EMPOWERING PARENTS #4: Examples of empowering, non-technical, and woman-centred language used in NDC
| Preferred terms when delivering Neuroprotective Developmental Care or the Possums programs | Technical or popular terms that are not recommended |
|---|---|
| Face-breast bury | Facio-mandibular-to-breast symmetry(Thompson et al 2016) |
| Mother-baby pair, mother-baby CAS (complex adaptive system) | Dyad |
| Dialed up | Conditioned sympathetic nervous system (SNS) hyperarousal, stressed |
| Dialed down | Calm |
| Conditioned dialing up | Oral aversion, breast refusal |
| Fit and hold | Latch, attachment, positioning |
| Fit onto the breast | Latch or attach |
| Open the mouth | Gape |
| Generous breast | Large breast |
| Delicate or petite breast | Small breast |
| Round tummy | Fat stomach |
| Healthy bonding | Attachment (psychological) |
| Difficult thoughts and feelings, worried thoughts | Rumination, anxiety, feeling depressed |
| Dialed up at the breast | Oral aversion; breast refusal; conditioned SNS hyperarousal |
| Sensitivity at the breast | Oral aversion; breast refusal; conditioned SNS hyperarousal |
| Workability and experimentation | Natural or instinctual behaviours or natural breastfeeding |
| Nipple and breast tissue drag in the baby's mouth | Vector of force which conflict with intra-oral vacuum, resulting in decrease intra-oral breast tissue volume |
| Milk removal | Draining or emptying the breast, which falsely implies that the breast can be or must be 'emptied' during a feed |
| Frequent and flexible breastfeeds | Breastfeeding on demand |
| Nipples look | Nipples point |
| Smooth muscle contraction of nipples, nipple contraction | Nipple erection |
| Breast fall - where the breasts and nipples fall naturally in response to gravity | |
| Oral searching reflex | Rooting |
| Too far around the corner | Breast tissue drag too far towards the breastfeeding mother's arm (too far towards the same side as the baby is breastfeeding from) |
| Nipple and areola | Nipple-areolar complex |
| Can't overfeed a breastfed baby; baby is dialing up due to hunger for sensory motor nourishment | Overfeeding, overtired, overstimulation |
This table of preferred terms was first published as Table 2 in Douglas & Keogh 2017.
Recommended resources
Handing power back to mothers and parents
NDC neurobiological model: parent empowerment
Woman-centred language and weight-inclusive care of breastfeeding and lactating women
NDC uses descriptive terms for anatomic features (instead of the surnames of famous men!)
Selected references
Crawford E, Waldby L, Crook E. New perspectives on responsive infant care: a qualitative study of the ways in which Neuroprotective Developmental Care (NDC) shapes mother-infant co-occupations. Journal of Occupational Science. 2023:https://doi.org/10.1080/14427591.14422023.12236117.
Crawford E, Whittingham K, Pallett E, Douglas PS, Creedy DK. An evaluation of Neuroprotective Developmental Care (NDC/Possums Programs) in the first 12 months of life. Maternal and Child Health Journal. 2022;26(1):110-123.
Douglas PS, Keogh R. Gestalt breastfeeding: helping mothers and infants optimise positional stability and intra-oral breast tissue volume for effective, pain-free milk transfer. Journal of Human Lactation. 2017;33(3):509-518
Thompson RE, Kruske S, Barclay L, Linden K, Gao Y, Kildea SV. Potential predictors of nipple trauma from an in-home breastfeeding programme: a cross-sectional study. Women and Birth. 2016;29:336-344.