To think that "97% of women can breastfeed" is a load of crap

I understand what @10namechangeslater is saying, if we push the narrative it’s easy too much when women struggle they think something is wrong and stop. I found BF terribly difficult, hated it for so many reasons, the pain, the mental side of it, but I beasted it out for the health benefits. I know you don’t want to scare women off trying, but there needs to be a level of expectation setting that not every woman glides through it or that having issues doesn’t mean it’s not working, when I was BF less than 5% of women were still BF at 6 months.

It can be. It absolutely isn't universally. After the first 48 hours when I was struggling to get a latch then we figured it out and it was absolutely easy. Never understood what "establishing breastfeeding" meant. It took just those 48 hours with DC1 for me to feel it was all sorted and straightforward and less than half an hour with DC2.

My experience is not universal by any means by neither is the one that says it is traumatic, hard, painful and exhausting

80% are mixed feeding by 6 months. I strongly suspect Norwegian mothers don’t run the gauntlet of exclusive breast feeding being pushed above all else on struggling mothers like it is in the uk . I suspect far more in the uk would continue for longer if the guilt mongering re any formula wasn’t so prevalent. It’s ridiculous. The hysteria and pushing of breast feeding is so so wrong in this country. A far more relaxed approach is needed.

Uh-huh. You think that’s what Nestle was doing in developing countries in the 1970s?

The study actually says that 97% of women surveyed in the Hunter New England Health District just north of Sydney, Australia were able to breastfeed their baby at least once. It was an opt in survey of 713 women who had given birth in the past 6 months in 2021, who had good English literacy and they were asked based on having previously opted in to health surveys. It's an area with solid income and education and breasfeeding is strongly encouraged and normalised. Those study parameters would favour women who had postive experiences. Even then the study doesn't say that 97% of women had enough milk to successfully feed a baby or that their babies achieved a good latch or were satisfied after their feed. It just said they breastfed their babies at least once.
Before formula and other modern infant health initiatives the infant mortality rate was enormous and also, it was very normal for women to feed other babies if their mothers didn't have milk - they were called wet nurses. That's much less common now.
I think supporting breastfeeding is important but not at the expense of the mother's health or baby's health. We do have to resist formula being pushed on vulnerable mothers for profit, but beyond that, fed is best.
pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC11913757/

Agree. I know some women have problems but I didn't at all. All 3 of my children were breastfed and I genuinely found it much easier than bottles.

Not judging anyone for not bfing but just saying many of us don't find it challenging.

As an ex midwife, I would say its extremely unlikely that 97% of women can breastfeed.
Whilst it can be rewarding I don't think it should be forced or mothers made to feel uncomfortable at not wanting/ being able to breastfeed.

And it can be painful which is disenfranchising. Mums have enough on their plates without the extra burden of being forced to perform by those who think they know better. Babies can be raised perfectly well on formula so don't stress.

Exactly. I am the least earth motherish type you could imagine and after a short period of tenderness, it was absolutely fine and felt very natural and easy.

I found it incredibly hard. I had flat/inverted nipples and a planned caesarean which meant my milk didn’t come in for five days. When baby was tiny my nipples were raw and bleeding. Part of one of them went black and fell off.

Still glad I did it.

It's about the physical ability to breastfeed. Obviously, there are other external factors that may stop some women breastfeeding or make them choose to not breastfeed.

Personally, I think breastfeeding has been massively overcomplicated and made to seem so difficult and daunting that fewer women want to do it. All the pumping and "lactation drinks/snacks" and topping up with formula until milk comes in. All that's really needed, in most cases, is to the put the baby on your boob A LOT for those first few weeks.

It’s your truth, that doesn’t make it a universal fact. I breastfed my first baby to 18 months and currently breastfeeding my second baby, it is not incredibly difficult now.

The first I would say 3 months through cluster feeding, baby learning to feed effectively, your body learning, are hard and intense. From 3 months on, I have found breastfeeding honestly totally effortless really. That’s my truth, and the truth of lots of other mums who breastfeed, everyone has a different experience.

No it exists so babies don’t die and mothers have a choice .

10namechangeslater · Today 13:23
Breastfeeding is incredibly difficult.
What you mean is breastfeeding can be incredibly difficult for some women.

Formula exists because companies make money out of it. It’s normalised so women can get back to work, so companies can make money out of them.

It is incredibly hard and not a pleasant experience to boot. Thankfully we have very good alternatives.

It’s culture rather than support I’d say. Support is there if you want it but I think most give up when it hurts a bit.

More people that tried and didn’t get on with it probably could if they’d had more support. We paid a lactation consultant for support that was amazing, we we EBF a good long time. A friend of mine just didn’t understand the concept of cluster feeding and kept topping up with formula, and then was surprised when her milk dried up. She didn’t understand just putting baby back to boob if they were hungry again was ok. She was then upset their journey ended so quickly, but it was lack of education and support.

of course things do depend on disabilities, medical conditions, baby being happy to breastfeed etc, tongue tie - any of those matters, but there is a fundamental lack of support and education available to people that do want to and then don’t get on with it for whatever reason.

To also caveat - if you didn’t want to and never tried, your choice to make, nobody should have an opinion!

Over 90% of women in Norway are breastfeeding their babies at 6 weeks old. This shows what can happen with the right support and culture.

Le Leche league are good and FAB. Support exists.

It’s not incredibly difficult, that’s an irresponsible statement. Some find it hard, some find it easy.

I found it ridiculously easy. I had enough milk for 5 babies and no discomfort whatsoever. I fed mine for a year at least. It remains one of the best and most enjoyable and most rewarding experiences of my life.

I don't know but I genuinely believe that i am one of the 3% who physically can't and it was basically impossible to get anyone to listen to me. I really wish someone would have investigated it properly, my son wasn't gaining weight and I went through a lot of mental anguish that probably could have been avoided. I didn't even try the second time. I had an eating disorder during puberty and I think it affected my development but I guess I'll never know.

Have you spoken to a mental health professional about your issues around breast and formula feeding? You’d probably benefit from getting some help, there’s no need to feel as upset as you appear to be about it.

20 years ago, I spent a soul destroying few weeks trying to feed my baby but my milk never came in. All I had were drops. I felt so guilty and a bad mother when I gave up. At that point, my DM revealed the nugget that she had had a similar experience with me, thirty years earlier.

I would like to see more support, I used to volunteer through Surestart to support young mums to breastfeed as they are least likely to have supportive families statistically, but the programme (actually whole centre) was closed in 2012. I’m still in touch with some of those mums, the first of the kids have gone to university. If you have relatives, friends and colleagues who breastfed you are far more likely to because it’s partly a cultural choice, others like me were too lazy to bottle feed, so much faff!

One of my DC had jaundice that wouldn’t budge past the acceptable time. He was born in winter so exposure to sunlight was difficult. We had to go to hospital to have him checked over. For some reason they kept pushing me to feed him formula. I actually cannot remember why they did this because it was almost 8 years ago but they would not let us leave the hospital until I pumped a certain amount of milk “to prove I could”. I had to pump and also make sure there was enough for him (he was only tiny so supply wasn’t fully established). They kept coming in to check and would say “if you just give him a bottle you can go home”. I held firm and he never had formula, breastfed till 2.