Breast not best?

[Fire_on_High]

Look down...furry moobs should be a close enough approximation, right?

[Rapscallion]

I keep reading this thread and wondering if I should offer myself up as a volunteer to test from the baby's perspective.

Rapscallion

[MadMike]

some babies will actually refuse to nurse from the breast

That's how it was with my son. He was probably intimidated by the damn thing, since it was bigger than his head. Hell, it was bigger than my head!

[McDreidel09]

These are the same people that forget that anything prior to the 20th century existed.

I think the best response to my choice was my friend Tattoo.

He offered to pierce my nipples, since he is certified to do piercings. I told him no because I was going to breast feed my children. His response?

"How cool would it be if it came out of THREE holes!"

I love that guy.

[jackfaire]

"Why would you even do that? That is so gross! You're going to be a bad mother! Your husband should be the only one to be near your boobs! You're going to scar that child for life because s/he has to see your boobs!"

These are the same people that forget that anything prior to the 20th century existed.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Said idiots were ganged up on, roundly cyber beaten and eventually chased off by myself and several others. I couldn't agree more; this woman has survived cancer and against all the odds had a baby; and some dim bulb's response is to bitch at her for not breastfeeding? It's people like that who give the entire group a bad name.

[AdminAssistant]

I once read an attack on another forum where this woman was stating that she had no intention at all of breastfeeding... cuz she'd had a double masectomy. I kid you not, people were actually being ignorant enough to bitch at her despite this. Just how does one breastfeed with no breasts?

WOW. Having a mastectomy is traumatic enough without people doing that crap.

[McDreidel09]

I once read an attack on another forum where this woman was stating that she had no intention at all of breastfeeding... cuz she'd had a double masectomy. I kid you not, people were actually being ignorant enough to bitch at her despite this. Just how does one breastfeed with no breasts?

Breast implants?

But seriously, many pro breast feeders seriously piss me off. It's none of their business as to how someone else is raising their own children. Some formula feeders can be the same way too, however. When I expressed the desire to breast feed, I got this crap:

"Why would you even do that? That is so gross! You're going to be a bad mother! Your husband should be the only one to be near your boobs! You're going to scar that child for life because s/he has to see your boobs!"

Yeah sure. I'm not pro breast feeding. I'm not pro formula. I'm pro having fed children.

[Lace Neil Singer]

I once read an attack on another forum where this woman was stating that she had no intention at all of breastfeeding... cuz she'd had a double masectomy. I kid you not, people were actually being ignorant enough to bitch at her despite this. Just how does one breastfeed with no breasts?

[Amanita]

A lot of the things associated with babies gross me out. Baby poo, being suckled on, a lot of things. I'm wierd that way. Heck, even the idea of giving birth grosses me out, which is one of the reasons why I am childfree.

I've gotten royally shat on for defending non-breastfeeders, when I say that it's not for every woman. Some women can't produce enough milk, don't like doing it, or need to take medications which could be passed through the milk and hurt the kid. Why is that so evil to some people?

And even adopting is no excuse for not breastfeeding in some people's eyes. I've heard of women who adopt taking hormones to make themselves lactate, or being pressured to do so which to me is just WTF territory. I remember reading an article about guys taking hormones to produce milk, and no, it wasn't sci-fi. Some hippy parenting website.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Especially when said "literature" comes from a biased source; yeah, sure a pro breastfeeding site is going to be completely neutral when discussing the subject!

[LewisLegion]

As a parent I'm going to make several decisions that affect the life of someone else that they have no say over whatsoever. Yeah, they can't choose whether or not they want to be breastfed. They also didn't choose to be born, can't choose which diapers I put on them, what color clothes they're going to wear, etc. When they're older, they can't choose what I make them for dinner, when they get put to bed, what I let them watch on TV.

We've come a long way from feeding babies with 'flour and water'. Just because it wasn't a good idea to feed them THAT doesn't mean that modern formulas aren't perfectly safe and nutritional now. Millions of children are breastfed and fine. Millions are bottle fed and fine. Someone can whine and rant and wave literature at me all they want. If I ever give birth I'm not breastfeeding. Period.

[Lace Neil Singer]

Honestly, whose business is it that a woman breast feeds or formula feeds her child? The child is getting fed and both methods are nutritional.

That is exactly my point. I understand that breast feeding is good for a child, and it's also great that it's no longer considered yucky or nasty; but I just don't see why health visitors should be allowed to have an agenda whereas any mother who dares to bottle feed her child ends up being made to feel like a social leper.

Really? On a scale of one to ten of gross things about dealing with kids I think that'd be a one.

Bright green runny baby poopy would be ten. Ugh.

[Lachrymose]

Breastfeeding grosses me right out..The thought of something sucking food out of my body is just too disgusting to contemplate.

Really? On a scale of one to ten of gross things about dealing with kids I think that'd be a one.

[McDreidel09]

Honestly, whose business is it that a woman breast feeds or formula feeds her child? The child is getting fed and both methods are nutritional.

Both my sister and I were formula fed and we are pretty healthy. When I have kids, I am going to make the choice to breast feed my children, unless I am one of those women who can't produce enough milk. I will be okay with pumping so my husband can have that bonding time with the baby too.

Don't worry. I'm not going to be one of those women who bare their boobs to the world while breast feeding. I will feed my baby, but discreetly.

ETA: I read those links about what harms could befall a child through breast feeding. It's all up to the mothers. If they are taking care of themselves and not smoking or drinking or having a huge caffeine intake, then breast feeding won't harm the child (provided the child is not intolerant to the milk).