I agree with Karleen. We have tried to make breasfeeding so special in
our efforts to market it that we have misled a lot of mothers. How many
moms have you heard say they want to give up on trying to solve
breastfeeding difficulties "so that they can enjoy their babies"? I
always think--you won't much enjoy the long-term consequences, but the
mother has been taught that breastfeeding is lovely and wonderful and
special. Sort of like a wedding day or a honeymoon or some other rite
of pasage. AIM companies have joyfully cooperated in perpetuating that
myth, b/c it means that when we return to reality we will do what
people do in their ordinary lives--artificially-feed their babies.
This is where I also have a distaste for "meeting the mother where she
is". What about meeting the baby where she is? The baby is ,
biologically-speaking, always prepared to feed at the breast. So, why
is it our duty to force the baby to submit to the mother's will, rather
than advocate for the baby? Lest anyone think I believe in forced
breastfeeding, I am only pointing out the imbalanced absurdity of the
position I see most HCPs take--make the mom happy, make her life easy,
don't make her feel guilty. What would breastfeeding advocacy and
support look like if the baby mattered, too?
When I think about my personal ethics (which I often do), I would say
that always being attentive to hearing the voice of the baby is
intrinsic to my sense of ethics. What confounds me is how this would
not be so for any human being, and therefore any system designed by
humans. IMO, a system that neglects this basic need is flawed,
irrelevent and obsolete. I daresay, though, that we are deeply
challenged to assist a mother in hearing her baby unless we help her
heal her own early wounds as well.
Jennifer Tow, IBCLC, CT, USA
Intuitive Parenting Network LLC
http://healinghumanpotential.blogspot.com/
-
Karleen wrote:
Ah but you see I think that it can...I think that we shoot ourselves in
the
foot by always maintaining that it is something "special" when in
reality it
is just as normal as providing personal hygiene for babies etc. You
wouldn't
want mothers to hate it but I can't see anything wrong with them doing
it
because they know that the alternative is not good for their babies.
Karleen Gribble
Australia
Breastfeeding is such a profound, important relationship that it
> can't possibly be compared to other things that need to be done for
children
> ie. nappies and washing.
>
> Clare
> UK
>
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