I'm a woman, but I think breast feeding is gross and barbaric, and not very ladylike. I know now that doctors tout it, say a mother's milk is the best thing to give your baby, blah, blah, blah, but I'm just not feeling it. Call me old fashioned or whatever, but it's not very ladylike to be in a public place and to see a baby sucking on a woman's boob. Not something to care to witness either.

each to there own

I personally think breast feeding is wonderful

both the closeness to baby that helps with bonding and well i just liked it

but it's not for all.

It's a damn site cheaper than formula

PaisleyLace said:

Alcop0p said:

True, it would be cheaper than formula. I hear formula is expensive!

PaisleyLace said:

it is

i think it's lovely to see a mother breast feeding

maybe I'm weird

Well, I think it was just to feed the baby, I never had any kicks of it like some women do.

I think women who breast feed their babies in public are usually very thoughtless, if the feeding is done a bit privately it's better for the baby too as it can concentrate on sucking.

Alcop0p said:

No, you're not weird at all. As you said, to each their own.

Kayleigh said:

A good friend of mine was breast fed, and she said her mom would always take her to a quiet place so that they could have some privacy. Think I would prefer that as well, if I ever decided to breast fed a baby (fat chance!).

I work in a Midwifery clinic with 6 midwives and 2 OB/GYNs. We also have a WIC department linked in. At first, I too was a little leery of the whole thing "in public" but as I've gotten used to it, I understand my issues were just that--MY issues. I realized we've sexualized the breast so much that we've lost track of the original and intended purpose of them and made them into something both erotic and shameful. That's really unfortunate. I've noticed women from Mexico, Central America and African countries are much less self-conscious about their breasts.

Also, most women I've seen--and believe me, I've had zillions of women in my office breastfeeding in front of me--are really good at covering themselves. Even though they're in a doctor's office and should feel completely at ease being nude, they don't just "whip them out", they're considerate of others sensitivities.

When an infant is so hungry it won't stop crying, and knowing formula is much less beneficial nutrition-wise, it just seems stupid and priggish to be uptight about breastfeeding.

Gross and barbaric??? WTF? Somedays I just have to shake my head. Breast feeding is a natural and wonderful way for a mother and baby to bond, not to mention the beneficial nutrients that a baby requires.

PaisleyLace said:

Yes, I breast fed my two sons and I always tried to find a place which wasn't very crowded because it would have made me nervous and it would have affected the baby too.

My elder son was breast fed 5 months and younger 7 months, I was happy to be able to produce the milk but boy it was great when my body was mine again

AnotherLoverToo said:

I just did a huge long reply re this and it crashed

i breast fed and i breast fed in public, in coffee shops ect but usually on the edge or in a corner, when you are breast feeding you don't pose like a page 3 girl, most people would hardly notice unless they were studying you.

I think its sad we don't moan about naked breasts and sex and things on tv and in books and films but you get a mother doing whats best for her family and it's

plus in some places the only "private" place to feed is in a public toilet

think of the baby and the germs how would you like to eat in a public rest room

although i have had friends feed in there because of the negative public opinion.

PaisleyLace said:

What?
Seems that you are saying two different things here:
1) You don’t believe in the value of breastfeeding, and
2) You don’t think it should be done in public.

I don’t know if you have children or not, so let me ask you:
Did you, or will you, breastfeed your children and why?

Do you care to elaborate on your comment about not “feeling it”?

AnotherLoverToo said:

Now this is true. I was raised in a strict household where I would probably get my ass whooped if I showed any "private part" of my body. Guess us women were raised to keep our "private parts" just that, private.

Not trying to be "uptight or priggish" here, just stating an opinion and inviting others to do the same.

kisscamille said:

To each their own.

Kayleigh said:

Exactly, I would probably have felt nervous too trying to breastfeed in a public place.

