2q4vt) when he put an artificial nipple in
Micaela's mouth at age 3 days.

I'd feel exactly the same way in your shoes. Hey, if you pointed out that
resident to me, I'd be tempted to take a swing at him myself. I hope the
woman in the article, with her spotty advice, doesn't leave a trail of
sabotaged nursing relationships behind her.

Another thing I found odd about this article--which "breastfeeding
community" finds the idea of teaching mothers to bf controversial?
Isn't that what LCs, LLL chapters, *this ng*, etc. exist
for--education and support?

This really surprised me. Anyone who has breastfed, or tried to
support someone breastfeeding, knows that it is a learned skill, both
for Mom
and for Baby.

Exactly. The article refers to some clueless-sounding midwives, but they
hardly comprise "the breastfeeding community."

--
Belphoebe