Actually, it's "help me help my sister help my cousin," but that was too long for a subject line! 
My cousin gave birth to her daughter last week and has been very unsuccessful with breastfeeding. She was told at the hospital that she has flat nipples, and was using a shield for a while, but is pretty much pumping every single time she needs to feed the baby now. My cousin is talking to my sister about this, not me, probably because she and my sister are closer in age (and also because, I suspect, I'm kind of the nursing queen in the family, having nursed my daughter for four years with really no problems).
Anyway, I need to be able to pass on advice for my sister to give my cousin. Although I'm really pro-breastfeeding for my family, I'm also not going to judge anyone who switches to formula. I don't really think it's my place. I told my sister that I thought that the situation was untenable for the long run (trust me... I don't think my cousin has it in her to be an exclusive pumper), and that she needed to decide if she was going to switch to formula (maybe while still pumping sometimes), or if she was going to commit to this. I told her that if she's going to commit, she needs to back off the bottles for a while and either go La Leche or pay for a lactation consultant.
What other advice can I give? I sent her the Kellymom website, but the problem is that she has learning disabilities, and doesn't do well with a lot of reading or research (which is my mode of learning). The other problem is that any information needs to be able to be passed from me to my sister to my cousin. Drama, I know.
Thanks!
My cousin gave birth to her daughter last week and has been very unsuccessful with breastfeeding. She was told at the hospital that she has flat nipples, and was using a shield for a while, but is pretty much pumping every single time she needs to feed the baby now. My cousin is talking to my sister about this, not me, probably because she and my sister are closer in age (and also because, I suspect, I'm kind of the nursing queen in the family, having nursed my daughter for four years with really no problems).
Anyway, I need to be able to pass on advice for my sister to give my cousin. Although I'm really pro-breastfeeding for my family, I'm also not going to judge anyone who switches to formula. I don't really think it's my place. I told my sister that I thought that the situation was untenable for the long run (trust me... I don't think my cousin has it in her to be an exclusive pumper), and that she needed to decide if she was going to switch to formula (maybe while still pumping sometimes), or if she was going to commit to this. I told her that if she's going to commit, she needs to back off the bottles for a while and either go La Leche or pay for a lactation consultant.
What other advice can I give? I sent her the Kellymom website, but the problem is that she has learning disabilities, and doesn't do well with a lot of reading or research (which is my mode of learning). The other problem is that any information needs to be able to be passed from me to my sister to my cousin. Drama, I know.
Thanks!
