My best friend lived in a rural poor area of Poland until she was 7 (now 39)
and her eldest sister was 14.   Where they lived, breastfeeding was the
norm.  When there was a young baby, it was carried on the mother in a
shawl/sling, the mother keeping one breast exposed much of the time to feed
frequently.  It was the norm.  They thought nothing of it.
When they moved here to the bright, shiny wealthy US (hmmph), they saw *no
one* breastfeeding.  All of the Polish relatives here used formula.   The
older sister, being a teen, was very quick to internalize a belief that
formula=wealth=modern=good=desirable and breastfeeding=poor=peasant=old
fashioned=gross....among other things.

When the older sister had her first child, I'll never forget the look of
disgust on her face when someone asked if she would be breastfeeding (it was
just coming back 'en vogue' in Western Michigan), "that is DISGUSTING." and
on she went with a long string of disparaging remarks regarding the filth
that is breastfeeding.

I hadn't thought much about breastfeeding other than that it seemed fine.
 My mom nursed me for a little while and nursed my little brother (who
'wouldn't take a bottle'....smart little sh*t;p) for 14 months - very
unusual in West Michigan in 1972.    I even remember her getting a plugged
duct and mastitis when I was 3.   Nursed little brother like crazy for a
whole weekend to work it out.   Asked me if I wanted to nurse.  I
wouldn't....it felt way to wierd (and I was only three!!!  My kids nursed
waaayy past that age)

Anyhoo, when mom had that plugged duct and mastitis, she did the old LLL
trick with the glass jar....fill it with hot water to heat the glass, pour
the water out, place the glass jar opening on the breast over the
nipple/areola.   As it cools, it forms a vacuum and voila!  expression.
Certainly not ideal but....well, 1972.   But i have a point....my point it
that I thought breastfeeding was fine.  Normal.

When we were teens, and BF's sister was pg, I asked BF if she'd nurse her
babies one day.  No Way!  " 'D' talks about how disgusting it was in Poland
with all the women walking around with one saggy breast hanging out all of
the time and a baby hanging off it.  No way!"

Fast forward 15 years.   I'd had my first and was a hard core LLL'er.
 Baby was in a sling *all the time*.  I didn't have a stroller and she
wouldnt have ridden in one if I did.  No baby bucket for me.   I could sling
wtih the best of 'em.  An African woman at the hfs showed me how to hold
baby in the cloth so I could literally toss her over my shoulder and
backsling her (several ways....very cool).  Then: friend got pregnant with
her first.....was definitely going back to work when baby was six weeks.   I
brought up breastfeeding - very well, I might add;p - gave her _Bestfeeding:
 Getting Breastfeeding Right for You_ by Renfrew, Fisher, Arms  (my very
fave 10 years ago).....told her that she didn't have to do it the way I did,
there are lots of ways to make breastfeeding work, inclucing with going back
to work etc etc....and that it doesn't have to be a long term committment.
She put her hand up, palm extended, *in my face* and said, "I'll try it, but
if i don't like it or it doesn't work, I'm not doing it.   If it does work,
I'll try to make it six months....after that, it's offensive.  No baby that
old needs to be nursing"

Long story short (or not so much)....she nursed the first baby 4 years, the
second baby 5 years, went back to work when youngest was six instead of 6
weeks....and is a staunchly intuitive, attachment oriented parent.

One just never knows how things will turn out.
<<Some cultures, again, predominantly African, believe a woman cannot have
sex whilst lactating, and so the mother weans to make herself sexually
available to the father.>>

This widespread very old belief.  Common in Puritan New England and so so
many places.

In the Talmud, breastfeeding and weaning are discussed extensively.  There
is also the belief that if you go 'x' amount of time without breastfeeding,
the baby can't go back to breastfeeding - though I think it's only if the
baby is older.....like maybe 18 months or two years of age.  I believe that
younger babies 'can' go back on the breast even after a period of no
breastfeeding.  There is also the opinion that nursing while pregnant is a
Bad Thing b/c either the fetus will suffer or the nursing child will suffer
(nutritionally).   A very young infant, one fully dependent on breastmilk,
would likely need supplemental food if it's mother became pregnant....but a
very young infant fully dependent on mom for food is not the same as an 18
month old that is breastfeeding and eating food.....yet either way, weaning
is encouraged if the mom becomes pregnant.   Like all things in the Talmud,
there area  variety of opinoins.  I have seen this one printed out....a
newly pregnant friend came to me, upset, b/c she was being encouraged to
wean her 10 mo old based on this information.

<< Some African countries also believe that Coca Cola makes 'good milk'.>>

So let's skip the kale.....just have a coke and a smile.  ;p

Katherine

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