aiki, the reason it is "hard" is not that it is hard, but that women have lost the skill to do it.
it is like any other skill or art, if not enough people know how to do it properly, the knowledge gets lost. in cultures where bf is the norm, grandmothers, mothers, aunts, sisters, cousins and friends bf, they know how to do it, they don't rely on myths and rubbish coming from people who don't know and so they are just free to get on with it.
there are no stats. on what you are looking for, but ask any women who has "failed" to bf in this country for whatever reason and one of their no. one reasons will be lack of contact with any one knowledgeable about bf.
if you wish to give it go, my best advice is get to know other mums who are bf now, get all the nos. of bf advice lines (take them to hospital) have your basic facts about bf sorted out (kellymom.com, any LLL book on bf, etc.) don't rely too much on mw's, gp's, hv's, they tend not to have the facts, but all the myths.
i also know women who swear by Baby Cafes, LLL meetings, bf drop in sessions elsewhere because it gives them moral support. try these too. the more you do now to prepare the easier it will get later.
just to give you my personal experience, i suffered from a lack of knowledge initially as well as confidence, but the more days i did it the easier and more "natural" it became. the more i read, the easier it became. as my son put on weight steadily and looked like a healthy, happy baby, being fed from my body, the more confident i became. i also tend to be very dismissive of anything coming from a health prof. i never trust what they say until i have checked and double checked lots of other sources first. this can be a useful life skill for bf !
good luck