breastfeeding and La Leche League

Last week I officially received my accreditation as a La Leche League leader! (La Leche League is an international breastfeeding support group, if you're not familiar with it. Here's a link if you're interested in a summation of the overall philosophy of the group.)

I started working toward becoming a leader two and a half years ago, thinking that I would start a LLL group in our small town in Idaho. There hasn't been a breastfeeding support group there since Keith's mom was an LLL leader thirty years ago, and it has been heartbreaking to see so many mothers around me struggling with not knowing how to breastfeed, or how to keep breastfeeding, or just not having any support for breastfeeding. People still ask Carmen to start a group again, and we were discussing this and lamenting the lack of support one day while I was nursing two-month-old Abraham. I realized that I could start a group myself, and so I have slowly, slowly worked through all of the accreditation and training to be able to be a leader.

And then we moved to Washington, and a month later I finally finished everything. So, I'm not planning to start a group in Idaho.* But it's nice to have been able to finish anyway, and there certainly seems to be a need for help leading groups here in Spokane (there are only four leaders in the whole area). Right now I'm starting out as a co-leader and just assisting in leading the closest group meeting while I see how much involvement I want to have.

It's a relief to have completed the leader accreditation. I've taken so long to do it that I'm not sure exactly how much effort it has been, but I suppose I'd compare it to taking two or three college courses, not necessarily in output of work but at least in research and reading components. I've learned a lot along the way and I think it's really affected the way that I look at supporting other mothers. One of the areas in which I think it has helped me the most personally is in recognizing my motherhood biases and being able to let those go while supporting and encouraging other mothers. I am pretty sure that every mother has their own differences of opinion on some things, but I have gained more compassion and have learned how to meet mothers where they are at and with their own goals, whether they be interested in breastfeeding for a week or a year or until their child weans of their own accord, and in whatever their extenuating circumstances might be. I think too that it has changed (for the better) the way I view and support other mothers in general, even when not discussing breastfeeding.

I don't know to what extent I will be involved as a LLL leader in the years to come. It may be a lot, or it may be only a little. But if you are a breastfeeding mama or are pregnant and would like to breastfeed, I would really encourage you to find a La Leche League group, even if you've already been breastfeeding for a while or feel like a group may not be that useful to you. I have been incredibly surprised, every time I have gone to a meeting, how helpful and genuinely supportive it has been. Breastfeeding is such a personal thing and yet it is such a relief to have somebody to talk to about all of the myriad of things that we experience along these journeys. There is nearly always somebody else at a meeting who has gone through similar experiences, and the leader nearly always has something to share that I hadn't known before. (At the meeting I attended last week, after finishing my accreditation, I learned that breastmilk has a pain reliever effect, thus why it works so well to nurse babies when they get hurt. Did you know that? I didn't!)

Even when going to a group meeting has meant trekking to Coeur d'Alene in the wintertime, I have always been glad when I have made it to one. La Leche League leaders really have studied a tremendous amount and many have had years of supporting breastfeeding mothers in every kind of circumstances you can imagine. If you're interested in learning more, here is a bit more information about what goes on at a meeting, and here is where you can find the group nearest you. You can also search online forums or call your local LLL leader for free, professional, confidential over-the-phone advice. Many local LLL groups also have Facebook pages.

I'm excited about this, as you can tell, and I'm a pretty big fan of all the benefits of breastfeeding. Do you have any thoughts on the matter? Have you attended a La Leche League meeting before? What has your experience been? Do you have any suggestions or tips for me as I begin leading La Leche League meetings?

*Actually, writing this post has helped me remember why I so much wanted to start a group in the first place. I'm reconsidering starting a group in our former town and just commuting there once a month. We'll see.