Feeling sad/hurt about breastfeeding

I know exactly how you feel, OP, because I've been feeling more or less the same way.

What baffles me is this belief that if something makes you feel the slightest bit uncomfortable, then that something SHOULD NOT BE ALLOWED.

But what really depresses me is that one of the leaders of one of the parties believes that businesses should be allowed to discriminate against me. Oh, and my baby. Which is at the heart of Farage's comments.

But that's fucking UKIP for you. Why am I susprised that Farage is an ignorant sexist shit? Oh wait, I'm not.

I've been on some of the other threads about this and I'm just bemused at how disgusted some people are by normal human bodies, particularly lactating ones. Especially when it comes from women who who are or have been pregnant, which surely is more of a physical change than breastfeeding.

I feel just like you OP after these past few days, I can't even bring myself to read the comments under online news articles as I know what crap will be there. It's so sad and it makes me not want to live here or bring my sons up here. I come from a country where it's perfectly normal and there's no stigma.

I think it's the page 3/lads mags/music videos etc that hyper sexualises everything to the point that boobs are no longer seen as mammary glands. Young mothers are therefore growing up in this culture and are embarrassed by it.

There's so much science behind breastfeeding and it's so clever the human body once you learn about it. I don't understand why there isn't more work promoting it in the media. Why not have educational adverts on tv, all we see is 'when it's time to move on' formula adverts. A few posters in waiting rooms isn't going to cut it. Plus more support, why are so many giving up at 6 weeks when those that carry on know it gets easier after that.

A lot of the posts on the other thread by people who weren't parents yet were enlightening as to what they think we should do. A lot of why not express a bottle to feed them so you don't have to offend anyone. No understanding of how expressing works for a start or how most babies reject bottle teats if they're not used to them. Plus why should anyone have to do that in the first place, breastfeeding is great because you don't need anything to leave the house except a large napkin it seems

ho hum

I've been absolutely staggered by it - I seem to have been extraordinarily sheltered. I breastfed DD for 10 months, anywhere and everywhere, and am currently doing the same with 8 month old DS, and have never had a single negative comment or so much as a raised eyebrow; unless I'm far less observant than I realised. Almost all my friends with babies breastfeed, as did my mother and aunts, and it honestly never occurred to me to do anything else, or that it was a big deal or something people could possibly object to. I don't think I'd have martyred myself trying to make it work if it hadn't come easily, but I was lucky and it did so I got on with it. Can't quite believe so many people seemingly have a problem with me feeding my children, and am slightly disappointed never to have encountered them so I could tell them precisely how mindbogglingly twattish they are...

Sadly, though it's not confined to men. I know of women who agree - because they see breasts as sexual.

It's further protected in Scotland as it is a criminal offence rather than a civil matter. Women can call the police and have the person arrested.

I must admit, I have been quite shocked at the comments under the news articles in various online newspapers. I had no idea so many people found it disgusting. It's so hard to do and takes so much emotional resilience to keep going with breastfeeding. It is been the most challenging task I have ever undertaken in my whole life.

When senior politicians think it's appropriate to tell women they should be discreet or sit in corners of course the gen pub are going to absorb that. I wonder if it's related to the single sex public schooling most of our dear leaders received? Squicked out by real women's bodies?

Lemon, right to Bf it is protected by discrimination legislation here in the UK too . And still this happens.

BeCool, I am in Canada and have been pretty amazed at some of the stories I've read in the UK press this week. Here, the right to breastfeed is covered by Human Rights legislation. In Toronto, where I am, The Public Health department does a fantastic job promoting and supporting breastfeeding. I have never seen any anti-BF sentiment expressed in the ten years I have lived here, and happily fed my two small ones whenever and wherever. It's interesting how it's not really an issue at all.

The first time I breastfed my son in proper public (as opposed to a very quiet and darkish corner of the pub) was sitting on a bench in a shopping centre with a ravenous 3 week old.

Breastfeeding had not been a walk in the park and when an elderly lady came and purposefully sat down next to me I'll admit I was gearing up to get an earful.

She said he was a beautiful baby, and she was always so pleased to see mothers breastfeeding their babies, told me well done and that I should be proud.

I will admit that I cried a bit afterwards because she was just so nice. And I always thought back to that moment when people were being fuckwits about breastfeeding in public.

BTW I am equally enraged with Boris Johnson saying mother should feed 'discreetly'.

YouGov did a poll which has been positively reported that "most people support BF" but even that show that between 18& 36% don't support BF in public - which is madness.

YOUGOV poll

I feel slightly ashamed to be a UK citizen at the moment - I just can't see all this hysteria happening in any other country. The world must be looking at us thinking WTAF???

And I agree if you are pro-BF you get called names even here on MN. It's incredibly depressing.

I just saw a woman BF in Westfield and I wanted to hug her (don't worry I didn't) - it was a gorgeous reminder for me personally, at just how normal and lovely BF is, and just how irrelevant the current media frenzy is and how all the fuckwits who think their ridiculous opinions on the subject are worth spouting are wrong.

I BF 2 DC for about 3 years in total - I did it where/when and how I wanted. It made me feel wonderful and my babies loved it.

Maybe that is what you need to focus on - ignore and block out all the idiots and just focus on the fact that you are doing something perfectly normal that babies love more than anything.

It's fear that drives it. Remember that. It's the fear of the patriarchy. Fear in its most aggressive form always comes before genuine and radical change.

It doesn't appear it of course but it IS positive and as a breastfeeding mother you are a part of that and you are paving the way for a better future for your children and theirs.

You should be very proud that you can be a part of this.