Episode 51: Oh Mama! Special Series Episode 2 - Breastfeeding with AiArthritis Diseases

This week join your patient co-hosts Danielle Dass, Mariah Leach, and Cheryl Crow as they bring an important topic from the American College of Rheumatology Annual Conference to our show - a session that Mariah and Cheryl led at the conference! This episode will be part of a series of planned episodes on postpartum challenges for new mothers living with AiArthritis Diseases. Today’s episode will focus on the emotional and physical challenges of breastfeeding. Mariah Leach is the founder of Mama’s Facing Forward, a group dedicated to providing support and resources for pregnant women and mothers living with chronic illness. Cheryl Crow is an Occupational Therapist and the founder of Arthritis Life which seeks to provide daily living support for people living with AiArthritis Diseases. They will discuss the decision to breastfeed or formula-feed, resources for new mothers, safe treatment options while nursing, and ways to reduce pain and strain while nursing. The mission of AiArthritis is to elevate and center the patient voice in global conversations with all stakeholders about solving problems facing the autoimmune and autoinflammatory arthritis community. AiArthritis Voices - our online platform designed to deepen these conversations - allows all patients and parents of juvenile patients to attend conferences like ACR through our innovative new Learn and Connect section. So come join us to continue this and other conversations!   Patient Voices and All Other Stakeholders - Join our AiArthritis Voices Program and Connect to Opportunities to Have Your Voice Counted!   If you are a patient, a parent of a juvenile patient, or any other stakeholder (doctor, nurse, researcher, industry representative, or other health services person) - are you ready to join the conversation? It's your turn to pull up a seat. Join our new AiArthritis Voices program, where people living with AiArthritis diseases and other stakeholders who we need 'at the table' to solve problems that impact education, advocacy, and research sign up to have a voice in our initiatives. By signing up, you’ll get notified of opportunities to be more involved with this show - including submitting post-episode comments and gaining insider information on future show topics. Patients and all other stakeholders are encouraged to join so we can match you with opportunities to pull up a seat and TOGETHER - as equals - solve the problems of today and tomorrow. JOIN TODAY!   AiArthritis Voices 360 is produced by the International Foundation for Autoimmune and Autoinflammatory Arthritis. Visit us on the web at www.aiarthritis.org/talkshow. Find us on Twitter, Instagram, TikTok, or Facebook (@ifAiArthritis) or email us ([email protected]).   Show Notes: Episode 51 – “Oh Mama!”   00:52 - Danielle welcomes listeners 01:45 - Today’s episode is about breastfeeding with an AiArthritis Disease 02:09 - This episode is a continuation of Episode 11, which was about pregnancy with an AiArthritis Disease 02:23 - Danielle is joined today by Mariah Leach and Cheryl Crow who presented a session at the American College of Rheumatology Conference on supporting new mothers during the postpartum period 02:43 - Mariah and Cheryl introduce themselves 03:04 - Mariah had nowhere to go for support when she struggled as an RA patient in the postpartum period so she founded Mama’s Facing Forward, a Facebook group and website that focuses on pregnancy and parenting with chronic illness 04:18 - Cheryl is an Occupational Therapist and an RA patient who founded Arthritis Life to help arthritis patients navigate their daily lives 06:53 - Breastfeeding is one of the most common postpartum issues new moms want to discuss 07:14 - The decision of whether or not to breastfeed should be a personal one, but many new moms feel a lot of pressure from others to nurse their new baby 08:37 - Breastfeeding isn’t always the best choice for a new mom, especially one living with a chronic illness 08:59 - Fed is best. Choosing not to breastfeed is a valid option for any mom. 10:00 - The Fed Is Best Foundation is an excellent source for information about all feeding options, including breastfeeding, formula-feeding, and even using donor milk 10:39 - Breast is best in a vacuum, but no mother lives in a vacuum 12:36 - Currently there are many treatment options for AiArthritis patients that are safe to use while breastfeeding 13:56 - Women should never have to choose between medicating their AiArthritis disease and breastfeeding 14:13 - Moms who need to take medication while pregnant or breastfeeding should consult Mother To Baby (mothertobaby.org), a website-based resource that collects information to help moms make informed choices 15:15 - If you are experiencing difficulty while performing your activities of daily living (feeding, dressing, changing, or caring for your baby), an occupational therapist can help you find strategies for dealing with both emotional and physical challenges 16:12 - You may have to ask your doctor for a referral since not all doctors know that they can send patients to an OT for help with postpartum issues 17:24 - To reduce pain while breastfeeding, consider the ergonomics of your positioning as well as how you’re holding the baby 18:20 - Having an accountability partner in the home to help remind you to use healthy posture while nursing can be helpful to reduce strain and repetitive stress injuries 20:32 - If you will be bottle-feeding your baby, try to choose a bottle that is easy for you to open and close 20:50 - Moms who will be pumping may benefit from a handsfree breast pumping bra so they don’t have to hold the bottles for extended periods of time 21:13 - Try to choose clothing that is conducive to breastfeeding but does not stress your hands with the closures 22:50 - A breastfeeding pillow can be helpful for supporting ergonomic positioning while nursing, as well as reducing the need to support the baby’s weight while nursing 23:59 - Alternate positions like side-lying or the football hold can also be helpful if holding the baby in the traditional nursing fashion is causing pain for Mom 25:20 - If a position doesn’t work for you, it may be worth revisiting later because your preferences may change as the baby develops or even with a subsequent child 26:33 - If you want more information about this occupational therapy for AiArthritis patients, you can check out Cheryl’s website @ myarthritislife.net or find Cheryl on ticktock (@arthritislife) 27:20 - Mariah invites listeners with chronic illness to join Mamas Facing Forward on Facebook or find her on instagram and twitter (@mamasforward) 28:05 - Mariah and Cheryl will be back for more episodes on this topic soon 29:08 - If you are a patient or the parent of a juvenile living with an AiArthritis disease, please join us at aiarthritisvoices.org or visit aiarthritis.org/aiarthritisvoices to continue this conversation with us 30:05 - Danielle invites listeners to connect with us on all social media platforms @ IFAiArthritis or email us @ [email protected] 30:17 - Danielle thanks Mariah and Cheryl for co-hosting today’s episode 30:37 - Please consider supporting the show by donating at aiarthritis.org/talkshow   The session from the American College of Rheumatology (ACR) 2020 led by Mariah and Cheryl is called Reproductive Health: Meet Women's Needs.  Description: Addressing reproductive health needs is an emergent priority for the rheumatology community. New research provides guidelines for how to safely treat and counsel rheumatology patients about reproductive health. Still, women with rheumatic disease lack needed health information to make evidence-informed decisions about family planning. This panel session will outline the unique needs during the stages of pre-pregnancy, pregnancy and early motherhood of reproductive-aged women diagnosed with rheumatic disease.