...to ask what you think of this new breastfeeding video?

[clitorisorclitoraint]

I found it a tadge patronising.

You?

I really love the use of ...... and really over use it too!

Who said they looked terrible? I thought they looked great - but that wasn't the point. Someone asked what about it creeped me out: well firstly, I think I find the obsession some women have with a basic bodily function a bit strange - it gets to the stage when it's almost like a fetish - and I also found the juxtaposition of overtly sexual imagery with feeding a baby really, really odd. And all that bouncing and enthusiasm - I'm far too British to do anything but shudder over that sort of thing.

I'm TTCing and of course intend to try BFing - dur, it's free, convenient and how we're supposed to do it - but I truly cannot summon up one fluid ounce of enthusiasm for it beyond that. I'm afraid I look deeply, deeply askance at women for whom managing to feed their children the way it's been done since we first crawled of the primordial ooze is the most exciting thing they've done, and so they simply must go on and on and on and on and on about it .

(Not saying that the video necessarily falls into that category, and I do understand the need for help and advice, but there's something about that whole 'hey yummy mummies let's breast feed - it's cool and sexy and FUN!' that's a bit counter-productive. If anything, it makes BFing seem more odd, more of an issue, more worthy of attention, positive or otherwise).

In my opinion the aim should be for the whole issue of BFing to be so normal that it's ... well... boring

"No amount of government or lactivist propaganda would have made me any more or less likely to choose this path."

With all due respect, you're just one person, though.

I am breastfeeding my second (she's nearly 1 months old, fed DS until he was 13 months), and was always going to a). because my Mum b/fed us and so it seems nothing more than normal to me and b). because I'm your stereotypical middle class, older, educated mother.

But there are loads and loads and loads of women out there who don't fit into either of those categories, who may well be persuaded one way or another. Whether this is the way to do it necessarily, is obviously up for debate - but to say that since you yourself had (as I did) your mind firmly made up, then everyone else will have as well, is crazy. Hmm, you're living up to your name today.

If that's the case, then the advertising and marketing industries would no longer exist, would they? If people can't be persuaded from one way of thinking to another; from one brand to another, then how come we live in the consumer, brand-driven, aspirational-for-the-next-'in'-thing society that we do?

And formula will always have this edge, since it is a multi-million-pound product which can be marketed and sold and profited from, whereas breast milk is free and produced by Mums.

I do agree though, the 'breast is best' is a useless and totally unhelpful campaign and slogan.

She's nearly 11 months old.

I liked it. I sincerely hope that Virginia and the mums who took part are able to brush off the negativity. The mums looked attractive, happy and confident, the point was made that breasts are more than just funbags, and the babies were lovely.

I don't really care about whether it addressed the million and one serious issues around breastfeeding. I'm pretty sure that was never the intention. Anything which just gets breastfeeding VISIBLE, in conjunction with a smile or two, brings it a little out of the closet and is a good thing, IMO.

For it to ever be accepted as normal it needs to be out there, visible, and as acceptable as bottle feeding. The more pressure there is for it to be 'discreet' (for which, read invisible), the more likely it is to disappear from our culture, and the more intolerant people become of mums who dare to feed their babies in public.

Well done Virginia et al. At least you are doing something to counter the massive negativity that surrounds breastfeeding.

I said they looked terrible Bloofer. It wasn't meant to be insulting, it's just what I thought when I saw the outfits. They were so unflattering I'm not sure many people would look good in them. I know I wouldn't!

Mumma I agree with you that the idea of having BFing extras in tv shows and soaps is a very good one. A subtle but effective approach I think.

And to your point on confidence - I didn't/don't feel confident breastfeeding at all. I'm doing it for the second time round now and hate hate hate feeding in public despite living in an area where it is quite normal. I feel exposed, I don't like having to ruffle up my clothes and dig about in my bra in public and at any given moment my baby latches off to have a good look about leaving me flashing parts of my body I'd rather not! But a video like this one isn't going to change that.

I was over the moon at dropping day feeds with DD at 8 months and moving her to formula, and just continuing the morning and evening BFs which I could do at home and did so until 12 months. I hope to do the same with DS.

I find it shocking how people (mainly women) can be so so negative in fact ignorant towards breastfeeding.
Blooferlady yes you are right breastfeeding should be thought as as just normal.... but hey thats not the case in our society its the minority that breastfeed and those that do hide away in public ashamed of what they are doing. especially young women that havent got support from friends and well ... society!

The negative comments on here about this video are shocking, everybody involved in this video have put effort into a good cause, the dancers may not be professionals nor are they all size 8 models but they have put themselves out there to say to people hey were all different we all breastfeed but were not the stereotypical hippy looking mums that are thought to breastfeed we are everyday women who can be sexy as well as feed our babies normally without being ashamed.

