#bpressure - seriously?!!

[cantbelieveimonhere]

Don't understand where this campaign is coming from. My experience is total opposite. Am a breastfeeding mum and regularly feel looked down on/judged for it, and
stared at when feeding (discreetly)
don't think breast feeding is socially
accepted in the UK; it is bottle
feeding mums who are considered
normal (and bottle feeding in general
considered less embaressing etc)

"I felt isolated and had no peers with babies so really needed somewhere to go meet other mums for support but there wasn't anywhere to go"

There were no PND support groups? Drop ins for new mums? Sure start? Children's Centres? Stay and play?
There are loads of these where I live but maybe I'm lucky.

I was told that I wouldn't be allowed to go to the breastfeeding cafe when I asked as they had limited resources so wouldn't open it up to others.

I'm in Scotland so no sure start, children's centres or anything like that available. We don't even have a mothers and toddlers in the area.

who actually cares? I don't care how you feed your child, what nappies you use, what pushchair, what brand of clothes, etc etc. do what's right for you and if idiots want to judge leave them to it just smile and be happy with your decision. you know why you made that decision you don't have to justify that to every Tom dick and Harry. the only time our parenting choices should be called into question is by relevant authorities if they need to become involved. (even then the BF/ff debate is usually pointless)

CultureSucksDownWords
In my opinion and experience bf groups are usually made up of lovely mums, keen to give and get support. They would offer support/advice etc as able to anyone struggling to bf. But the reality is, once you've stopped feeding (regardless of the reason) it's a whole different kettle of fish.

Yes support would be beneficial for those mums who have stopped bf against their best efforts and wishes. But I suggest a different kind of support, more specialist, and not in a room full of babies being breastfed (that, in my opinion, would be the height of insensitivity!)

Also, it can't be assumed everyone who ff wants to bf. As seen from some posts above, not everyone wants to bf (part of me is really nosey and wants to ask why I don't get it)

I felt under huge pressure to breast feed, I had a lot of problems which I tried to get help for, I was just told I HAD to feed my baby for a least 30 mins per feed, baby would only ever feed for 10 - 15 mins at a time, oh and the time I got told off, in a hospital waiting room by a nurse for breast feeding and apparently showing too much breast did my confidence the world of good!

constantly that's the sort of thing I meant earlier when I said that there was pressure but no support. The nurse was breaking the law, and pretty much all that information was wrong.

Funny enough the attached picture just popped up on my Facebook feed, as a timely reminder that breastfeeding mothers are publicly shamed as well. Bottle feeding mothers, breastfeeding mothers, young mothers, old mothers, non-mothers - all of them seem to be fair game for 'shaming'. It's wrong.

It seems like there is a need then for formula feeding support groups to be set up. Could people do that locally of they felt that NHS support/provision was poor? I think a lot of women who volunteer at breastfeeding groups etc do so as a result of their own experiences, so it would seem that formula feeding women could do the same?

I'm am happy and proud that I CHOOSE to formula feed my daughter. She was well fed by her mother and father. I was happy and not stressed or under pressure to do something I had NO intention of doing. She is healthy and never went to Drs, she bright and articulate and studying for her degree.

However, this was MY choice and as mum's we sometimes have a choice in how to feed our children. I say sometimes as some people are for what ever reason are not able to breast feed.

We should focus on how we feed OUR own children and not judge other mum's for their own personal choices

That sounds like bad advice constantly, I was told that it was normal for the length of feeds to last for any length of time between 10 - 45 minutes. How long a baby is feeding for isn't a great way of seeing how much milk they're getting because some babies are a lot more efficient at extracting milk from the breast than others.

about the nurse telling you off. DS1 was in SCBU for a while when he was new born, and I remember one of the nurses in there having a huge rant about terrible it was that another mum had been breastfeeding her premature baby without sitting behind one of the screens the SCBU had. At least she waited until the other mum had gone to the canteen before telling everyone else how offensive she'd found it to be in the same room as a mum openly breastfeeding.

When I was pregnant with DT's I intended to breastfeed. I knew it was the right thing for them.

Unfortunately they were premature and I developed postnatal psychosis and I was on a lot of drugs so, after the first couple of weeks of frantic expressing it just wasn't an option. I still feel guilty about this more than a decade later.

I bf DC's 3 & 4 until I had to give up because of the drugs. I still feel guilty about this too.

They are all happy, healthy kids and I am a good mum to them.

Despite my 'failure' I celebrate the women who are celebrating breastfeeding. They are not doing it to make me feel guilty but to celebrate their achievements and to make it easier for others to choose this route if they want to.

Breast milk is 'better' but actually formula is pretty good too. We go through life as mothers being criticised for our choices but in my opinion the biggest critics are ourselves. If only we could get over our own guilt then we'd just be happier about the choices others make.

For the record DC's 3 & 4 were amazing vaginal births. I talk about them because they represent two of the best days of my life. Not because I criticise those who had C sections. It is easy to assume criticism which is just not there. Particularly around motherhood and childbirth.

I did complain about the nurse, I did continue to breast feed till he was 6 months, but not with out a lot of stress, baby never was putting on as much weight as he should, hence why they keptntelling me to feed longer. My baby was just never that hungry!

Feel free to ask me the question you had been phrasing before wrongly deciding I was a 'smug mum' lorgy. Thanks for the apology too...