Baby Magazine

A friend sent me your article "It's time! The when and how of weaning baby (April, p. 40)." It ruined my day.

I hope your article did not reflect the attitudes of most mothers. How sad that would be. Where is the joy in their mothering? I did not see it in this article.

There was a description of how one mother was "tired of wearing nursing bras to bed...tired of the whole process" and "bored with breastfeeding." Surely this is not a reason to wean. I sometimes got tired of brushing my children's teeth or washing their hair, but I did not stop doing it just because I was tired of it. Why? Because I knew that I was doing it for their health and that they still needed me to do it. I was tired of being pregnant too - both times - by about the 7th month in the hot New Orleans summer.  I did not decide to induce premature labor to get it over with!

The author states that a husband may feel that "your breasts have become baby's, rather than his."  No husband of mine!  Duh? What are breasts (mammary glands) for anyway? Why would a husband want to take that away from his child? My, my, if he wants to fondle them, they haven't disappeared.

Later I read that "nursing past the 12 to 15 month mark makes a child overly dependent or demanding of Mom, and vice versa."  Where did you get this? There is no evidence that this is true.  And in fact there is lots of evidence to show harm by weaning that early.

Having babies and raising them is not easy.  But, I am so happy that I experienced the joys of breastfeeding and had many contacts with others who did so as well. I would like to suggest that breastfeeding moms feeling sore, tired, or bored hook up with another nursing mom, a support group like La Leche League, or a lactation consultant in their area.

Laurie Wheeler, RN, MN, IBCLC
Lactation consultant
Louisiana Breastfeeding MediaWatch Campaign
mailto:[log in to unmask]


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