There are women out there that have problems with breastfeeding and these women need a lot of help and support which is not always available however it is too easy in our society to give up and turn to formula which is seen to be 'just as good'. To get breastfeeding more in the public eye, it may start to be seen as normal. Women grown up in cultures where every woman breastfeeds, and thats all they know and see from small children, do not have half as many problems as we encounter in our society is that not saying something??

Anyway back to the video I think its excellent!!! x

Shake you're probably right and it would be nice to think that BF campaign efforts are not in vain, but I'd be interested to know if BF rates have increased as a result of public health campaigns or not and which approaches work/don't work. I genuinely don't know. I stand by that I don't think this is the right approach though!

"Women grown up in cultures where every woman breastfeeds, and thats all they know and see from small children, do not have half as many problems as we encounter in our society is that not saying something??"

Nail on head.

I'd look perfectly foul dressed like that, it must be said...

I think people need to be very careful that their insistence that BF must be done as publicly and confidently as possible doesn't end up having the opposite effect.

I was bf; all my sister bfed their children. They do it easily, discreetly, happily: it has never been noticed or commented on. I thought it was OK to want to feed your child a little discreetly (by which I mean in front of folks but maybe shielded with a cloth etc.) because, after all, if no-one's seen your nipples up to the end of your ninth month of pregnancy why would you suddenly want them displayed to all and sundry a bare 48 hours later? Seems illogical to me.

Now that I am given to understand that you must be confident to sit bare-breasted up to the table in the local restaurant, that the use of a muslin to preserve modesty is somehow wrong, and that expressing any opinion other than "I feel literally no embarrassment whatsoever and frankly welcome strangers seeing a part of my body that until three weeks ago was private" is just damn well letting the side down...you know, BFing suddenly seems intimidating. Like a really Big Fucking Deal that I'd better get right, that's all.

Which is a real shame, I think. Before reading all this stuff, and the endless debates on MN, I just thought it was something you got on with, with a minimum of fuss, and if it wasn't for you, well, thankfully your baby needn't starve .

Yes yes yes it should be boring couldn't agree more but right now it IS an issue if it wasn't surely the breastfeeding rates would be higher?
I know I keep going on and on about how it's a comedy and all that but I honestly cannot see how it can be misconstrued as anything else? I really don't think it's going to be stashed on the top shelf hidden from view for those special times men sometimes like. But then maybe your right after all people get sexual pleasure from all sorts of inanimate objects...(Surely these must be a small minority though?)
You say "of course intending to breastfeed" but your not in the majority well done you and I really hope your successful. (good luck) Some people fel proud of breastfeeding because it isn't seen as normal and they have had to pass a lot of obstacles to manage it (disparaging comments from friends/family who think it's weird, being told to cover up when doing it in public, in correct latch, bad support to name but a few)
and btw I think I'm very Brittish I have stood up and been counted, thrown myself into something I feel passionately about. It's not ALL about sitting reserved ankles together and drinking tea!

Ach, well. I do wish you all luck, quite seriously, and understand the need for some form of encouragement and whatnot. And the whole thing might have made me shudder so hard I dislocated my neck but I suppose there is a demographic that might've found it enlightening.

My trouble is I'm a cantankerous old cow and the more I'm told something is fun and brilliant the less inclined I am to do it

An advertising billboard from the BlooferLady school of advertising would look like this -

TRY BREASTFEEDING: IT'S FREE!

... and there's no washing up

I appreciate your opinion BlooferLady.

Breastfeeding seems very alien to me, none of my friends or family breast fed and its something that I find hard to get my head around. Personally when the time comes (only 11 weeks atm) its something that I'd like to try as its whats recommended and I want to do whats best for my future baby. Currently I dont think I will have the confidence to pull it off. :(

Studentmidwife - I agree that they look fantastic, and it really does look like all the people involved had a lot of fun, and midwifevh, I think you are brilliant to believe in something and do something about it.
I feel the reaction to general public may be a lot more negative than it has been on here. I know many people who find burlesque offensive, it is one of those things that is quite divisive amongst people, and can be interpreted as being a bit seedy. Coupling this with breastfeeding seems a bit counterproductive.
Like I said before, (crazycatlady, it was me who suggested BFing extras - I very rarely get recognition for my amazing ideas, so I'm not letting this gem slip away ) seeing it allover the place, done in a way that isn't "militant" or "exhibitionist", but just as a normal thing to do, it might just filter through to the general masses that actually, feeding a baby is no big deal, and certainly isn't something to complain about.

@blooferlady; beg pardon? Seriously, what?

Who the blink are you talking about that espouses such daft ideas?

d0gface I'm sure whatever route you take your baby will be loved and nourished and cared-for. And congrats on your pregnancy :)

And I completely understand - even with the background of BFing being normal (and free! and easy!) I still quail at the thought...simply because it's been made such a huge deal of, mostly, it must be said, by those who are so vociferously for it.

