Laid Back Nursing Position

CAUTION: Can Make Nursing More Difficult

CAUTION The Laid Back Nursing Position often causes problems that lessen the chance of an effective, natural experience for mom and baby.

We do NOT recommend the Laid Back Nursing Position. 

This position makes it difficult for many newborn babies to latch on effectively with their wobbly heads and it is not as comfortable for mom or baby as the Cradle Hold or the Lying Down Position.

Instead, we recommend that you use the Cradle Hold, which is effective from birth through weaning. 

In the Cradle Hold Position baby is an active partner in latching on, as his head is supported at breast level on mom's arm, and he can make any needed adjustments with his head. 

The Lying Down Position helps moms get more rest.

Mom's body gets more rest in the horizontal position than when sitting up. 

And if she puts a firm pillow behind baby's back when nursing, he won't move away from her after nursing.

Problems from the Laid Back Nursing Position include:

1-    Difficulty latching on in the Laid Back Nursing Position.

It is difficult for a mom to control the latch on, to see what is going on during latch on, to center baby's mouth over the nipple and to make sure baby's bottom lip is flanged out, not curled inward.

And it is difficult for the mom to make sure that baby's nose is not being smothered by the breast.

Observe the difference between a baby in the Laid Back Nursing position and a baby in the Cradle Hold position. 

In the Cradle Hold, the baby is curved around moms’ body, tummy to tummy.

With his head supported on top of moms’ elbow, he is an active partner in making any final adjustments to the latch.

Mom has a view of how much breast baby is getting and can support her breast to help guide the latch, without triggering the Tonic Labyrinthine Reflex.

In the Laid Back Nursing position, what is supporting the baby's head? 

As mom lifts baby to breast, her hands are under the baby's armpits.

Newborns heads are wobbly!

2-    This position often causes soreness.

Some babies look like they are 'cliff hangers' at the breast in the Laid Back Nursing Position.

They extend their head and neck up towards the breast and are not getting 

all the nipple and some of the areola when they latch.

Moms complain of sore nipples, and we can understand this, as the

baby is often hanging down from the breast. He is not latched onto enough of the breast, but only has the nipple in his mouth and that will cause sore nipples.

The Cradle Hold Position is time tested and effective.

Caution - Laid Back Nursing Position, not recommended.

3-    Please remember, it takes time for a baby and a new mom to learn how to breastfeed. 

Although moms are told to 'learn all the nursing positions and to use what works for them', moms are not warned about the problems that the Laid Back Nursing  position, Cross Cradle Hold and other HSH positions often cause. 

We say this because when babies are not latching properly and therefore are not bringing in a full milk supply, there will be problems such as insufficient weight gain and nipple soreness from the HSH and Laid Back Nursing positions.

And babies must eat, one way or another!

 When a baby is not gaining weight properly, doctors will say to supplement with bottles of expressed milk or formula. And bottles given to babies under the age of 6 weeks often lead to baby preferring the artificial nipples and refusing to breastfeed, and then to premature weaning.

For moms who want to breastfeed, you can see how this makes the window of opportunity for finding an effective breastfeeding position quite small.

The newborn needs to breastfeed in a position from birth that will help him to latch on and bring in a full milk supply or else he won't gain weight properly.

The Cradle Hold and Lap Nursing Holds are the time-tested and effective positions for natural breastfeeding from birth until weaning; for bringing in a full milk supply, for comfort for the mother, no products needed.

When the Laid Back Nursing position is used from birth and mothers are told to not use the Cradle Hold, an opportunity to learn a position that is time-tested and effective, the Cradle Hold position, is lost. 

Mothers often will not be able to change to the Cradle Hold position on their own. 

The Cross Cradle Hold and other HSH holds interfere with the baby learning to nurse effectively, as is evidenced by the many babies who do not nurse well in those holds, and then products are introduced to help baby to gain weight.

Note: I have never seen a baby nurse effectively in the Cross Cradle Hold position. I have seen hundreds of mothers suffering because of it. 

