Has anyone else ha this reaction about breastfeeding?

[Eminybob]

I’ve had it from a couple of HCPs over the 3 years of ds’s life, and just had it again from a midwife I’m seeing about my current pregnancy

When they had asked me how I fed ds, and I’ve said I EBF until he was 8 months, they seem really surprised and congratulate me

For one, that’s not that long is it? And what does it say about the breastfeeding rate if midwives are surprised when someone says they have done it and are planning to do it.

Odd reactions I thought, but has anyone else had this?

I'd be surprised he was exclusively breast fed and not weaning at all by 8 months.

Yeah, I took my baby for his first lot of injections and was congratulated by the health visitor who weighed him, the nurse who give the injections and the doctor when he had his check up. I found it quite depressing that the breastfeeding rates in my area must be so low for the 3 to comment how unusual and to congratulate me.

🏆

I'm still bf my 13 month old and the GP was surprised.

Well he was eating solids from 6 months as well obviously.

That’s what I mean LadyFuchsia it is depressing isn’t it.

My GP was surprised at how long I ebf. Asked when I plan on stopping too. And yes I have been congratulated.

Perhaps in different areas ebf rates are lower.

It is depressing especially seeing as he was only 12 weeks old at the time, would have thought ebf would be more common under 6 months but evidently not.

I know loads of people who breastfed for longer than I did tbh. My sil was still feeding up to about age 2 I think.
I also know a fair few people who didnt, either through choice or because they couldn’t, but I didn’t realise it was unusual enough to be noteworthy.

I breastfed my first son for 18months and people are generally surprised, when I had my second and he was about 7 weeks and we were really struggling with feeding, tongue tie, not gaining weight, fussiness and tummy problems, the health visitors were quick to tell me "it's ok, 80% (?Don't feel that was accurate) of people stop breastfeeding by 6 weeks! We kept it up for 6 months while supplementing, was very sad to stop!

She probably thought you meant you gave only your milk until 8 months and only gave solids then (at 8mo). The commonly used definitions in official publications tend to use ebf to mean mothers milk only; no formula or solids. Once solids introduced, in scientific papers that then would mean baby classified as not ebf any more (WHO definitions). So 8 mo ebf would be super rare, as it's not recommended to avoid solids after 6 mo. She may not have realised you meant baby did have solids, just not formula.

At one of my antenatal appointments with DC2 they asked how I planned to feed. I said hoping to do same as DC1 so EBF to 6 months, started the occasional bottle of formula once we started weaning and continued to BF to 14 months. Midwife hugged me and the student in the room as she was so overjoyed.

It was lovely, but yes it did seem a little unnecessary and I didn't think I was that unusual.

I had a nurse look at me aghast and disgusted when I told her I was still breastfeeding DD at 14 months...so the shock comes in different forms. But yes I found DD’s HV and GP etc were congratulatory. But I think they might get some form of credit for their BF’ing mothers (they record the numbers for stats), like it’s incentivised for them to incentivise it...not sure.

People look shocked when I tell them I am still breastfeeding my 13 month old son, and often not in a positive way. Health professionals have been very positive, which I've been pleased about. I find it quite sad that it's such a surprise to others.

Just stopping DD (2.3) from having night feed. Many are shocked but normally in a good way.

I had to mix feed with my first.

We do what we can - it does seem a little strange to congratulate someone for something they either wanted to do or didn't.

I was told by a GP, when he heard that I was still bfing 18mo dd, that I was starving her and putting her at risk of malnutrition. She was in the room with us (for an appointment about me) tall, robust and chatty.

Yes, it is sad that bfing rates are so low that 6m is seen as an achievement, and that, consequently, anything after solids/teeth/walking/talking is seen as weird.

TBH I feel that anything beyond 2-3m is a sort of achievement, because that's how long it took for me to establish bfing with all my dc. No wonder mums give up before 6w, when they keep being told it takes only 5-6w to establish bfing. '5-6w' is like 'Birth Plan'.

FWIW one of my dc was very nearly ebf until 8m, as he was utterly uninterested in solids until 8.5m. He wanted nothing but bm until then, would eat one mouthful of solids, then reject anything else. (Happy enough to smear it i n his hair, though!)

I BF DD1 to 15 months and still BF DD2 at nearly 14 months. DD2 is showing no sign of slowing down or stopping any time soon. Both have had challenges of different kinds to overcome to establish and continue BF. The only negativity I've ever come across is from a dietician with DD2. She kept trying to push more and more formula top ups and told me that I'd have to stop BF. Was surprised by that attitude.
Neither of my girls have been exclusively breastfed, formula played an important part of their lives, but I do believe BFing is whats best long term.

I thought most people BF and was distraught in SCBU when we encountered problems and DD had to be supplemented with formula. I was actually encouraged to find the statistics and realised that only 17% were EBF at 3 months and that meant I wasn't a failure after all.

The awful BF workshop I did at the baby friendly initiative hospital emphasised how natural it was and made light of any problems - in fact I came away thinking the only problem possible was too much milk
I think if people were better informed about what it's actually like and supported to combi-feed (instead of the current obsession with EBF) the BF rates would be higher

I was asked at the 12 months check for my DS1 how many bottles he was having. The HV looked momentarily confused when I said "bottles? none", thought about it for a few moments and then realised that I might be breastfeeding. The thing is, it is really unusual nationally. Even where I live that has high breastfeeding rates, by 12 months nearly all babies are formula fed. I was really unusual to be breastfeeding at 12 months, and even more unusual to be breastfeeding my DS2 at 22 months.

Everyone that talks about babies and feeding to me assumes that I would have stopped breastfeeding at 6 months at the latest. I usually don't mention that I'm breastfeeding well beyond that as I can't be bothered to have to try and explain or justify myself.

Airport security staff also get really confused when you're flying with a baby and don't have any milk for them to check.

I was a bit depressed at how surprised both HV and practice nurse were recently that I was EBF #2 at the 6 week checks.