If someone said to me, 'look m'love, give it a shot, you don't need to suddenly discover hitherto untapped sources of extrovert body-confidence, hardly anyone'll know what you're up to, and if it's not for you there's formula', then I would feel no nerves at all. But the pressure - urgh . And I'm not even bloody pregnant yet!

Which ones carrot?

I warn you, the daft ideas probably came from MN! (someone posts asking about getting one of those BFing cover things, and they get shot down in flames; someone posts about feeling uneasy at a woman sitting naked from the waist up in a cafe, and gets shot down in flames; someone posts about feeling anxious about how to feed discreetly, and they're laughingly told to buck up and not bother concealing anything, why would they, they have every right to show as much flesh as they like, etc. etc. etc.)

(And I do realise that's a very selective reading of MN posts!)

dogface my advice to you is to keep asking and asking for help until you get it right (which you will) I wasn't fussed about Bfing my eldest girl until she was actually born I had a really good mw and health vis and eventually it all clicked into place took a couple of weeks mind. Look at me now hahah in a corset on youtube I feel THAT strongly about it.
Give it your best shot and that's all you can do. Good luck with your pregnancy X

Bloofer - you're right, you can't win on mn can you?
D0gface - public feeding is easier in real life than it seems to be on mn. Once you get the hang of bfing, you can work out levels of discreetedness (I know that's not a word) that you are happy with and practice doing it without sitting naked from the waist up!

The subtle approach does wk with some people blooferlady (you probably being one of them) but you do need to have a bit of perserverence sometimes with breastfeeding until you get it right (well I certainly did) and if someone had said that to me when trying to breastfeed I would have reached straight for a bottle. I found it hard at first but do not regret it one bit. I'm proud of it I have given and still am in one case my babies the best milk tailored for them exactly (not a calf) no sterilising and it was free!

I thought I may have been misinterpreted, I'll clarify.
I often choose to breastfeed discreetly. I'd much rather I felt able to feed in a less self-conscious or contrived way but I don't like feeling vulnerable to nasty comments.

I fully support the right of others to breastfeed discreetly.
I also fully support those who can't manage 'discretion' whatever that encompasses, to feed their babies in whichever manner is comfortable for them.
oh, yeah, and I have no problem with those who do want to "sit bare-breasted up to the table in the local restaurant" because if they are feeding their babies who cares, really. Except that I've never met someone like this yet.

I've not much time for anyone who likes to be nasty or judgemental about another mum feeding her baby, however she does it. And I don't appreciate someone else telling me the correct, or modest, or discreet way to do it.

I do believe that the pressure of "you MUST be discreet" is worrying. And whilst I accept that some people feel discomfort with the whole idea of seeing breastfeeding, I expect grown adults to address those personal issues as their own problematic attitudes to be overcome. I've no truck with anyone expecting others to hide away. The problem lies with the beholder, and it is they who need to change.

Just to clarify still further carrot - may I take it that the 'nasty and judgemental' person isn't, in fact me?

Don't disagree with anything you said up there, with perhaps the proviso that I can understand how those who are not accustomed to seeing BFing done without any concealment may find it a little startling at first - it mayn't be a problem per se, and something for which they must be banished to the naughty step, simply a product of their upbringing/culture/character.

I cannot rouse any interest whatsoever in how other women feed their children, and merely live in blissful optimism that the same total disinterest will one day be felt, by others, about me. With the possible exception of my Mum.

Glad to clarify that I didn't mean you, bloof.

I just wish it was as normal and unremarkable to see breastfeeding as it is to see bottlefeeding. Even after years of doing it I still brace myself for unpleasant comments or looks, despite the facade of nonchalance I project.

At home, I don't give a second thought and breastfeed in the most accessible way. Out and about, I do contrive to cover the top bit of my breast and yes, I generally make it look like it's just a cuddle. I'm pretty successful at disguising it completely. I'm irritated that I should feel the need to do that. It ought to be as comfortable as it is at home, and I shouldn't be worried about receiving abuse. It's a weird dichotomy. The more I hide it, the more I contribute to the general mentality of "it shouldn't be seen".

If you don't reel comfortable exposing your breasts in public then don't! You can bf without having to expose anything. If you need to use a muslin cloth or even one of those cover up apron/poncho things to get you on your way or even for the whole time you bf then so be it! I really dong see what the issue is.

Also just wanted to comment that you don't need to wear crap bras and clothes to bf either. I was back in normal bras quite quickly (small breasts and not much leaking) and I don't own a single 'nursing top'. I've just been wearing normal clothes.( bf 5 years in total so far)Admittedly there are certain tops that are a bit more awkward than others but it really didn't have too much impact on what I chose to wear.

Handy hint - you can use one of those 'bump/belly bands' or even just a regular strapless top as a good cover for your stomach while feeding. You wear it underneath your top and keep it below your breasts so the jelly belly stays covered while you're feeding :) I find the less visible skin there is, the less attention you draw to yourself and I don't feel the need to draw attention to the fact I'm feeding but I don't need to hide away either.