As La Leche League Leaders, moms suffering with many problems contacted us for help, after they were taught the Cross Cradle Hold in the hospital or had learned it from lactation literature. 

We did the follow up, we saw the effects of the action. We saw the moms, at our monthly La Leche League meetings, who we had helped change from using the Cross Cradle Hold to the Cradle Hold position. The moms were able to nurse their babies in the Cradle Hold position for as long as they and their baby desired.

Moms would often return with subsequent babies, thanking us again for our help. They would tell us how easy it was to nurse their new baby, from birth, in the Cradle Hold position. 

For stories about the breastfeeding journeys of women who suffered from

poor positioning information see ("Mother's Testimonials.")

Q: What is the answer to avoiding breastfeeding problems and helping moms and babies to breastfeed for as long as they both desire?

A: While there are no guarantees, using natural breastfeeding techniques helps mothers to have the greatest opportunity for a natural breastfeeding journey.

We want all mothers and babies to breastfeed for as long as they desire.

We want mothers to have natural breastfeeding information so that the mom and baby are the ones to choose when they want to wean.

We don't want their breastfeeding journey to be taken from them by poor positioning information.

History of the Laid Back Nursing Position

The Laid Back Nursing Position became popular for lactation consultants (LCs) to teach after:

1- Lactation consultants had taught that the Cross Cradle Hold Position was 'better for head control' than the time-tested, effective Cradle Hold.

And while holding the back of baby's head or neck to lift him to the breast may look like it offers more head control, the newborn reflex called the Tonic Labyrinthine Reflex (TLR) was not taken into consideration. This reflex is thought to aid in the birthing process and lasts for a few months after birth. 

The TLR and Rooting reflexes cause the baby to turn towards whatever touches his face or head. The Cross Cradle Hold with the mom's hand on the back of the baby's head, triggers these reflexes. Baby turns away from the breast towards the hand on the back of his head, or will bob on and off the breast, causing latch on problems, sore nipples, etc, then back to the nipple that is touching his lips.

This looks like the baby doesn't want to latch, but really it is the double stimuli that baby receives when held in the Cross Cradle Hold, that tell baby to root towards whatever is touching his lips and the back of his head.

And whether the mom holds baby's head or neck, moms get sore wrists and arms from holding a baby in the Cross Cradle Hold for the length of time it takes a baby to nurse.

All lactation literature for breastfeeding moms and for training lactation personnel was changed to teach this new position.

The Cross Cradle Hold fell short of the goal of achieving better head control and has caused many problems.

My observation is that when someone says that the Cradle Hold is not as good for head control, they need help with positioning. 

2- Moms were then taught to not use the Cradle Hold Position at birth.

This redirected moms away from the Cradle Hold position, that is time-tested and effective, to the Cross Cradle Hold position, that was taught without it being tested for safety or effectiveness.

All lactation literature was also changed to teach this.

3- Moms developed many problems from the Cross Cradle Hold and 

other HSH positions including sore nipples, insufficient weight gain for baby, achy wrists, arms, backs, reliance on pillows, nipple shields, pumping, and bottles.

When moms told their lactation consultants (LCs) about the problems, many LCs offered products and services and told them how 'to fix' their Cross Cradle Hold position. 

For example, see Tara's Story / Mothers Testimonials page.

However well-meaning many of these LCs may have been, unfortunately their efforts, to help moms breastfeed using the Cross Cradle Hold position, largely led to frustrated mothers who were unable to breastfeed naturally and who often were out a lot of money spent on products and lactation services which did not solve their issues.

In addition to lactation literature being changed to promote the Cross Cradle Hold position, it was also changed to promote nipple shields, pumps, bottles and 'to have formula on hand, just in case', all before a baby was 6 weeks old.

Given that so many babies were not latching on or gaining weight adequately with the Cross Cradle Hold position, you can see why there was a simultaneous rise in the promotion of breast pumps and bottle use to make sure that babies gained enough weight.

