It occurred to me that there is another way to view this dynamic, which
may further help illuminate why the breastfeeding rates are so low in
the unit.
What struck me was the comments about how much of the 'body' nurses and
other care givers see in their roles, and how could they object to
seeing a mother pump, given the legs up in stirrups etc.
And what occurred to me that is the NICU situation, the women has taken
control of her own body. In the stirrups situation, her body is under
the control of those giving the care. They have decided what she does
with it, and are in charge of how to proceed with the treatment. This
mother is not only taking charge on her own terms, she's resisting their
power when they object. She isn't a patient in their eyes - the baby
is. She's a visitor, and a visitor that's flashing her breasts in front
of them. They do not like that they can't control this action, and take
charge of her body. So they complain that they are having an unwelcome
sight inflicted upon them.
Just as people in the Mall, or the park do.
The fact that, for this baby, the mother is providing medical care in
that her food is so much more powerful than just food/formula, isn't a
feature in their thinking. She is outside their control and authority.
They don't like that. I imagine if you put the stirrups analogy to
them, they'd say "We don't want to see a women with her legs in the air
when out shopping!".
I do know women who pump just as openly in an office environment, as
their work conditions mean they have to. It is accepted, as the office
environment accepts it's her body, and she can do what she wants with
it, and the fellow workers have to deal with any personal discomfort.
Equally, I remember the post from just a week or so back, about the
women worker pumping in her car in the break, and being asked not to. I
imagine that if these nurses were in an office environment, they'd be
condemning the mother equally. And that's the point, really. They
don't like that she's not 'their patient' and are treating her as an
interloper in their day and routine.
Power struggles over the ownership of a body during treatment is
something that all medical care struggles with. But we tend to forget,
until a mother starts to nurse her baby, that it's a huge cultural issue
too. Some people just don't' like the women being in charge, and
choosing to 'expose' others to her power. I suspect this department
loves its power over the bodies of its charges, and is fighting tooth
and claw to retain it. Formula keeps them in control - all neat and
tidy and motherless and right down in the forms how much baby has had.
Satisfied tick of boxes and move on. Breastfeeding diminishes their
power and authority. Pumping in the open, slaps them across the face
and rattles their teeth!
Morgan Gallagher
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