Conference Speakers
Mary Hurt
LLLI Public Relations Associate
From: LEAVEN, Vol. 38 No. 5, October-November 2002 p. 115.
The old adage, "The more
things change the more they stay the same," couldn’t be truer than when
applied to childbirth, breastfeeding, and getting the sleep you need
while meeting the needs of your baby. Over 30 years ago when I was pregnant
with my first child, the debate centered around whether medicated births
caused difficulties.
Thirty years later, young
women are often given epidurals as a matter of course and told that
they do not affect the baby in any way. Yet Leaders and other lactation
professionals who deal with the aftereffects of failure to latch on
might disagree. The Founders were wise indeed when they thought about
childbirth as the beginning of breastfeeding and incorporated a meeting
about childbirth in their series.
The need for mothers to understand
how a good childbirth experience can make the early days of breastfeeding
easier is underscored by several childbirth experts who will speak at
the 2003 LLLI Conference in San Francisco, California, USA. Sandra
Apgar Steffes, RN, MS, LCCE, FACCE, Fellow of the American College
of Psychoprophylaxis in Obstetrics, and a founding member of the Lamaze
International faculty and member of its Board of Directors, will talk
about the implications of childbirth choices on breastfeeding as she
shares her ideas at her session, "Behind Closed Doors: Birth Decisions
and the Effect on Breastfeeding."
Marji and Jay Hathaway,
founders with Robert A. Bradley, MD, of the American Academy
of Husband Coached Childbirth, co-authors of Husband Coached Childbirth:
The Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth, and authors of Children
at Birth, will present their unique perspective at their session,
"The Bradley Method of Natural Childbirth: Empowering Parents to
Have the Best, Safest, and Most Rewarding Experience Possible."
Penny Simkin, PT, founder of the Pacific Association for Labor
Support (PALS) and Doulas of North America (DONA), author of Pregnancy,
Childbirth and the Newborn, The Birth Partner, and The
Labor Progress Handbook, will speak about "The Seduction of
Induction."
When I was a new LLL member
two other topics that were covered were meeting the baby’s needs
while meeting your own needs for sleep, and whether or not to let your
baby cry it out. There was a lot of concern about getting your baby
to sleep through the night. Of course, the LLL Leaders in the Group
gently discussed the needs of baby, how you couldn’t spoil a newborn
by meeting his needs, and how to meet baby’s needs while getting
sleep yourself. Today there seems to be even more of a proliferation
of books about sleep training and not meeting the needs of a baby in
gentle ways.
The LLLI Conference will
present experts with a more gentle view on getting a good night’s
sleep while caring for your baby. Jay N. Gordon, MD, well known
pediatrician, author, and television consultant will speak on the topic
of his latest book, Good Nights: The Happy Parents’ Guide to
the Family Bed. Dr. Gordon, who has appeared on numerous TV shows
such as "20/20" and "Good Morning America," will
also speak about "The Vegetarian Breastfeeding Mother and Baby."
Paul Fleiss, MD, MPH and well-known pediatrician will talk about
the subject of his latest book, Sweet Dreams: A Pediatrician’s
Secrets for Your Child’s Good Night’s Sleep. Harvey
Karp, MD, assistant professor of pediatrics, a well-known pediatrician
who has appeared on many TV shows, and author of The Happiest Baby
on the Block: Calming a Crying Baby Using Techniques from Ancient and
Modern Cultures, will speak on this topic at the LLLI Conference.
All in all, there will be
almost 100 separate sessions at the LLLI Conference to be held, July
3-6, 2003, in San Francisco, California, USA. Other topics include Continuing
Education sessions about breastfeeding, personal development sessions,
international sessions, and, of course, parenting topics. Help celebrate
by joining us as LLLI presents the 18th International Breastfeeding
Conference: Strength Through Diversity: Creating One Breastfeeding
World.
Page last edited Sun Oct 14 09:32:23 UTC 2007.