Using products in a baby’s first 6 weeks contradicts what La Leche League International had taught since its founding in 1956 and what they had in their literature up until 1991.

Using products in a baby's first 6 weeks also contradicts how mothers have naturally breastfed since the beginning of humankind.

Here is some background for those who are not familiar with La Leche League, International.

La Leche League International (LLL aka LLLI) was founded by 7 mothers from 

Franklin Park, Illinois (just west of Chicago), who pooled their personal breastfeeding experiences to help other mothers nurse their babies using natural breastfeeding techniques. 

At the time, the 7 founding mothers were having their babies and nursing them, they were all very busy. Yet they saw other mothers struggling to nurse their babies, just as many of the 7 founders had struggled, when learning how to nurse.

Having met at a Church picnic, where they discovered their common desire to help mothers to effectively nurse their babies, the women continued their discussions at their kitchen tables. They used their homes to welcome all women and children to learn about breastfeeding and their garages to store the reprints and books and files of the fledging organization.

The 7 Founding Mothers of La Leche League helped mothers get back to natural breastfeeding.

This was truly a grassroots effort, before the term 'grassroots' was very well known.

Busy as they were, they started by giving one on one help to friends and friends of friends that needed breastfeeding help. Then they developed a book to share their information. They networked with doctors and nurses and their information spread. They would hand write personal letters of encouragement to everyone who asked for their book.

La Leche League grew by the women who had come to LLL monthly meetings for breastfeeding help. Some of those mothers 'gave back' after they had nursed their own babies for a year or more. They would go through a rigorous training and then would volunteer as a LLL Leader, with ongoing education opportunities and a network of experienced LLL Leaders and researchers who they could turn to for help when needed. 

Not only was natural breastfeeding taught, but a holistic approach to parenting was shared. This included breastfeeding-friendly childbirth techniques, continuing healthy nutrition, the importance of fathers, the advantages of breastfeeding, how to overcome difficulties, and child led weaning. 

 By answering the cry for help of mothers and babies, La Leche League grew to an international organization in over 40 countries.

Every technique that was in the La Leche League handbook for mothers; the 'Womanly Art of Breastfeeding', and in the LLL Leader's Handbook, which is for LLL Leaders, was tested by 3 LLL Leaders, to make sure the technique was safe and effective.

This was also a time when the advantages of breastfeeding were becoming well known and parents wanted those health benefits for their babies, moms and families.

The LLL Founders shared their information mother to mother, for free. 

The La Leche League organization helped me and millions of women to use the gift of natural breastfeeding for their children.

LLL had a 'hotline', an 800-phone number that moms could call for help for free. They would be helped by the volunteer LLL Leader who answered the phone and often were sent reprints for free and given local resources to contact for more information. 

As a LLL Leader, we had an LLL Directory of LLL Leaders to contact in our state and contacts for other states and countries. So, if a mom in our area had a friend in another state that needed help, we could help her connect with an LLL Leader in her area. 

Yes, this was before the internet.

It was a very helpful network of volunteers who helped moms, again, for free.

But as the 7 founding women - mothers, of La Leche League got older and scaled back their involvement, new leadership with a very different mission, took over.

The Founders grassroots approach of helping mother to mother, was largely replaced with a top-down, corporate mission.

The information in the LLL books and reprints was no longer tested by 3 LLL Leaders to make sure it was effective and safe.

The Founding Mothers mission for La Leche League was to share effective, natural breastfeeding information, experienced mother to new mothers, for free.

La Leche League's current leadership (who are lactation consultants), have distanced the organization from its roots, turning it into a profits-driven entity that uses the La Leche League name to attract moms who need help. 

Moms who contact LLL are often directed to lactation consultants who charge exorbitant amounts of money. Currently, breastfeeding problems abound due to educational materials and services that promote poor positioning. Further, when problems arise, instead of being able to contact a LLL Leader and get helpful information for free, a mom who contacts LLL will now be referred to a lactation consultant that charges money, sells products and may not give useful breastfeeding information.

