Anyone else prepared to admit that they didn't b/f just because they didn't want to ??

[IllegallyBrunette]

Just wondered really.

I have 3 dc and didn't breast feed any. I was 19 when I had dd1 and was asked by a midwife if i'd be breastfeeding and I said no. There was no argument or discussion, that was that.

When I had dd2 at 34 weeks she had to be tube fed. I offered to express milk for her but was told i needn't bother.

With ds, again I didn't want to but even if I had it would have been hard as he was supposed to be on phototherapy 24/7 for a week.

I think the attitude towards ff mums on this forum by some bf mums is disgusting. I would never dream of saying anything against any mum for feeding her baby by whichever way she chooses, yet some of the comments on here like 'formula should only be available if there is a proven medical need' are just awful.

IB - of course, you not breastfeeding had ZERO effect on the rest of society. (Except perhaps the small positive benefit of making you a happier mum).

This kind of extrapolation about breastfeeding is crazy! Totally mangled statistics coupled with very complex social issues (poverty, education, family circumstance, etc, etc) reduced to the idea that somehow one person not breastfeeding their children could 'damage' society. Madness.

I can't understand anyone not wanting to bf because it is the completely natural option, best for the baby and free-however I can't see why discussions get so heated, everyone is free to choose.

I'm sorry Monica, did you just say that me not breastfeeding made me an unhappier mum ???

Monica Free

It is public health policy in the UK. Not my bleedin' policy!

BF is a good way to reduce levels of obesity.

That's all there is to it.

i tried did,nt get on with it do wish i tried again when i got out of hospital.but at the end of the day its a mothers choice each to there own i felt in hospital they were bf nazis and bullied the young mums into it.as soon as i said i wanted to ff they did,nt bother with me at all i got left to it.if i had another i would try again as the few days i had bfing i loved the bonding just hated the terrible pain!!!no one should make each other feel bad we all do what we feel is best

Oh no I misread, you said it made me a happier mum. Sorry.

IB - NO! No, such presumption. Just pointing out that your decision was absolutely fine, perfect, yours to take, etc. And that if it in any way affected society then it could only be positive as you'd been free to make the choice you wanted.

IB, the health implications are on a population level, rather than an individual level.

i didnt want to, didnt try to and wouldnt want to next time

I do know that Stealth, but I still disagree with it.

I would say that choices made when babies are weaned have far more to do with obesity than wether a mother bf or ff.

Ah right, sorry, I thought you were asking earlier how your children had been affected.

I find it amazing that people can discount research with anecdotes.

IB why didn't you want to BF?

I think that Penthesileia's point about ff being part of a bigger picture in relation to our society's disgust for the female body is a very important one. A couple of acquaintances of mine told me that they couldn't stomach the idea of bf because it was "disgusting" and I did feel sad and wonder where this frankly unnatural idea might have come from, especially as one of these women was a nurse and the other a beauty therapist (i.e. people who dealt with other women's bodies all the time). bf is best, but converts to this idea cannot be made by making everyone who ffs feel like a lesser person, or by forcing everyone to bf, no matter if they are repulsed by the idea.

I would be interested in some examples of these so called anti ff mothers posts set in the context of the threads in which they occur.

I still think you are mistaken. A mother choosing to ff her child would be a very odd thing for a bfer to get het up about.

I find it amazing how research can say that a ff baby is more likely to be obese in later life when they have absolutly no idea what that baby/child/adult will go on to eat like, wether they will be fed a diet of chips and fried food all day every day or salad.
That to me makes no sense at all.

TheFallenMadonna I just see feeding my baby as what happens after carrying him, hence the analogy.
I agree with the pp who said that it is concern about attitudes to women's bodies that upsets some, including me.

Go and read the other thread then starlight.

Presumably such research is controlled for those factors - that's what sound research does.

Logical fallacy of anecdotal evidence, Stealth - common fallacy.

Otherwise there would be no proven link between smoking and cancer, for example. Or eating Big Macs and obesity. Oh but they're obvious, aren't they?

Stealth would you mind not talking to me as if I am thick as it is very patronising.

Never really thought about bf dd1, didnt know anyone who had bf my Mum had ff us, I think maybe if I had discovered MN I may have given it a go but said I was going to ff and noone questioned it just marked iton the form and asked what formula I was planning to use. When dd2 arrived I had discovered MN thought about bf but decided to ff as dd1 was 2.4 and having a very difficulttime adapting to me being away (both planned sections) and didnt want her to feel more alienated

Bookmarked for later, thanks, it's too late and I'm too tired...
I didn't come on this thread for a fight. Women who choose to ff should get all the support they need to do so, without comments or lecturing, but having amde sure that really is what they want. However it would be nice if as a society bf was seen as normal and people had a much better understanding of it - I think that would solve a lot of problems. It would also be nice if HCPs saw it as important rather than something hippy women do to martyr themselves and be awkward.