My breast friend

When my baby was 4 days old and wouldn’t nurse for more than 10 seconds without freaking out, the saints at La Leche League delivered me to Lorna Humphreys. Humphreys (at right, in red sweater) is the registered lactation consultant for Butte County’s Women, Infants and Children (WIC) program. She leads the Thursday morning “Breast Friends” support group at WIC and is also working with the county health department’s Breastfeeding Support Center at 1311 Mangrove Ave., Suite C. The center was started recently with money from Proposition 10, along with matching grants. Humphreys, center director Ann Dickman and lactation educator Carla McKiernan get referrals from doctors and other sources and hook mothers up with resources ranging from lactation consultants to breast pump rentals. There’s a lending library, comfortable chairs, a daybed and a baby-weighing scale.

Breastfeeding has been proven to raise immunity, combat obesity and lower the risk of certain diseases—both in the baby and the mother.

You don’t have to be on WIC to come here?

No. It’s for any mom in Butte County.

For something so “natural,” breastfeeding isn’t that easy at first.

Most women need help because breastfeeding has been bred out of society. We don’t [all] have a mother or a grandmother or a great-grandmother that we’ve seen breastfeed. We’re doing it for ourselves for the first time.

What’s the most common breastfeeding problem?

Sore nipples. And that’s the easiest one to fix. It’s [a matter of] positioning and latching on.

And what’s the biggest misconception people have about breastfeeding?

That they don’t have enough milk. I find that women are not experienced in trusting their own body; [they wonder] “is it really going to do this?” … A woman that doesn’t make enough milk is really pretty rare.

How accepting is society of breastfeeding?

I think society’s come a long way in accommodating breastfeeding. There are laws in place that protect breastfeeding women. Women used to tell me that people would complain; ask them to breastfeed in the restroom. Now, they just feel like it’s OK to breastfeed everywhere.

What’s the most unusual place you’ve heard of anyone breastfeeding?

Hmm… Moms traveling down the road will lean over the carseat and breastfeed. But you have to have long enough boobs.

I know you’re not a “militant” who looks down on mothers who don’t nurse.

Absolutely not! It comes down to a mom’s choice and we’ll support that choice. We can even help them “dry up” if they’re not going to breastfeed.