We recognize that in a lot of ways, money makes the world go around. But in the case of breastfeeding, we believe that all women should be given the correct information to naturally breastfeed if they want to nurse their babies.

We recognize that:

-each baby and

-that the breasts a woman has and

-the milk supply that comes in after the birth of her child

-and the baby's natural urge to suckle the breast 

are all clear evidence that nature and Nature's God designed us to breastfeed our babies.

Breastfeeding is a free, precious gift from God, given us to nourish and nurture our children. It should not be interfered with.

To breastfeed naturally, all that is needed is mother, baby, and natural breastfeeding information.

For more information see Problems Caused by the Cross Cradle, Football and Log Hold Positions.

What does all this have to do with the Laid Back Nursing position?

Please consider these questions:

-Would lactation personnel ever take accountability for promoting information that negatively impacted the mothers breastfeeding experiences?

-Would they ever admit that they had taught the Cross Cradle Hold without it being fully tested for safety and effectiveness? 

-Might certain lactation personnel admit that they had never used the

Cross Cradle Hold when they nursed their own babies, but they taught it because that is what lactation literature said they should teach? 

-Afterall, to make money as a lactation consultant you must adhere to what the LC organizations say, or else you cannot pass their certification tests and make a living as an LC.

We have been trying to get this information into all the lactation communities since the 1990s, and it has been suppressed. Why was it suppressed?

My observations are that it is being suppressed because the current mission of 

La Leche League and the other lactation consultant organizations is now profit driven.

And no one makes money when natural breastfeeding techniques are used.

Of course, there are real implications if LLL and the other lactation organizations made changes in breastfeeding guidelines, particularly if those changes include admitting to error.

 If lactation leadership truthfully and publicly said that the 

Cross Cradle Hold and other HSH holds were causing problems:

-Could they be sued by the mothers who suffered because of the misinformation?

-Could they be sued by families who ended up using formula, when nursing did not work out? 

-Could they be sued for the expense of that formula and for any health issues that could have been avoided if nursing had worked out?

-Could they be sued by the women who suffered mental health issues because nursing did not work out and the mother's hormones precipitately dropped, and she ended up with severe post-partum depression?

-Would all the lactation literature, all books, pamphlets, blogs, podcasts, and websites that taught this HSH misinformation, be recalled and the authors held accountable for this misinformation, that has caused so many mothers and babies to miss out on the benefits of breastfeeding?

Look, many of us have had the experience of being part of a larger system that tells us what to do and how to do it. As employees, we don't always have that much of a say in what our jobs entail, especially when financial stability can be such a precarious thing. However, I do believe that we have an obligation to correct infective messaging, especially when that messaging is harming others.

Interestingly, and I think this was in response to an ever-increasing number of moms weaning early because 'breastfeeding did not work out for them', 

lactation leadership has been leading moms to the Laid Back Nursing position at birth and away from the Cross Cradle Hold position. 

In this way, instead of taking accountability and publicly admitting that the 

Cross Cradle Hold is riddled with problems and has hindered many mother's attempts to breastfeed, mom's have instead been rerouted.

Currently, they won't teach the Cradle Hold at birth, but they will teach the 

Laid Back Nursing position, which, while not causing as many problems as an HSH hold, does pose some significant issues.

That's why we work hard to educate and promote the Cradle Hold position, as well as other useful information that we have learned from helping mothers in their breastfeeding journeys. 

We believe that breastfeeding techniques that have been time-tested by many moms and found effective, should be the gold standard. 

Life can be complex, but breastfeeding should be simple, it is not rocket science.

To effectively breastfeed, all that is needed is Mom, Baby and natural breastfeeding techniques.

Cradle Hold Position from birth, no products, comfort for mom,

a full belly for baby.

For more information about the breastfeeding positions that help see

Breastfeeding Positions that Help.

For more information about the problems that the Cross Cradle Hold, Football Hold and Log Hold Positions cause, see

Problems Caused by the Cross Cradle, Football and Log Hold Positions.