I've been musing over the mostly all supportive emails about making
workplaces baby-friendly. In principle i certainly don't disagree with it
- but I don't think it should be our primary aim.
My mother always used to tell me not to compare myself to the worst, but to
compare myself to the best. So, yes, while millions of women around the
world have always had to work very hard before, during and after
childbirth, that doesn't mean that we should accept that as being the norm
or the ideal.
In our Western cultures the need or desire to get back into the workforce
is most often associated with separation of mother and baby and the end of
breastfeeding. And the women we are talking about who have on-site
childcare and breastfeeding on demand are certainly the very privledged of
our societies, not the norm. And, other than providing breastfeeding, are
they not separated from their infants most of the time anyway?
I've just recently had a communication with Rachel from Norway - yep, you
know what I'm going to say - 12 months paid maternity is conducive to an
incredibly high breastfeeding initiation rate and more than half the babies
still receiving breastmilk at 12 months. What other factors are involved
here? I guess there are others, but I would suggest that that 12 months
leave is what is the catalyst.
I'd like to keep breastfeeding in perspective - it is only one (very
important, but still only one) aspect of mothering. Workplace care
facilitates breastfeeding, not necessarily mothering. Please note that I
am distinguishing having the child cared for by others (work place care)
from working with the child eg. home farm work, home-based work. The
mother still provides the mothering in that case, and the work she does is
more conducive to unscheduled and more prolonged interruptions to allow
mothering.
Work for me is fun, and I am often found still on the computer at 10 pm,
but, for me, mothering was much more fun and I'm so pleased I had the
opportunity (yes, we ate beans and mince for years) to mostly stay home
with my children during that time.
Let's put our energies and recommendations into policies that will allow
mothers to take the time to spend with their infants.
Denise
****************************************************
Denise Fisher, BN, RN, EM, IBCLC
BreastEd Online Lactation Studies Program
http://www.BreastED.com.au
mailto:[log in to unmask]
****************************************************
***********************************************
The LACTNET mailing list is powered by L-Soft's renowned
LISTSERV(R) list management software together with L-Soft's LSMTP(TM)
mailer for lightning fast mail delivery. For more information, go to:
http://www.lsoft.com/LISTSERV-powered.html
|
