Octoberfest is the month for beer and celebration in Germany.  Here in the States, October is the month of the breasts.  The focus primarily being on prevention and detection of Breast Cancer.  

For at least one month every year, I am happy that there is a conversation that centers around breasts.  However, these discussions do not generally highlight the impact of breastfeeding upon the health of women’s breasts and/or the powerful connections that are made during the breastfeeding relationship.

The first week of October, 1 Oct.-7 Oct., also marks National Breastfeeding Week in Ireland.

This year it will focus on promoting the wide range of support and information available to women who are considering breastfeeding.   A new website is launching today to coincide with this annual health initiative. TheBreastWay.ie will be a platform that will continue this theme for years to come and increase the numbers of Irish mothers who are happily breastfeeding their babies.

Having been breastfed by my Irish mother, this hits close to home.  Margaret modeled breastfeeding as a norm for me and my siblings.  In fact, she gave a withering look to the doctor who asked her why she was breastfeeding me, the first of five.  He turned tail and fled the room when asked “What are they (the breasts) there for?” 

I am thrilled that in this month of Octoberfest that there is an Irish light shining upon Breastfeeding rather than on the Guinness, which is often recommended as an elixir to enhance breastmilk production. 

I can add my multi-media book/course

, this blog, The Breastfeeding Salon  and The Breastfeeding Salon Show  to this mix.  Focusing on the positive and promoting a healthy reverence for the breasts and Conscious Breastfeeding the world over.

I was here in New York City on that fateful, and absolutely beautiful day 9.11.01 when the world as we know it changed.   Every time I see an incredible deep blue, cloudless sky I am taken back to that day.  I remember feeling so invigorated by that late summer morning and then having the wind knocked out of me by the tragic events as they unfolded.

To this day, I have spent every subsequent 9/11 in quiet contemplation.  It touched close to home as my brother at the time was a pilot for American airlines.  Luckily he was on a different route that day.  We also had a close friend whose brother worked for Cantor Fitzgerald and didn’t make it out before the Twin Towers collapsed. 

Over these past 7 years,  I have dug in deep and examined the meaning of life and my passion for empowering breastfeeding mothers.   My own mother, and many of the mothers who I have helped along the way, had encouraged me to share my unique perspectives with the world.  I committed myself to this task fully in the last year and have kept my promise to all of them.

I am pleased to announce that on this September 11, 2008 I have published my book, The New Motherly Art of Conscious Breastfeeding.

In this multi-media book, I outline a  breastfeeding system that is simple and strategic.  I have traced the history of breastfeeding over the past 50+ years and show how a subtle change in perspective can have a profound effect upon a new mother’s experience of her breastfeeding.  We can no longer sell a model of breastfeeding that is not culturally sensitive and which doesn’t fit into a modern lifestyle.

I truly believe profound connections are made at the start of life and that in these deep conscious breastfeeding connections, therein lies hope for our world and future.  Breastfeeding is so much more than just feeding.  It is foundational and truly the elixir of life.  It will empower women, mothers, partners and children to be connected through loving, respectful relationships within the family and greater community. 

It is my hope that this personal and practical guide that I have written will support and encourage more moms to embrace this breastfeeding model which truly fits in a modern life and is…the new paradigm of Conscious Breastfeeding.