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Date: | Tue, 16 Dec 1997 21:23:46 -0600 |
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Re the post from the catalogue:
What exactly did you not like about this statement. I'd say it was very
helpful, and true -- most hospitals/doctors don't have a clue. LLL is much
more widespread and available than LCs, and most women don't NEED LCs, they
just need other mothers to moan and groan to, and to get support and advice
from. Why did this strike you as bad?
Ah . . . . I kept reading and saw your response. Surely you must realize
you and your hospital are NOT the norm? We have two hospitals in town. One
is resolutely neutral about breastfeeding, but doesn't approve of rooming
in, insists on mother-baby separation after birth (except for people like
me, who threaten to check out if they try to take the baby), insists on
babies in the nursery in the morning for peds rounds, etc. The other
hospital is positivly anti-breastfeeding. One post-partum nurse there was
overheard saying to another "I do everything I can to make sure mothers are
NOT breastfeeding when they leave the hospital." The other agreed
wholeheartedly and commented "I didn't become a nursery nurse to help women
breastfeed. *I* like to feed babies, with bottles. I don't want to see
women's breasts, and I *certainly* don't want to touch women's breasts.
Breastfeeding is disgusting." I'm paraphrasing here, but that was the
general conversation. Do anything you can to prevent a mother from
breastfeeding.
Katherine A. Dettwyler, Ph.D.
Associate Professor of Anthropology and Nutrition
Texas A&M University
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