Before The Letdown: Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex and the Breastfeeding Mother

by Alia Macrina Heise, IBCLC Retired, Dr. Marcelina Watkinson (Editor), Diane Wiessinger (Preface)

Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex (D-MER) is a condition affecting lactating women that is characterized by an abrupt dysphoria, or negative emotions, that occur just before milk release and continuing not more than a few minutes.

Before The Letdown is eleven chapters of information for mothers looking for support and understanding, for care providers who want to know how to best support their patients and for partners and family members who want to know how to best support a mother with D-MER.

The book is written by Alia Macrina Heise, IBCLC who has been the forerunner in discovering and identifying D-MER since 2007. It includes a preface by internationally renowned lactation author and presenter, Diane Wiessinger, MS, IBCLC and is edited by Dr. Marcelina Watkinson, DClinPsy who did the first qualitative research study on D-MER.

204 pages, Kindle Edition

Published December 5, 2017

About the author

Alia Macrina Heise, IBCLC has been working in the field of lactation since 2004. Her most notable publication, D-MER: A Case Study, was co-authored with Diane Wiessinger and appeared in the International Breastfeeding Journal. Alia is considered to be the first authority on dysphoric milk ejection reflex and she has been speaking about D-MER since it was first named and defined in 2008. Not only a former sufferer of the lactation anomaly herself, she is also the webmaster of d-mer.org and an active author and speaker on the subject. She works closely with mothers around the world who are suffering from the condition, in order to support them and to better understand the variance of the experience. She is also in frequent contact with other professionals in order to spread awareness and to support further research and investigation into the subject. Outside of her work with D-MER, she is also in private practice as an IBCLC in the Finger Lakes region of New York. She lives in a small rural town where she enjoys country living with her three children.

Reviews

[JoyAutumn · Rating 5 out of 5]

This book helped me feel sane again in the midst of experiencing Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex (DMER). If you’re a breastfeeding mom wondering “What is happening to my emotions? Why do I suddenly feel intensely anxious/homesick/gross/nauseous/angry when I nurse?” Or if you know of anyone struggling with these thoughts, please read and recommend this book. It is so empowering to understand!