The Baby Led Latch

This past weekend, I attended a breastfeeding workshop led by DONA trainer, Sally Riley of the Academy of Certified Birth Educators.  She showed us some great videos and techniques for supporting our clients during the immediate post-partum period.  I came away from the workshop really believing that if we allow babies to lead in breastfeeding, we may see more successful feeding, which leads to happier, more confident babies and mothers.

It is interesting to see how instinctively the babies will crawl and nuzzle at the breast, and how once they are close to the nipple, with a little guidance from their mothers, may instinctively latch. I'm not saying that every mother and baby are destined to have a magical time breastfeeding.  The experience is different for every woman and child. However, I think that if we give mother and baby that skin-to-skin for the first hour or so after birth, we are setting them up to have the best relationship with breastfeeding possible.

Here is a clip I found that shows the beauty of the breast crawl and baby led latch:

 

URL:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lEjM2TkVmK8&feature=share&list=PLcJcnxkZNqPrJfupk36Ll7VOoDyuzOVfN