FORT WORTH -- Mother Nature's great motivator -- instinct -- can perform daily miracles, but breast-feeding is in the realm of learned behavior.
"Moms and babies do not know instinctively how to breast-feed," said Denise Dehnbostel, a La Leche League leader in Fort Worth. "Babies have rooting and sucking reflexes, but breast-feeding is a learned skill."
But these days, mothers and grandmothers are often not around to guide young women through life's biological experiences, such as giving birth, menopause and breast-feeding.
But never fear. Yes, Virginia, there is a technique.
"The mother's nipple and most of her areola needs to be completely in the baby's mouth. The baby's mouth needs to be opened wide like an O," Dehnbostel said. "Also, the baby's tongue needs to be down, out and over its gum and slightly over its lower lip. Lips need to be flanged out and not sucked in."
Also, mothers should hold the baby so that its neck is not twisted while feeding, said Carrie Byers of Arlington, a certified educator in breast-feeding.
"Have the baby's ear, shoulder and hip in a straight line, along with no head turning," Byers said. "And make sure the baby's nose, cheeks and chin are all touching breast. It should be that close."
Position is the key to pain-free breast-feeding, both for mother and baby. An informal sampling of breast-feeding veterans shows that some soreness the first week is inevitable until the nipple toughens to the task.
For the mother's protection, the baby should be brought to the nipple, not the other way around. That reduces neck and arm strains. It also lessens the chance for sore nipples, experts say. Mothers should sit up straight. If they can afford one, they can buy or rent a nursing stool, Byers said.
"Or put a pillow under your arm and hold the baby on your lap," Dehnbostel said.
Working mothers should find breast pumps that simulate a baby's suck-release-relax cycle. And, if possible, mothers should not switch back and forth from breast to bottle or pacifier; it will only confuse the baby, Byers said.
It isn't just a first-time mother that may have unexpected difficulties with breast-feeding, Byers said. Because breast-feeding is learned, some babies take to it more naturally than others.
Experts say skin-to-skin contact will help mothers get a sense of when babies are hungry. Certain pitched cries or a chicklike head bobbing are common.
Listen and learn.
Don't wait if a problem arises, Dehnbostel said.
For the first six weeks, a baby should feed every two hours or more. If a baby sleeps longer than three hours at a time, it is not a sign that it is unusually well-behaved, she said. Wake the baby every two hours and get it to feed, Dehnbostel said. Call a lactation specialist or a doctor if the infant feeds less than eight times a day.
North Richland Hills resident Mindy Branch, who is nine months' pregnant with her first child, has immersed herself in the literature and lore of birthing and child care, meticulously researching every detail, from itemized hospital fees to the bank of shots that her child will need.
She observed her cousin's recent home birth and took childbirth classes that provided her with more technical knowledge of breast- feeding than most mothers-to-be, she said. But anxieties remain.
"My biggest fear is I'll be raring to go, and the baby could just decide it doesn't want it," Branch said. "It might be disappointing if it didn't want to."
And somewhere down the line -- 18 months, three years, four years -- when the baby no longer wishes to nurse, accept the fact that it's over, experts say.
"It should be seen instead as a sign that they've given everything the child needs and that they've done a good job," Dehnbostel said. "Now it's time to separate."