NHS FB campaign for breastfeeding

[Isit7yet]

So I'm well aware of all the virtues of breastfeeding but this feels like a first! Local NHS running a friendly BF campaign recently with women holding cards saying I breastfeed because..... And today's had "I love my children" . Am AIBU to want to message them and say how offensive that is to me? Surely that implies that to formula feeding is to not love your child enough?

I’m very pro-BF, breast fed both my children but I’m flabbergasted by that woman’s poster and that it’s being allowed, for want of a better word, to go public.

I think it’s shocking and not a nice message to spread.

KneesUp - so any woman sharing their reason why they breastfeed could potentially cause upset to anyone who tried and failed to breastfeed?

It really doesn't matter how you choose to feed, and most mothers feel some judgement however they feed. I breastfed ds at baby clinic and was openly laughed at by 3 of the mothers there. I am constantly being told to formula feed by friends and family because he doesn't sleep through the night. I don't get why people get so annoyed and judgemental by how babies are fed. We are lucky we have a safe alternative to bfing just pisses me off that people take such an interest in however they choose to feed.

It speaks volumes that the NHS wouldn't realise how upsetting this might be. And you are not a fecking snowflake to be upset by it.

I'm tempted to send in a photo saying I breastfeed because my baby was able to latch on and my supply eventually improved . I was lucky.

I agree Lady those who FF can rave about how happy they are with their choice and get applauded.

But if you BF and do the same you're called smug and blamed for other people feeling bad. If you feel bad because you FF and someone else proudly BF, that is on you, that comes from within.

I've breastfed 2 babies for a total of 6 years and I'm bloody proud of that, and I do think it will have made a difference to them and their health

Incidentally I wonder if the woman in the picture had that piece of paper shoved at her by some NHS comms person, told to write a reason down and being put on the spot mixed with lack of sleep made her write the first and only thing that popped into her head.

YANBU.

I'd be interested to see the evidence behind this campaign and why they thought it was a good idea. My bet is a few women holding up placards on Facebook will do precisely nothing to improve breastfeeding rates. It will however make those women for whom breastfeeding didn't work out feel worse. If I'd seen that in the early days I actually think it would have tipped me into PND, I was already on the brink.

"I breastfeed because I love my kids" FFS whose bright idea was that?!

I can see how this poster campaign might upset some people, but as a breastfeeding DM of a 4 1/2 month DD, I also feel that I need to be prepared to constantly apologise for my successful breastfeeding, and that is not fair on me.

Breastfeeding even when it comes naturally (as it did for me) is tough. I have had mastitis twice, neither times in the classic newborn stage, so have to be constantly on the guard for it. Also DD and I have had thrush.

After all that why shouldn't I be able to feel proud and celebrate it.

I breastfeed...as it is as nature intended, because it IS the best thing for my baby, I persevere because I love her, and also I do it because it benefits me (no periods gain yet that flair up endometriosis and anxiety).

Where I do think the poster campaign is ill thought out, is a wider problem. I don't think there is a lack of women wanting to breasfeed, I think there is a lack of support, not just NHS but within families, and also a lack of normality around breastfeeding. The NHS should think outside the box, and rather than targeting mothers to be with their campaigns they should target our mothers generations in order to myth bust what the incorrect beliefs they had forced on them (and apologise to them), so that they can better support us. My Mum Breastfed both me and DB in the late 70s/early 80s against the odds(formula given to DB by midwives whilst DM was still in hospital, 4 hourly feeding, giving water, solids at 3 months etc.). As a HCP with a long time obsession with evidence based practice (or lack of...don't get me started!!) I have the confidence, just to keep stating "No that's not how it is done now" and explaining why, but I understand how difficult this could be for someone without my background.

I have also been fortunate that I have been exposed to lots of breastfeeding, from my Auntie breastfeeding twins (when I was 4-6 years old), to older cousins (when I was a teenager), and friends. So I know it is normal, and possible, and also tough, but tongue ties, tired early babies, post natal ITU stays, PND etc can all be worked around. I know I am very fortunate, but wonder how others can be exposed in the same way, and I think this should be the aim of future NHS campaigns.

I breastfeed in public (and have generally had smiles and positive comments) and I feel that if seeing me with my boobs out gives one women the confidence to try then I have achieved something great. I felt bad this weekend, as I thought I was giving out a negative message as I had to use a cover (never normally would) as DD was far too interested in everything around us, and my nipples just can't take the rapid changes in head direction!!

What I KNOW is not healthy is this battle on MN between FF and BF. It's really sad.

Love the idea of women holding posters saying that they bf because their nipples were the right shape etc. It's very honest and not at all smug.

My now 5 year old couldn't breastfeed because of his disabilities. It really upset me that I couldn't breastfeed him and all the posters on the maternity ward going on about the benefits of breastfeeding when my baby couldn't felt like a slap in the face. Ditto the posters about skin to skin, babies being in cots next to mum's bed and all the other things he couldn't have. I'd already been told that his brain wasn't working properly, that his muscles weren't either and he had life long medical problems. Then I had to cope with all these posters, leaflets etc everywhere saying that all this other stuff that he couldn't have was really important too.

There must be a way of encouraging women to breastfeed while also saying that it's ok if you can't or don't want to.

The thing about breastfeeding is that no-one lets you know how something that should be so natural and easy is actually quite hard and needs perseverance and support. Too many people here have said they lacked support. My DH had gone to ante-natal classes with me and gave me tons of support when I was having difficulties and was instrumental in me continuing to try.

But how do you persuade mums to not give up so easily when it gets tough? We know what they're trying to say with the campaign, but where does the support that many need come from?

Time and time again the NHS is spending time and money on advertising breast feeding when the majority of women who give up due to lack of support especially from midwives who are busy or lack knowledge on postnatal wards.

