DivaDiamond007
Brilliant_Rock
- Joined
- Jun 7, 2007
- Messages
- 1,828
elledizzy5|1321043020|3059780 said:At least for the US, I find most people think you should breastfeed. HOWEVER, no one actually thinks we should support women to do this. We tell them "breast is best", we guilt them for using formula, and then we make them feel like perverts if they breastfeed in public or for what they consider to be "too long." Oh, and we provide them little to no time before they go back to work, no place to pump AT work, and shun them until they have to BF in a car or dirty bathroom.
So from my experience, women should magically be able to feed all of their babies, stop at the exact socially acceptable day, never do it in public (so don't leave your house!), and be ashamed if we can't manage to pull it off. Sometimes I'm convinced we hate the women in our country.
Sorry I'm a bit heated about breastfeeding today. I'm full term pregnant, and due to a shingles outbreak, I may not have the option to breastfeed, which breaks my heart. Fortunately, I know my baby will be happy and healthy regardless of whether or not I can feed him with my breast!
This.
I could have tried harder to breastfeed my son, but didn't and I don't feel guilty about it. He was born at 36 weeks and really had no interest from day 1. Just wouldn't latch. I started him on formula and stuck it out. He's now a healthy, happy, bright 3 year old and I have no regrets.
As many of you already know, my daughter was born at 35 weeks due to a placental abruption and had no suck/swallow/breathe reflex when she was born. She also had respiratory distress syndrome, apnea, and bradycardia. She was very sick. I began pumping right after she was born and continued to EP until she was 6 weeks old - at which time the pump rental fee and time it took to pump began to out pace the cost of formula so I switched. My insurance didn't cover an LC or the pump rental fee and I could only afford to take off 9 weeks following her birth; 2.5 weeks of which she was in the NICU. I worked for a small office so FMLA and other laws didn't apply.