To be bothered by this comment re extended breastfeeding?

[bingbangbing]

Possibly being a bit sensitive but it has slightly changed how I view someone I considered a friend.

Met up with a mum friend i hadn't seen in awhile. General chat about how our kids were doing, sleeping, nursery etc

She asked how long I breastfed my son for, I answered truthfully that we stopped when he was two.

Her reply was well "it clearly didn't do him any harm!" And burst out laughing.

AIBU to find this a bit hurtful?

I don't take offence at the word 'hippy' but I don't associate with it. It doesn't represent me. I'm not going to try and save the world, love everyone or go camping. I can't do gardening. But I love baby wearing, co-sleeping, attachment parenting, long walks and I'm a breastfeeding counsellor. I'm also in an intensive FT role and leave the cooking to my husband. :) labels aren't useful.

Yeah it's wierd, mention the word "hippy" and people see red.
Yeah it's wierd (sic) mention the phrase "natural-term" and the OP sees red

Stick it on yogurt, not people.

I can’t even begin to explain the irony of that sentence. I just need MN to come up with a facepalm emoji.

You actually don't sound very likeable, OP. You obviously haven't got the replies you were hoping for and are now acting like you had wasps for dinner.
There was nothing wrong with your friend's comment, unlike your loaded comment about your different parenting styles (quite when 'career driven' became a parenting style I'm not sure. Got a link?!)
It must be exhausting being the perfect, sling wearing, breastfeeding mother AND looking for things to be offended by all the day.

@Ohtherewearethen



@Ohtherewearethen

But you also face by said why you think wearing a sling is ‘hippyish’ . Loads of people have said that they don’t conform to your stereotype. Not that it matters really but it is one of my pet hates that people confer some sort of greater meaning or social status to using a sling. It’s not that special or unusual.

Your original post drips with you feeling superior to the ‘career-driven’ mother. That’s why you’ve had some sharp responses.

Jesus OP you sound like a right pain in the arse. And offensive.

Your “mum friend” is probably better off if you do fall out with her..

Come on Saylwhat you know what you’re saying there is unacceptable

What's unacceptable? My personal opinion?

Yep. You managed to keep it to yourself earlier in the thread, so you clearly know it’s nasty, untrue and that health organisations don’t agree with you. You can say that you’re just “expressing your personal opinion”, but you must expect to be called out on it if your opinion is nonsense.

@Saylwhat why is it creepy...? Babies get teeth as young as 4 months, what on earth has that got to do with it?

I certainly had no "need" to be fulfilled as a "modern woman" whatever he fuck that means. My youngest (who is female by the way) will be 2 in April and she still feeds at night because she sleeps better that way.

An opinion can never be held as nonsense as it's merely an opinion. I'm just saying what I observe and perceive. I think it's weird breastfeeding when your child can talk. That's just me! Others probably see it as beautiful and the OP's loathed word 'NATURAL'. I don't.

It's creepy to me. That's all. If you're happy with your own choices, I'm not going to rain on your parade. But not everyone will agree about everything all of the time.

I don't see it as beautiful, I don't see it as anything. I just don't really think about it. I feed her when she wakes up and then I go back to sleep. I don't discuss it with friends and family, unless they were to ask a specific question I suppose. I don't consider myself to have achieved something. I just started feeding her at birth like many do and I just haven't stopped yet. I find it odd when people have such emotive feelings on the subject when it's not something that particularly concerns them.

There have been 2 threads on here today - one where a 10 year old boy's mother goes into the dressing rooms at the swimming pool to wash his hair and another where a 42 year old man still lives at home with his mother.
Why are women like that over their sons?

Rude.

No, describing this feeding choice as “creepy” is nasty and you know it. It reflects badly on you, especially on a thread that is inevitably full of women who did feed longer than eg 1yo. We all know people feel like you do and it’s not that unusual an opinion, as it’s cultivated by our modern society. You say you fed for six weeks and were pleased to give it up- great that sounds like the right choice for you, and it’s just one of many parenting choices we all make over the years. See how easy it is not to be a dick about other people’s feeding choices?

Oh come on, extrapolating from breastfeeding to stuff like that? You’re on the wind up

YABU. Your breastfeeding (and no, you didn’t “extended breastfeed”, you breastfed for the recommended amount of time) won’t have done your son any harm, but having a mother with an attitude like you‘ve shown here certainly will do as he goes through life.

It's creepy to me. You think it's acceptable to call me nasty for expressing my opinion? I'm not God. I'm not the oracle. I'm just saying that it's creepy TO ME.

Don't people say 'natural' about breastfeeding (for any length of time) just to separate it from the alternative of babies being fed food out of a box? Which all mine were by the way, so no judgment.

OP the more you have posted, the more it becomes clear why you were offended by your friends comment. You just seem like the type who is quite uptight and looking to be offended by a lot of things. Not really my idea of a hippy, but then again I'm not really sure what 'hippy' means.

If it helps though, I'd guess your friend probably won't be all that bothered if you ditch her.

So, @bingbangbing, is your son on the taller, sturdy side? If you had answered that question, that several people asked, a few pages ago, you'd have got your answer rather than an argument.

From,
A SAHM, who gave up breast-feeding at 6 weeks and has never used a sling... (Not sure which box I go in, maybe you could help?)

It's not the word hippy that has made posters " see red" its the description of "career driven" as a parenting style. Obviously being career driven has little to do with parenting and so can't possibly be a parenting style. It is for this reason you are making a clear dig at your friend.