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Unconditional Positiive Regard, Breastfeeding and alcohol/drug consumption…
Unconditional Positiive Regard
This means that the counsellor accepts the client unconditionally and non-judgementally. The client (mother) is free to explore all thoughts and feelings, positive or negative, without danger of rejection or condemnation.
Crucially, the client (mother) is free to explore and express herself without having to meet any particular standards of behaviour to 'earn' positive regard from the counsellor.
Embedded in the values and ethics of the ABA
Your own values and beliefs, BF experiences or issues
Mothers values might conflict with our own.
Watch for reactions like feeling angry, tense or upset.
Regular debrief Professional development and education
The following format is recommended for you to review and debrief after counselling situations:
What happened?
What worked?
What didn’t work?
What would you do differently next time?
If speaking to the mother again about the same situation, what further suggestions would you make?
Focus on the positive while addressing any issues
Support mothers to make their own decisions
Part of respecting the people we counsel is respecting their values, beliefs and breastfeeding choices, even when these are different from our own.
The reality is that, at times, we are not going to like the choices she has made. As a breastfeeding counsellor, you are only walking with the mother on her path. You are not living her life or experiencing her pressures and you are not her. She has to make her own choice and then work through what that choice means in her life.
As breastfeeding counsellors, we are RESPONSIVE to the feelings and needs of the mother but NOT RESPONSIBLE for solving her problems or making decisions for her
Breastfeeding and alcohol/drug consumption
My own experience was not to consume excess alcohol if i knew i was going to be breastfeeding in the next hour or two
i would find it hard to understand why a mother would choose to consume excess alcohol or drugs and continue to breastfeed
in this situation responses with some mothers find if they know they are going to consume alcohol they may express prior for their baby or express and discard the milk or has someone explained to you why the ABA does not recommend alcohol/drug consumption while BF?
If I reacted I would probably go back to asking questions to gain a better understanding of why the mother is making these choices. Take a deep breath -