Susan
Schwiering has been a Certified Lactation Educator (CAPPA) in Jupiter, Florida
for three years. As a busy mother of three, she finds time to both enjoy and
raise her children as well as serve young families in her community. Though
required to take only Part I on the HUG Courses, she made an effort to
successfully complete ALL HUG courses including the Certified HUG Teacher
program. She shares her experiences with us today
When
I had my first baby, I was extremely overwhelmed by the stress and pressure to
do everything perfectly. When my baby and I began to have trouble nursing, I
was extremely frustrated by the lack of personal one-on-one help available in
my area. Although our local hospital did have a Lactation Consultant on staff,
she was unable to make house-calls. It took me three days to find a doula who
would travel to my home and give me the help I needed. This help made all the
difference. Reflecting on my experience caused me to make the decision to
become educated and certified in order to help other new moms.
The
HUG program is amazing and really spoke to me. I remembered well the problems I
had with my third child who was a terrible sleeper. We were up every 2.5 hours
until 7 months when, in desparation, I resorted to letting her cry it
out. I remember her crying for hours until by the fourth night she finally
"gave up" and slept twelve hours. Although our household became
a much more pleasurable place, it was heart-breaking to listen to her cry and
not the route I had wanted to take. After watching the HUG DVDs I just kept
thinking, "if only I knew about light and deep sleep cycles when my baby
was born." I knew then that this information needed to be shared wit other
young families.
From
the first days working with other moms, I realized how breastfeeding, sleep,
soothing and enjoying your baby all coincide. Those who constantly make
comments regarding their babies being fussy, difficult or a terrible sleeper,
usually begin supplementing with formula. The HUG information helped me recognize
this connection and gave me information to help mothers prevent and/or solve
these problems. I love how the HUG principles have been laid out and are easy
to explain and remember. Though I had offered parents techniques on
soothing their baby, I now feel a lot more confident giving teaching tips to
also help parents enjoy their baby.
While watching the HUG
videos and completing the readings I continually thought back to how I could
have helped my babies and myself. Now that I am a Certified HUG Teacher, I hope
to continue spreading the HUG message, helping parents avoid some of the
difficulties I had and strengthening their attachment to their baby