The Star Online > Features

Thursday, July 31, 2003

For the love of the child

By MAJORIE CHIEW

In conjunction with World Breastfeeding Week which begins tomorrow, MAJORIE CHIEW checks out an online breastfeeding support group.

YOU are raring to be the perfect mother and totally breastfeed your baby because you have read all about the benefits of mother s milk, but suddenly you discover that reading about it is totally different from actually doing it. And the books do not provide solutions to breastfeeding problems, such as when the baby is not suckling well or the so-called lack of milk production.

Well, don t just wave the white flag and reach out for the bottle of formula milk. If you are determined enough to breastfeed successfully, help is just a few clicks on the mouse away.

There is a new online breastfeeding support group for all mothers and mums-to-be who are interested in breastfeeding: msian_ nursing_mom. The group, founded by Phang Sze Sze on Feb 10, started with just 12 members. To date, the membership is about 40 and still growing.

Members of the online breastfeeding support group and their babies at a gathering.

It all started when Chan Lilian, a mother of five sons, wrote an article entitled Working at breastfeeding (StarTwo, Jan 29). It sparked off some interest and several women, including Phang, contacted her. During their discussions, the idea of setting up an online support group for breastfeeding mums was mooted.

Penang-based Chan says:  As I have experience in setting up my own online grief support group, I suggested to Phang to start the support group because there are mothers who are keen to know one another’s problems. By word of mouth and through the link with the myhome4work website, membership grew.

The members are a multi-racial mix and include a few Malaysians abroad and an expatriate in Malaysia. They comprise full-time homemakers, working mothers and a few working women who are pursuing further education.

 Phang and I devote time to run this group out of interest in breastfeeding. There is no commercial gain or any other motive. We are not affiliated with anyone. Our mission is to provide an avenue for Malaysian mums to get and exchange information for the benefit of their children, says Chan.

 We vet through every application and each potential member has to write a short introduction about herself before she is admitted. This is to sieve out pranksters. Though the group is all about breastfeeding, we always ensure that every member feels comfortable in this friendly, interactive group, says Chan.

 Our main concern is to help members who may not have been successful in their attempts to breastfeed. We want to provide peer support in every area related to bringing up children. So far, we have discussed issues on car seat safety, dealing with sibling jealousy, weaning and starting babies on solids.