A Plea to Mothers
Wednesday 4th of September 2013 | Category: Opinion | Written by: Jocelyn Reading
Motherhood is the best club in the world to be a part of, and I suspect, also one of the toughest. When you first join it's a magical time, but also a confusing one and full of tiredness, hard-work and a huge sense of responsibility. It is overwhelming and all-consuming. We need support and we need to stick together, and it is for this reason that I'm issuing this plea...
I'm talking about breast feeding versus bottlefeeding. I know you'll have seen endless debates, articles, blogs and chats about this one, so let me reassure you that I'm not about to launch into the pros and cons of each method or start quoting health and nutritional information at you. No, I'm simply asking you to read on and please hear me.
I breast fed both of my children. I wanted to feed my oldest myself, and I was fortunate that she latched on with relative ease, despite her tongue-tie, and things just got better and easier from then on. With my son, I didn't assume all would be fine again, but hoped so, and approached feeding with a wealth of experience and the confidence that that brings. Again tongue-tied, but again, a clever little feeder. He was actually faster and more efficient than his sister. I was lucky that I had no pain or no soreness, and I ignored Health Visitor's comments with my son about him 'maybe needing a bit more to top him up'. I knew he was fine, and at the next weigh-in he proved it. Breastfeeding is natural, it is good for baby and it's free and easy to prepare! It's also exhausting, draining, and yet more months that your body is all about sustaining another life. In my case, I also had sicky reflux babies, so as their only food source, it was always me that got immediately vomited on - lucky old me...! I fed them both until weaning at six months, and then moved from breast to bottle at nine months. So it's fair to say that I'm in favour of breast-feeding and that's my story. Yours may be similar or perhaps it couldn't be more different? Which brings me to my plea.
However you're choosing/having to feed your baby, well done for making it through each and every day with them, looking after that tiny bundle and giving them everything you can. I know you adore them and only want the best for them, and I know that what 'the best' is, is up to you. I know the majority of you are just getting on with it, but for those others..
With my son, I was comfortable feeding in public, as experience and perhaps cantankerous old-age had told me not to really care about others disapproval and just concentrate on my baby. I mean, I was feeding my baby in as natural a way as possible, and some people frowned upon it. Come on, ladies. Stick together.
I then read a lot of blogs and I see tweets from formula feeding mums saying they're getting abuse for formula feeding their little ones from pro-breastfeeders. What? This makes me so sad and I feel the need to immediately apologise on behalf of other breast-feeders - they're giving the rest of us a bad name.
There shouldn't be 'breastfeeding mums' and 'formula feeding mums'. Just mums. In this together, encouraging each other and making this absurdly hard, yet amazing journey, an easier path. Stop with the versus. We were all different before we were mums, we're all different now, and we're all just trying to do the best we can for our children. Please stop judging and attacking others for their personal choices. It's not helpful information and advice if it's not welcome, and you need to remember that you haven't walked in their shoes.
So please, support don't revile.
About the author
Jocelyn Reading
Jocelyn Reading left behind financial services management when her now 3-year-old was born, started to work for herself from home, and is now mum to a baby boy, too. Passionate about reading, spending quality family time together and blogging about our fun.
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