Pat Thomas wrote:
"I have had several mothers here that I worked with that came from Bengali, Pakistan and India.  None of them ever breastfed in front of me and would leave me sitting alone in the living room while they fed the baby."

This has not been my experience, and I doubt that this is an inherently cultural issue. I have found that the moms I have worked with have been generally modest, but none have expressed any reservations about nursing in front of me, about touching their own breasts, or about me touching their breasts. Some moms have definately been uncomfortable with nursing in public, though.
    I have worked with many moms (I sadly do mean many) who have been sexually abused. Their bf'ing realtionships have truly been influenced by their experiences. But, for many moms, being able to talk about their fears is very helpful and sometimes nursing a baby is truly healing. Unfortunately, it has been my experience that most of the  mothers I worked w/ who were abuse survivors did not have access to their choice of therapists. Not every therapist has the respect for the importance of bf'ing I believe needs to be a foundation for supporting a mother in such a situation.
    One more concern. Some moms who have discomfort with their breasts may also have a difficult time with labor and birth. If they don't have an opportunity to work this through before the birth, they may experience even more emotional pain after a birth which might feel invasive and abusive.
Jennifer Tow, IBCLC, CT, USA

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