>In this mother¥s mind, the action of suckling is clearly given a sexual
>or erotic meaning, and that is why
>she does not want her son to remember. Have you seen other moms give this
>reason for wanting to wean? If the breastfeeding dyad is mother-son, is
>that a psychological barrier for the mother per to the continuation of
>breastfeeding?
>As for the impact on the boy... those of you who know boys who have
>breastfed and can remember having breastfed, what memories do they have
>of it? Has it hurt them, personally or socially, to remember that they
>suckled on their mother¥s breast?
>And then, the issue of gender. Are girls breastfed longer because of
>their gender? Does a mother feel it is less "sexual" to breastfeed a
>daughter? Does the public frown more on a breastfeeding toddler boy than
>on a breastfeeding toddler gril?
>What are your thoughts on this?
Kika,
Thanks for your post. What a fascinating question. My first reaction
was that it is to sad that this is a problem in Spain as much as it is
here in the US. I had hoped that other places were smarter that we
are about this issue.
In the US there is so little long term nursing that it would be
difficult to research such a thing. However, I wonder if there is
somehting in the anthrolopological literature about this phenom. in
various cultures. Try keywords breastfeeding duration, length of
breastfeeding.
I would wonder if the mother has some experience in her past that is
bringing on these feelings.
For what is is worth, I have four kids, three boys. One of them
nursed two years, one three years and one 3.5 years. They are
now 16, 13, and 7 respectively. Length of nursing has never
been an issue for any of them. The only thing close to a reaction
that I get from my kids is how sad they are when they see babies
being bottle fed in public. Of couse, that has nothing to do with
how long they nursed, but the fact that they grew up in a household
where this is talked about all the time.
My 16 year old is very aware that he is one of the only kids his
age who can talk about breasts without being embarrased, but again,
that is because of the household in which he was raised.
Please keep us posted on what you learn.
Naomi Bar-Yam
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