Nikki Lee wrote:

<I feel the problem with women going against their desires, wants, or
feelings starts far sooner than in the childbearing decade>

<snip>

<Add to that constant messages of fear and doom. >

I have always felt something along these lines, that it starts young and
that there are messages of "fear and doom".  I think that much of the
problems we face wrt both breastfeeding and childbearing are rooted in
our culture's regarding the natural body processes of women as "diseases"
that need "treatment".  Since you all here are obviously much more versed
in medical literature than I, I know I don't need to go into detail, but
the one that has been in the news the most lately which is emblematic of
this has been the concept of menopause as a disease that needs
pharmaceutical treatment.  It is portrayed as something that "leads to",
"increases risk of" or even "causes" such scary or scary-sounding things
as estrogen loss, bone loss and osteoporosis, heart disease, and so
forth.  I have to say I was not at all surprised when the studies came
out that reversed the "conventional wisdom" that all post-menopausal
women "need" hormone replacement therapy.  Yet another natural process
for which the medical community seems to have considered the vast
majority of women in need of medical intervention.  The new birth control
pills on the market or in development have brought this cultural attitude
into the news, this time regarding menstruation.  If I see one more
"woman on the street" interview where they ask women "would you like to
take a pill that makes your period go away?" and the women say things
like "Oh, yes, I HATE my period, it's SO inconvenient and annoying and
dirty" or even tampon commercials that essentially say the same thing, I
will be sick.  Until there is a shift in the culture towards respect for
and trust in women's bodies and their natural functions, I think we'll
all be having a hard time convincing women otherwise.  :(

Tasneem Jennifer Crooker
LLLLeader in Norman, OK and usually just a facinated observer of this
amazing group


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