Is this right?!?!?

[Mum of 3 + 2 stepkids]

Im with you to Emma, there should be bfing adverts!!!

Kate x

[~Faye~]

 

I still am so sad that we give a bottle every now and then, but we are getting better. I only gave 4oz of formula in a bottle yesterday. Although thinking about it Ellie wasn't EBF at one week either but then there were extenuating circumstances. But it is sad so many people stop because they don't get the support to keep going. I would have stopped with Shay if it wasn't for Roop.

So I do have to agree, the support you get to carry on is shocking. I stopped with Shay at 6 months because I thought that's what you did. All you get told is to exclusively BF for 6 months. So I did then put him on formula. I was sad after I stopped with him too, really wish I knew then what I know now. But my HV wasn't that supportive either. She kept telling me to give a bottle if it wasn't working which is what I get now. My hv for Ellie just keeps saying, give her a bottle and solids every time I see her

Emma, with people like you ariund to support us, maybe more and more mothers won't buy formula unless absolutely necessary. It's only down to you, Kate and others on here I'm still going with Ellie. I would have given up so long ago through feeling a failure. So thankyou so much for what you do. Keep going. If it helps just one person then that's one more baby thats getting BF, which is great. Then you never know through word of mouth what can happen

As for milk donations I never heard about that before til being on here. That is awful considering it's for things like the NNU. Although there may have been adverts for it up but I was walking around in a daze.

I have seen BF adverts. I think it was on channel 4, but not seen them for a while now. Two girls on a bench in the park and one of them starts BF and they chat about it. It was a bit lame but it is a start.

[Samuel's mum]

Scotland got this one:
http://uk.youtube.com/watch?v=KJ_cHpunck0
It actually makes me teary...I'm so wet.

Jo - TOTALLY agree with you on the milk donation.
Faye - the '6 months' thing is so emphasized is easy to see how that could be misunderstood to mean only 6 months (and then all the advertising for follow-on milk helps to reinforce that message.)

[knackered]

That Youtube ad is interesting in the light of the article that Jocasta linked to about language. That ad would be so much more powerful if it had said that all these women except one are increasing their chance of getting breast cancer and increasing their baby's chance of getting cancer, diabetes etc.

That's a really powerful article Jocasta.

Anna x

[Purplecattypants]

Wow that's scary about the training! Thanks

It's a bit chicken and egg really with Sweden. That system only works because bf is such the norm, society accepts it as such and support is there. In the UK prescription formula is unworkable in my view because it means mothers waiting several days for GP appointments, speaking to doctors who know zip about bfing and meanwhile babies could literally be starving. It's thought that system in the UK would simply mean young babies being given cow's milk in desperation.
Although I'm a bf counsellor I feel mums have the right to buy it in the shops without hassle. But I want them to be in a position where they are so well-educated and well-supported they don't WANT to do that.
I can dream hey?

Totally agree Emma, I think every woman has the right to choose, but bf should still be seen as the norm. Of course, the swedish system wouldnt work here in a million years...the damage is done now! Bf is still a bit taboo in the UK with a lot of people, but I do think things are improving, i.e you do now see people bf on TV etc. Like Rachel in Friends 

[lisi's mum]

Jo - I have to thank you, your article was exactly the sort of thing I needed to read today!

[Jocasta]

Glad to have been of service  

Seriously though, it was a real eye opener for me and I'm glad to have read it.  I was speaking to someone the other day and mentioned how formula increases the risk of cotdeath.  She looked aghast at me and said "you can't say that!".  I said "why not, it's factually correct and backed up by statistics?".  I asked her if she'd have had a problem with my saying "breastfeeding reduces the risk of cotdeath"  She said that that's ok because it doesn't make anyone feel guilty!  The whole topic ended our conversation rather abruptly!! 

Where's the education though?  I didn't realise ANY of facts when DS was a baby (would definitely have tried harder on the BF front if I had!)  At 16 years of age, when I phoned for advice on breast feeding as DS who was going through the night and feeding four hourly suddenly started wanting to feed every 1.5 hours, I was met by "We're really busy today - formula isn't going to kill him..."    Of course now I realise he was just going through a growth spurt but at the time I thought my milk was drying up

[clh]

I'm afraid I wouldn't have counted as exclusively bf at a week with either of mine.     J was a big baby & "lost too much weight."   So I was bullied into giving him some formula.  Sigh.  Made me sad then & to think about it now.  Isaac was going to go straight to NICU, and I knew that going in.  I had psyched myself into that being OK (& emotionally it really was).  The best thing was the NICU nurse who told me on day 2 or so what I already knew: "The best way to get your milk to come in is to come feed him for *every* feed."  Bless her.    And come it did!  I started exclusively bf'ing on day 3, and we haven't looked back...  although we have gone to ebm in bottles, since I work.  Did that with J, too.

After my c/s with J, I was determined that I was going to do the bf thing "right."  Goal of 6 months, with a "dream" of 12.  He weaned at 14.    And J will make it to 12 next week.  Most of my support was a LC I sought out with J, my friends who had done it before, and y'all.  Thanks!