to think the NCT breastfeeding class was a waste of my time?

[FakePlasticChristmasTrees]

First time AIBU ? it?s a bit ranty ? but then they all seem to be so hope you don?t mind?

I had my NCT breast feeding class last night, since discovering I?m pregnant I?ve been given a lot of information about the benefits of breastfeeding, but very little practical advice. I had thought a breastfeeding class might be the solution.

However, in a 2 hour class, the first 20 minutes were spent ?getting to know everyone? exercises, then 1.5 hours on ?why breastfeeding is a good idea?, so only 10 minutes on any practical useful advice that felt rushed and very little time for questions. (When I asked about expressing, she said she'd get back to it, never did)

Everyone in the room had chosen to pay for the class and go out in the snow to get to it, is it not reasonable to expect everyone to already have decided this is something we wanted to do? We didn?t need the sales pitch.

Early on, we were asked about our ?fears regarding breastfeeding? ? one woman mentioned that the sheer number of woman who say they intend to breastfeed but then find they can?t or find it too difficult and the practicalities are a worry. There was general agreement that most of us were worried they wouldn?t be able to feed. Surely that should have been a clue not to stick to the pitch but to address the ?how to do it? rather than the ?why it?ll be a bad thing if you can?t?? (Far more time was spent on the statement someone made it might be a bit embarrassing to feed in public)

I?m considering complaining to NCT that they need to make it clear this is not a practical advice class but a class focussed on explaining why you should breastfeed (because I?d have saved the time and money and not bothered).

It is hard to get it right IMO. My NHS class on breastfeeding had us all passing round a knitted boob and holding a doll in a vegauely breast-related position. The dads were sent off into another coner and got to talk about football and beer whilst us mums had to try not to snigger at the inconguity of holding a disembodied, knitted breast. It was not much use. I would hope that an NCT class would concentrate more on the practicalities, positioning especially, telling you that all you wil do is feed in the first few months days, that you may feel really weepy, that you need lots of breast pads and may leak despite them, that it is not a crime to use Lansinoh or another nipple cream, that you need to drink lots..... They should give out the bf organisations phone numbers on a little laminated card, details of how to get hold of them, point you in the direction of nearby baby cafe or bf support group.

I would complain - they should have made it clear in the class description before you signed up. NCT classes are expensive, so if you are not happy, complain. I've found NCT admin to be terrible, but that's another matter...

How much practical advice can you actually give though if there isn't a baby on the breast to work with?

It is easy to assume that everyone has problems, but they don't - some kids come out ready to get to it. If that doesn't happen then practical advice on different holds etc would be useful.

Oh dear.....lankyalto, you are proving the point!

Why would we say this? 'all you will do is feed in the first few months days'...it is just not true for everyone.

Or this: 'you need lots of breast pads and may leak despite them'...again not true for everyone.

And this: 'that it is not a crime to use Lansinoh or another nipple cream' - we cant promote specific bands, but why would we suggest there is something wrong with them?

Or this: "that you need to drink lots....." Again, not true. Some women feel thirsty, fine, but not all, and there's no need to deliberately drink more than you feel thirsty for.

"They should give out the bf organisations phone numbers on a little laminated card, details of how to get hold of them, point you in the direction of nearby baby cafe or bf support group." All classes will include details on how to get help afterwards - not everywhere has groups or baby cafes, but if a class neglects to come away with a telephone number, then it has certainly left a gap, I agree

tiktok - in that, very valid, case could they not tailor the classes to those who are attending. Knocking 8 mins off of the getting to know you slot to get a simple show of hands type vote on which are the most important areas for the group?

I've been reading up on BF (expecting first baby in March) and also found watching videos of same on Youtube quite helpful. There are loads of them (you just have to ignore the ridiculous and immature comments posted under most of them ).

I do hate these 'getting to know each other' parts of classes - they do take up valuable time and many of us don't particularly want to get to know each other, especially not if it's just one class. It's more important if it's a series of classes.

Lovebeingamummy - a good class does tailor itself to the needs of the group and I think too much time on a 'getting to know you' thing is wasteful, you're right. The class usually knows each other anyway.

I am not in favour, personally, of a show of hands vote, for many reasons. Some people's concerns are not ones they want to make public, and sometimes, the class wants to know things that I, with my experience, know will not be useful to them or relevant until much later. I'd include '101 remedies for mastitis' in that and also 'what is the best breastpump to buy?' ....I mean we can talk, briefly, about pumps, but a consumer run-down on all the models on the market is not what the class is for. But some parents come wanting exactly that, and sorry, I probably disappoint them a bit there.

Why did I never think of youtube? Ceasnake you're a genius.

I bloody love Youtube. I've taught myself to sew, knit, do my hair in Victory rolls and now (hopefully) breastfeed from there!

I had exactly the same experience at the NCT BF class...the woman reminded me of Pauline (with the pens!) from "League of Gentlemen"....

When I raised the example of a friend of mine whose milk had dried up after 6 weeks, she airily implied this was totally impossible, and had maybe happened because my friend has implants (not-no, really, really not)!

I am afraid to say that we ripped the piss out of her rather.....

I hadn't thought of youtube either! That is genius!

Am Genius.
[proud emoticon]

The one NHS class I went to was very similar to the NCT one described - they started by asking how many of us were going to breastfeed, every couple in the room put their hands up, then spent an hour telling us why we should!

