why is there so much pressure to breast feed??

[blondebaby111]

Just that really??!!! At my first midwife app it was thrown In my face abit when I said I wasn't sure yet if I would but I'd feel more comftable doing both. Why are you made to feel like its such a crime. I'm only 12 weeks so have alot more appointments where this will be brought up.

I have friends who have breastfed and have had miserable babies that rarely settle, they are completely flustered with it and some verge on pnt because of all the pressure. Yet the friends that haven't breastfed or done both seem to have happy babies, they are a lot more happier in themselves and generally just so relaxed. So my views are mixed on this.

I don't want to start a debate but I just wish we could all make our minds up without midwives frowning or thinking its bad if we choose not too....just saying!!!

[MummyOfSunbeam]

Sonly I agree completely! There should definitely be more support so more women can have one to one, patient help w latch if they want it. It really does need to be gentle and relaxed for the mum.

I am so grateful that I had that from several people - being in hospital longer due to. Section had the massive benefit if five days bf education - and it took me all of hat plus two sessions with lactation consultant and three midwife visits, to be able to do it. Now it is as easy as breathing but acquiring the skills was NOT easy and without tht help I couldn't have done it and relaxed into it - so it is terrible that here isn't that kind of support everywhere.

[sonlypuppyfat]

Mummy thats what happened with me I was in hospital all week with my first and I was ringing that bell all the time!

[perplexedpirate]

Because your body is public property as soon as you get pregnant.
I had breast surgery that meant it was physically impossible for me to breast feed, they still did the hard sell on me. Which made me feel just great as I'm sure you can imagine.

[weakestlink]

I FF DC1 as I didn't get any breastfeeding support and everyone just told me he was lazy and didn't want to feed. They fed him formula in the hospital and that was that. It was such a faff and we spent a fortune on ready made formula!

I was determined to try and breastfeed DC2 becuase I felt I had missed out first time around. I actively sought out help and it was hard to begin with but I fed him for 9 months.

I hope to breastfeed DC3 due any day....

For me it's simple - breastfeeding is free, ready made and doesn't require any washing up! What's not to love? It's totally portable and you can do it anywhere. You don't need to even get out of bed at night!!!

If a RL friend came to me with your question I would suggest they give breastfeeding a try for a couple of months before going for formula. I found the first 6 weeks hardest and I think combining both would have messed up my supply. After a couple of months I think you would have a pretty good idea if you want to continue or not.

It's hard to make your choice unless you have actually given breastfeeding a good try.

[missymum]

Because babies are designed to be fed on milk from a human mother, not milk from a cow. However , when breast milk can't be provided , whether that's personal choice or something else, then formula is safe and very adequate for a baby's nutrition. But it is not ever going to be as beneficial healthwise. Think you need to do some reading OP, you sound v naive

[Mintyy]

Yes, op, I think you are right and should ask for this thread to be deleted.

[AppleAndBlackberry]

I believe it's the case that any breastfeeding is beneficial, so if you feel you want to mix feed after the first few days then why not do that?

I personally don't think it's the case that bottle fed babies are more settled. I have known plenty of ff and bf babies and can't really identify a trend either way. My bf babies were both very easy and I do think it's easier to bf at night than it is to actually get up, go downstairs and make a bottle of milk.

[lurcherlover]

It's funny that we are bombarded with adverts from formula manufacturers and no-one ever complains about the pressure that's out there to ff.

[doublecakeplease]

Missy - she's doing her research. Of course she is naive - she's in early pg with her first baby so of course she's not read all of the info needed to make her as wise as you are. Honestly - some of you give women a bad name. Op asked a question because she needs info and support as a first time mum.

[perplexedpirate]

That's the thing, Kingrollo. I did explain, several times, and at every appointment. I felt like a stuck record, and I wouldn't have minded so much but it was clearly written in my notes!
Didn't matter, I got the BF lecture every time, and many more times on the maternity ward as well.

[Smartiepants79]

Breastfeeding is difficult. It was hard and took weeks to get right.
However I don't regret a minute.
Both mine have been very settled babies. Sleep like logs with no wind or digestion problems.
Both went for at least the first five months with not even a sniffle.
BUT that is just my experience.
There is nothing wrong with FF, you must do what is right for you.
I would definitely recommend giving it a good go. Even a week or two of BF can be very beneficial for the baby.

[Ginderella]

I hated the thought of breast feeding, so I didn't do it. My DSis loved it and fed her DCs for months. I was bullied by midwives and HVs (the "breast nazis" as they were known) to try and get me to breast feed my DS. One midwife wouldn't take no for an answer and grabbed my breast and pinching my nipple and said "come on give it a try". This was nothing less than assault.