I would have found this upsetting with my newborn. I just couldn’t do it and failing at breastfeeding was making me spiral into PND. Stopping saved my mental health. I had never contemplated anything other than breastfeeding so a Facebook campaign of successful people would have made no difference to me. Potentially better (and less judgemental) post natal support would have done though (although not fully sure). Also antenatal education covering how to safely make up a bottle would have probably made me less likely to be anxious around formula. It used to piss me off no/end that each time I wanted to look up something around formula I had to read all the ‘breast is best’ stuff. At that point there was no point. I’d love to know if anyone has ever been put off buying the formula they wanted because of the messaging as the only purpose I can see it serving is to make people feel crap. All of the emotional language etc around breastfeeding seem to be preaching to the converted half the time. The real issues lie in providing proper support and help at a point when it makes a difference.

I am a huge bf advocate, and struggle with a lot of the talk on here and elsewhere about pressure to bf and judgement around ff, as the restrictions/self-censorship some people would like to have put on bf advocacy would make doing it at all rather difficult, and we are still societally skewed towards ff, even though it may not seem it to some. But this particular image is spectacularly misjudged, to put it mildly.

I obviously hated my daughter and made up all my serious post natal health problems.

My sons birth was horrible, post natal care horrendous. Only things I achieved were avoiding an epidural (which was really important to me) and successfully bf, despite being drugged and out of it for a couple of weeks after his birth. Its possible to bf and have PND. But as someone else said I felt it was the only thing I was doing right at the time and I was not going to give up however painful or difficult it was.

BF is still not the norm, but NHS attempts at promoting BF all seem to end badly. I did a consultation a few years ago about BF support. The county council cut all funding on the grounds that charities could do the same and raise their own funds, and there was drop in support at all children's centres. Less than a year later they closed all the children's centres.

Maybe we need to start a couple of alternative poster campaigns...

I breastfed in spite of....

and

I formula fed because...

As a Mum who desperately wanted to breast feed her child but had absolutely zero supply to do so (possibly due to my medication) this would have broken me even further. I already felt like I wasn’t good enough as a Mum

Please lecture me and tell me how I don't love my baby. I find it really encouraging when I'm struggling with serious health problems. It's such an effective substitute for actual health care and feeding support.

In spite of would be more useful

I wish the NHS could make a decision to stop fucking campaigning around infant feeding and just get on with the business of providing support to help mums feed how they want to.

There is no lack of mums wanting to breast feed but there is a lack of honest information about how it all works (it is hard, it will almost always involve some pain, it’s a skill mum and baby have to work on together) and a lack of support to help with common issues.

I genuinely do think that all the campaigns achieve is making people feel crap. If someone is set on ff you won’t change your mind with some facile poster. And why should you anyway? Formula might not have the same benefits as breast milk but it is demonstrably fine as evidenced by all the formula fed people living perfectly good lives.

Ugh.

Oh man, tbh I believe the photo was well intended but really was pretty silly! Let's get this straight, all mothers love their babies...full stop! Perhaps the lady in the photo doesn't really know of any outstanding benefit (over FF) for BF so she just put this reason on the card...who knows?! The campaign should focus on the tangible benefits of BF rather than emotional guilt tripping. I personally BF but have found it really tough and have been so close to giving up and switching to formula soooo many times...and if I did I wouldn't have felt guilty or a failure. It's what works for you and your baby that matters!

The only reason I struggled through the first difficult weeks BFing was because I loved my baby and wanted to give her the best start. That's the honest truth.

It doesn't automatically follow however that if I'd FF instead that I wouldn't have loved her, or that I thought I loved her more than anybody who FF. That's a ridiculous projection.

It's impossible to promote BFing it seems without upsetting people who FF, although they are in the vast majority.

These campaigns and posters/leaflets/antenatal classes constantly trying to guilt trip women about breastfeeding and it being the best are boring as shit.

Breastfeed, formula feed, mix feed, do what YOU WANT. Who gives a fuck what other women choose to do? Busy bodies that's who.

Of course, it should be put out there that breast feeding is nutritionally better. But it should also be put out there that formula feeding is also just fine and mix feeding is a good middle ground. Advice and support should be available for women which ever path they choose to take.

This would have made me feel even worse than I was already feeling in my son's early days. My milk never came in but still I kept trying and felt a complete and utter failure. I was told by a breast feeding midwife specialist that if I wanted to breastfeed then I would be able to and that was an absolute and utter lie. I did want to, more than anything in the world. So (eventually) I FF because I loved my son and didn't want him to starve to death.

I bfd for 18m. I didn’t find it easy and I’m a big believer in doing what YOU, as the person caring for the baby 24/7 and devoting your entire bloody life to it, feel is best, whether that’s breast, bottle or a mix.

My next one I will mix feed.

I think the campaign is really tone deaf. I’m sure none of the individual women in it meant to be goady but statements like ‘I bf because I love my babies..’ I mean seriously. We all love our babies. Some women can’t breastfeed, some don’t want to. It doesn’t mean they love them any less.

A MUCH better way of campaigning would be something along the lines of:

How you feed your baby is your choice
Here’s the benefits of bf.
It can be a bit difficult at first!
But if you want to carry on here’s all the support —> loads of info on support, etc
Here’s loads of images normalising feeding in public
Here’s a support line for PND etc.

Positive campaigning works. Negative campaigning feeds PND and mums feeling shit at a time they are already vulnerable.

I couldn’t bf my baby after losing 2 litres of blood after he was born. I simply didn’t produce anything at all. I developed ptsd from the birth and felt massive guilt over not being able to bf him, to the point where I was suicidal. Seeing something like this, implying that I didn’t love my baby enough would have tipped me over the edge.