Well I stand by hat I said. There is too much airy-fairy stuff in these classes. What I wanted to know was practical stuff. I guess I have the benefit of hindsight now, but I do remember being told that there was no need for creams / breastpads. When I found that I did need them, I felt like I was doing something wrong. So I worried about it. That was counter-productive. I worried that I was thirsty - was there something wrong with me? I worried that ds wanted to feed every hour for about an hour at a time - i.e. all the time.

I didn't have MN when ds was a baby, I had a terrible first 3 days until I got myself to a bf support group. Then I heaved a huge sigh of relief when the fantastic bf counsellor told me that everything was fine.

Tiktok, I think you are great, and give fantastic bf advice. And I expect I am guilty of looking back at my bf experience with the benefit of hindsight. But mums-to-be need to know that it isn't necessarily going to be as easy as it us sometimes made out to be. And that if it is hard, it is OK to ask for help. Maybe bf rates would go up if ante-natal classes of all types were a bit more realistic. I know it is hard to get the balance right but most of the ante-natal stuff is about birth, not actually having a baby.

lankyalto: glad things worked out for you in the end.

I think the basics of any bf class are exactly what you said - it may not be easy, but there is help and it's ok to ask for it.

Not everyone needs creams or breastpads - that's not the same as indicating that there is something wrong if you do. Not everyone is thirsty - not the same as saying there is something wrong if you are. The worries that many new mothers have - is everything ok with my baby? Am I doing something wrong? How do I know I am not doing something wrong? - are not going to be resolved by an antenatal class...no matter how brilliant it is.

I thought my NCT bf class was useless - for me. My DP on the other hand found it invaluable, and it really helped him support me in the early days. yes, there was a lot of pro-bf 'propaganda', but he (and the other expectant dads, as it turned out!) didn't know much of it before hand.

also, it meant we met our local bf councellor, and although i disliked her initially, i found her very helpful when DS had changed his latch ever so slightly and it felt likre my nipple had been torn off

oh, and all the 'how to feed' stuff we were taught i the class? i honestly had forgotten the lot by the time the baby arrived! so he and i had to learn together - which was for the best!

scuse typing, he'svattached while i'm writing this!

oh yes, most important bf skill is feeding wiyth one hand and mn-ing with the other. it's not mentioned in antenatal classes though

I found the most useful one to be making sure that DS didn't end up with too much chocolate in his hair.

But just pretending that everyone will have an easy time establishing bf is equally useless.

I didn't go to an NCT class, just the basic NHS one. Maybe my experience would have been different. But my bf support group was in a Surestart centre, with bf peer supporters trained by an NCT counsellor, and she was brilliant. It's a shame that she didn't get the time to go round the post-natal ward because the midwives were too over-worked to help much.

Do people go to ante-natal classes before the births of subsequent children? It would be interesting to see what was discussed there

There were no NHS breast feeding classes in our area when I had ds and postnatally the advice was dubious or non-existant. My NCT bf evening also spent alot of time promoting bfing - however several of the dads were very hostile to bfing - unsurprisingly their wives did not bf. Only 2 of us did and we were both commited to bfing before the class - so the promo though interesting was a bit of a waste of time IMO. Very limited practical advice - I do remember being told about the 'rugby ball' position which was very helpful when ds seemed to have issues with my right breast initially

I'd vote more practical advice. Esp general mechanics - no need for degree level discussion on mastitis, etc.

My Mum (1970's) remembers all her NCT classes being much more practically orientated - how to bath a baby, change a nappy and how to bf etc. Sounds more useful.

morloth - if you're dropping chocolate on the baby, then your latch needs to be checked

They should be telling mothers that sushi is the perfect BF food. If you're twitchy around food, you've not had it for 9 months, so you really need lots. You can eat it safely with one hand. If you drop it on the baby, it won't burn him, or even make him messy, and you can pick it back up easily.

Seriously, guys, I think some pregnant mums want all the information in the world, but lots don't. I'd assume supply and demand, maybe basic positioning, and where to get help, would be the most important information.

"what did you think she'd do? have you stripped to the waist suckling a doll?"

Well, we weren't stripped to the waist (or at all) in our NCT breastfeeding class, but we did spend some time with dolls experimenting with bringing them up to the breast and trying to get them in the right kind of position. We all felt like absolute fools, but actually it was really helpful. We were also offered practical advice about what indications of thrush or mastitis might be and how to tell if there was the right suckling action (the little muscle by the jaw thing). I think of eight people in the class, seven breastfed for at least a few months and some for much longer so whatever we did (and I can't remember all of it), it was clearly helpful.

I have to agree with the OP, my NCT bf session was the same.

The bfc spent alot of time banging on about the difference between hindmilk and foremilk, and getting us to suck at an orange segment with a straw, not sure why.

There wasn't much practicle advice and she seemed "reluctant to put anyone of" in answer to a question about how long it might take to feed a baby I distinctly remember her saying "it might take as long as 45mins". Ha, I wish, no mention of cluster feeding. She also stated "if it hurts you're doing it wrong".

At the time I remember thinking it was a one of as the NCT are well know for being pro bfing, but maybe the type of person who is good at one to one help is not always so good at the group teaching?

I can see what TikTok says about limiting the practicle advice might be right for some people but I would've preferred more of it and would've been more likely to get bf established. Guess it's horses for courses.