Wow, it seems seeing an admired friend/mentor/mother breastfeeding and
loving it is very powerful.  One of mine was a neighbor.  Not only did she
inspire me to breastfeed but also to read to my children, to respect them
and to learn to love trucks!

I also *always knew* from before I was sure I'd have kids that I'd
breastfeed them IF I did.

When I was first pregnant I attended a LLL meeting series.  That further
convinced me. Then my firstborn was hospitalized with jaundice from  ABO
incompatibility and maybe breastmilk jaundice, though who knows?  My LLLL
rescued me with the loan of a Lloyd-B pump until I could get my own.

My brother was breastfed in 1945 and my mother often told us about the nuns
in the Catholic hospital where he was born.  She was the only breastfeeding
mother on the ward.  She always said she would never dream of not
breastfeeding. The nuns (who I assume were also the nurses) did nothing to
encourage or help my mom, in fact they laughed at her "cow like" problem
with "too much milk". Then, close to time for mom and my brother to be
discharged,  a premature infant was born in the same hospital.  As a last
ditch attempt to save his life they had my mother wet nurse him.  They kept
her in the hospital for another week tandem nursing him and my brother until
he (the premie) was out of danger. I don't know why his mother
couldn't/didn't breastfeed.   Maybe she didn't want to or maybe she just
needed help which wasn't available.  Maybe he was too weak to elicit a
letdown on his own or to make it on colostrum alone.  My mom got Christmas
cards from the other mother for years.  So, somewhere out there I have a
milk brother.  I was breastfed in 1952.  Mom also breastfed my younger
brother in  1955.
-- Carla (just north of Washington, DC)