Occasionally people just get weird about breastfeeding, especially public breastfeeding. And it seems to come from three really basic pieces of misinformation or misunderstanding. And these really common perceptions are really damaging for new mothers and for breastfeeding.
The first one is this weird "Oh my god! when your breastfeeding your boobs are all out in the open! flashing your nipples everywhere! under that babies head is a breast! and its all obvious!!!! shameful hussy!!!" attitude. Which just really isn't true (unless you have very very big breasts and are feeding your baby in a specific position, as was pointed out by a friend of mine, Hi Krysh) most of the time you can just lift your top up a bit, and the baby snuggles on your lap and your really can't see anything at all. in fact, lots of people have probably been in a room with a breastfeeding woman without noticing because it does just look like you are holding a sleeping baby. I've sat chatting to people who haven't twigged that I was feeding Tabitha. You see more exposed flesh in the swimming pool, you see more exposed breast in a night club. It's like saying "women shouldn't go outside wearing clothes! because under those clothes they are naked!!!"...its bizarre prudishness.
The next one is "But that breast is in that mouth! that's like a sex thing! breastfeeding must be all sexual and wrong!" again, this one is weird and completely missing the context...yes, having your nipples sucked on in bed by an attractive person is very sexy...feeding a baby is feeding a baby. The context and feeling are absolutely different. Just like having a pelvic exam by a doctor to be tested for cancer isn't sexy, but it is 'stuff going into a vagina'. They have physical similarities to sexual acts, but they really aren't sexual.
and the last one is "But breast milk is all yucky! like wee and poo!" you hear this one a lot "I wouldn't pee in a public place! so women shouldn't breast feed in a public place! they should hide in toilets like you do for all other body fluid activities!". And this one is problematic because unless you have breastfed, the only example of body products that you have experience with are bodily waste products. urine and feces filled with bacteria. bad smelling, taboo ridden waste products. Whereas breast milk is sterile, nutritionally balanced food made specifically to feed your baby. it's filled with vitamins and fats and amazingly good things for a growing baby. breast feeding a baby in a cafe is just the same as eating a sandwich at a cafe. its the same act. it's providing food for your child. you wouldn't object to someone handing a biscuit to a child in public, and yet some people object to breastfeeding. it's weird.
These things seem all very silly and trivial until you realize that the knock on effect of all of these things being propagated is so negative. Breast feeding really is the best thing for mothers and babies. its why people keep banging home the message that 'breast is best' and that pictures of a mother breastfeeding isn't a sexual thing. These weird and silly perceptions prevent women from feeding their babies comfortably and happily, and that is wrong.
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