Oh, so I lied. I'm not done yet for today. I forgot to post some of the key things Mary Ann Cahill said in her speech. "When a mother fails to breastfeed her baby, it breaks my heart. Because that Mother did NOT fail. Society failed." And society did not just fail her...it failed much broader than that. And it's sooo true.
It does break my heart to hear of a mother who wanted to and tried to nurse, but could not for whatever reason. I've heard it compared to impotency in men. Something other women can do. Should do. Have no problem doing. (Cahill did not mention that...she's in her 80s...so perhaps more reserved than modern-day LLL gals.) I have seen over and over again in various articles that fewer than 1% of women TRULY cannot nurse. The problem is inadequate support, education, or environment. And they think they can't make enough milk or something is wrong or the doctor gave them bad advice...and...and...and...
Husbands or family members that don't support it...So I was looking for the article where I read that 1% number and found this http://breastfeeding.org/info/EmergencyBreastfeeding.html It's pretty interesting. I feel like the more I read, the more I learn, but the more I realize overall that I don't know. Now who reads all my links besides my mom? :)
Yeah, a society that has 6 week maternity leaves (IF you're lucky) is not very breastfeeding-friendly. Our culture sucks at supporting families. And it breaks my heart.
1 comment:
I read your links too.
The maternity leave in the country does completely suck! I was back at work after having Jackson in ONE WEEK. It was a small company and I was working from home, but it was 8-12 hours of a work each day. And I'm definitely one of the lucky ones.
Post a Comment