Ok i'm going to stick my head above the wall for a second - though sometimes I find these breast versus bottle debates so tribal and passionate sometimes that I don't understand why there is not a middle ground.
I exclusively breastfeed, it was really hard to begin with, while I was pregnant I went to a breastfeeding workshop where they told us the benefits of breatfeeding versus the crime of bottlefeeding - preaching to the converted - I'd already made the decision to breastfeed just wanted the facts on what to expect and what possible complications. I wasn't warned about cluster feeding, knew nothing about feeding for 1 hour every 2 hours for weeks, did not know about blocked ducts or how to resolve before it turned into mastitis and certainly no amount of putting a silly plastic motionless doll would ever prepare me for a writhing new baby with milk squirting all over her because she kept falling off and we could not get the right position. Noone said that I would be sat feeding my baby frustrated and worried that I was a bad mother, wincing at the pain and crying my eyes out through exhaustion. My experience cannot be unique - when I asked for advise from Midwifes and health visitors I was fortunate to get pretty similar advice (I think thats quite unique) but my sactuary was walking into a breastfeeding workshop called Bosum Buddies every friday with lots of like minded mothers who shared the pain and frustration and delight. I thought of giving up many times over - it was guilt that kept me going. That and the fact that I wanted to breastfeed - so badly and now its pretty easy - i've returned to work, I pump, I feed my child. I kept going every week to Bosum Buddies until just before returning to work. It is run by a very accomplished breastfeeding counseller whom got me through the difficult times and let me know that it does get easier.
I have 3 other very close friends 2 have given birth within months of me and the other is pregnant now.
1 breastfeeds through the night and in the morning and the rest of the day he gets formula. He's a hungry baby - my friend desperately wanted to breastfeed but could not keep up with demand and her comprimise is to mix feed. The level of support she had was rubbish the HV was next to useless, mine was pretty clued up and very supportive, the midwife was pretty standard and she had little or no help from the breastfeeding counseller.
My other friend's baby was born at 26 weeks, she expressed morning noon and night to keep up her supply for 4 month so her daughter would receive breastmilk - when she came out of the special unit breastfeeding was so exhausting for the baby that she bottle fed her expressed milk and when her store ran out she turned to formula.
The friend who is pregnant now will likely breastfeed for the first 6 months and then wean onto formula when she returns to work as she did her first child, she has problems expressing but had no other problems and took to breastfeeding like a duck to water.
My friend with the premature baby still feels guilt for giving up the feeding - even though it was not working out for her and she was exhausted with expressing. I admire her for spending all that time expressing, visiting her daughter on an hour round trip at the hospital I'm surpised she had time to breath.
Can we not all just support 'Mothers' I would no more judge someone who is bottle feeding that I would someone who spends £500 on a baby outfit, or someone who uses disposable instead of reusable.
So in relation to this article. I think she makes some fair points. There is alot of hype about breastfeeding, the health care professionals are being targeted to bring up the numbers of breastfeeding mothers - yet that said the level of education that these 'professionals' who are front line support have is way below par. I think the medical stuff she quotes is an excuse - something she is using to justify giving up breastfeeding - for quite selfish reasons (i'm not saying that she is selfish, i'm saying the reasons are for her benefit first, her body etc.) The reality is that many woman have suffered much worse at the hands of breastfeeding - if she really wanted to breastfeed she would still be doing it as something quite primal takes over that simply will not let you give up. But it could be made easier if people had a good expectation and if people knew what to expect - i'm sure more mothers would give it a go and persevere because they know they can get support and the correct information. How many give up because they get competing information and no support?
That all said I understand why woman get so passionate about breastfeeding - but I also support a woman who feeds her child with formula and wish to god that there was a forum in which women could receive fair and unbiased advice on which formula's they should or could use. I wish that formula companies ethos was based on making hungry babies satisfied with the best and right ingrediants, rather than making the most money from the highest market share.
What I wish most though is that every baby was loved and cherished, kept warm and cosy and received the best possible care. I'm a good mother and I cannot fault my friends either - the fact that one feeds formula sometimes and the other feeds formula all the time is frankly none of my business and does not change the fact that they are fantastic mothers who love their children dearly. My mother never breastfed me, I was formula fed all the way - there was even less information when I was born - would I even question whether my mum was a good mother - not in a heartbeat - she was wonderful.
Being a mum goes deeper than just milk, there is a whole generation of formula fed 'adults' out there now. Being a mum is about making decisions for a dependant based on the circumstances your find yourself in and what you consider to be right.
Don't blast me for posting it here. There shouldn't be a breast v bottle debate imho, I would prefer to see us support every mother and not alienate people because the feeding choice is not as we would choose.
That woman should have been congratulated for giving it a go - anything is better than nothing, and we should mourn the fact that she had such crap information and hope that another person in her health authority has not suffered the same fate. Its a shame that in order to justify the decision to give up the 'facts' are way off the mark - but in such a poorly educated society on breastfeeding - I doubt if a health visitor or midwife will be able to argue against it.
Thats the real shame!
Debs