Every woman should make her own mind up. Babies will thrive on breast or FF.

[WinkyWinkola]

"So dd1 probably has more chance of having the breast cancer gene that killed both her grandmothers but dd2 has less chance. Riiight. Think there might be a bit more to it than what milk she drank for the first few months of her life."

Ilovemydogandmydoglovesme, are you being obtuse?

I have absolutely no idea about the chances of your dds getting breast cancer because of their genetic make up and how they were fed as babies.

The reduction of cancer risks in bf'd babies is a statistic. Not based on an detailed analysis of individual cases like your dds.

[Andanotherthing123]

Ginderella I had the breast grabbing experience in hospital too - the bloody irony was that me and my son were doing just fine on our own. I couldn't believe how pushy she was!

I've bf both my sons with no formula for 11 months each time. I do it because I hate preparing food of any kind and having to make up formula seemed like a bit of an effort...plus I had a great excuse to sit down for ages, and as you'll gather, I'm basically quite lazy laid back.

[Monka]

My midwife has never asked me how I plan to feed the baby and I am 34 weeks. I never felt under pressure to bf even at the NCT classes I attended with the special bf session. It's up to you as a mother. I intend to give bf a try and have bought a breast pump, pads, nursing bras etc and its been useful to know there is support out there if I want it but will see what happens when the baby arrives.

[WinkyWinkola]

No midwife has ever asked me how I intend to feed either with all 4 of my dcs.

[Amazinggg]

The pressure is extreme. And shitey when there's no support to do it - only pressure, pressure and some more pressure - with a hefty side portion of judgement.

Ffs. If you want to bf, lovely - but don't deny that at present, the NHS has its priorities wrong as far as encouraging women to breastfeed goes.

And really - it was the pressure, that in the end, caused me to give up trying. And the total lack of support in the 48 hours post c-section.

And, actually I'm pretty sure that there are stats that show ff infants to cry less, sleep for longer periods and be more alert sooner. From one of these millions of threads posted each week...

Can I claim my prize for ff-ing being compared to 1. smoking and 2. not using a carseat? Bingo!

[Talkinpeace]

pressure to breastfeed
try
option to buy safe formula milk
and remember how darned cush your life is

And
early breast milk : the first week or two : has far more to do with gut flora, antibodies, immune system and other long term components of a healthy baby than just food

hence why I used to donate milk to the SCBU

[StealthPolarBear]

"Can I claim my prize for ff-ing being compared to 1. smoking and 2. not using a carseat? Bingo!"

I was waiting for that and bingo there it is. If you read my posts properly I was comparing the wilful misunderstanding of the risks involved not the actual actions.

"Some people who have never smoked get lung cancer and some people who smoke don't. Does that mean smoking doesn't cause lung cancer?"

Explain to me how that is comparing formula feeding to smoking please. Because I'm actually quite angry about being cast as the fucking bad guy.

[lurcherlover]

Amazinggg, I completely agree that the lack of support is a big issue. It's ridiculous that there is a waiting list of a month in my area to have tongue-tied babies snipped - what are those mums meant to do for a month? Feed in agony every time? Hardly surprising a lot give up and use formula. All babies should be checked for tt before they leave hospital and snipped if necessary.

But, but...I can't agree that the NHS shouldn't raise awareness of bf, and promote its advantages to pregnant women. The number of women (well, the number of people really - men too) who really believe that breastmilk and formula are basically the same is frightening. I work with educated, intelligent people, and I've heard them say some really ignorant/untrue things about bf ("it has no benefits after the first 2 days"/"if you eat a bad diet formula has more nutrients"/"if I bf there's no way my baby will ever sleep through the night" etc, etc). And even people who know about the benefits often only know about the big ones - the lower risk of cancer etc. They don't necessarily know that bf is better for babies' oral development and can help their teeth come through correctly, or that it makes certain areas of babies' brains grow bigger. After all, if the NHS doesn't push breastfeeding, who will? Formula manufacturers spend millions of pounds pushing their products. I actually think children should learn a bit about the basic science of breastmilk in schools.

[OliviaYouCannotBSeriousMumsnet]

AHEM

[StealthPolarBear]

Is that aimed at me? I probably deserve it. Am just sick of clever closes thinking that they can take an example used to illustrate a logical argument and gain points by claiming that the person using it is comparing the contents of that argument with the one in question.
And yet if you read.the.words it's really quite clear that that's NOT what's happening. Oh but no, the opportunity to score some points is just so tempting.

[Ashoething]

Apologies olivia but I said repeatly on.this thread that I wished to bf but physically couldnt and one poster still decides to post a nasty comment disputing this.Was my bf dp specialistl midwife lying when she said bf was'nt going to work out f or me?