PaisleyLace said:

Yeah, I understand, I've heard some clients (pregnant women) talk about their discomfort with breastfeeding, especially in public. Quite often, these are younger girls--still teenagers--who feel kind of embarrassed about their bodies and nudity. I tell them, "just wait until after childbirth/labor and delivery experience--you're not gonna feel nearly as uptight or self-conscious as you do now!"

I also strongly encourage women to get electric breast pumps so that they can pump and store the milk and then feed in bottles if they're uncomfortable feeding in public. Once in a blue moon, though, the baby won't take a bottle--has to have the real deal nipple.

Alcop0p said:

I don't really like sex on TV either or in any public media, so I guess that really makes me a prude. It would be nasty to have to breast feed your baby in a public bathroom. Not fun at all.

AnotherLoverToo said:

About the first two captions I think alike. I've heard that in some countries men forbid their wifes breast feed the babies because breasts mean so much to the man, like he owned them or something. Here in Finland almost all women breast feed their babies and in a parents message board I'm into has been several fights over this subject, like 'you're a bad mom for not breast feeding'.

And this leads me to the third chapter in your writing which is very good sentence but if the milk just doesn't flow it can be a real burden. I know what I'm talking here because I had troubles feeding my elder son and all the people asking 'How is your breast feeding going?' made me very sad. I had to give him substitute along wiht my own milk.

Sometimes mom is just not capable of producing all the milk the baby needs, who knows why, but she should not be punished because of it. It doesn't make her lesser mom.

I hope I don't iffend you, it never was my meaning.

If you are bringing a human into the world, make sure you educate yourself on this topic before hand. Just for the kids sake.

I guess breast feeding bengal tiger cubs is okay, but human babies?
I'll have to give that one some thought....

PaisleyLace said:[quote]barbaric


LMAOO im sorry that just made me laugh loudly

DuckPurple said:

Nope, no kids here, but I don't really think it's appropriate to breast feed in a public place where other people can see you. If I can be done in a private place, then that would probably be okay.

Alcop0p said:

Yeah, the "private" public places women have to go to breastfeed their babies leaves a lot to be desired. Who'd want to go eat their lunch in the restroom with the stench of pee and shit?!

One of my friends was on an airplane, sitting in first class and breastfeeding her baby very subtlely. And think about it, everyone's facing forward, the only person who could really see what she was doing was her husband next to her. The other passengers would've had to be looking behind or next to themselves to see anything. Anyway, the flight attendant threw one of those gross blankets on top of the baby's head and told her to cover up. My friend was PISSED, but did it because she was afraid she'd get in trouble if she said anything due to the new heightened security measures.

AnotherLoverToo said:

True, I can imagine that after giving birth to a child, the embarrassment about your body would no longer be an issue. I have had other women say the same thing.

A woman I used to work with used a breast pump to aid in the feeding of her child, since she worked all day and the baby was at home. Seemed to work pretty well for her.

Kayleigh said:

Oh, no, Kayleigh, you're not offending me at all!! You make SUCH a good point--sometimes a woman can't breastfeed because she doesn't make enough milk or the baby won't latch on properly. Of course, in that case you just have to use formula.

In this topic, I was assuming we were talking about actively breastfeeding women, not whether to breastfeed or not.

There are some valid reasons not to breastfeed--obviously, when there isn't enough milk or the baby is having difficulty. Also, there are some women who were sexually abused and so the pregnancy--having something inside of them that they have zero control over--and breastfeeding is highly uncomfortable for them. They feel like their bodies are being used and taken against their will again, it brings up old feelings.

Thanks Kayleigh for bringing up an important point!

Kayleigh said:

I know what you mean about having troubles breastfeeding, my sister-in-law had the same problem with both of her kids. She tried breastfeeding, but it just did not work out, so she wound up bottle feeding them. She felt bad too about it not going the way she had intended.

I think you two should just breast feed each other at this point.

AnotherLoverToo said:

The smell would turn your stomach, that's for sure!

AnotherLoverToo said:

That's a very good point as well that I wasn't even aware of until now.