I was a breast feeder.
I loved each and every moment of it until I started back to my 40 hour
career. This was hard for the simple
fact I was an educator in a classroom and finding time to do this was very
difficult. I had great supervisors and they
were willing to assist in my classroom as much as it was needed but let’s face
it ladies our classroom was chaotic when we returned. Feeling guilty because I was getting special
recognition for breastfeeding my child and my co-workers did not get that extra
fifteen minutes to step out and get a breather.
I breast fed both my children for only six months and felt extremely guilty
for the short amount of time. But with
the work load building up and my home life as demanding as they were my milk deplenished. I
remember crying with my husband and him just sitting on the couch thinking I
was overly emotional. Please do not
disregard my husband’s crazy thoughts. I
thought I was going crazy myself. But
as an educator for my families I know that both my children got the best of me. Having to breast fed both of them for six
months is really a victory for all of us.
As the medical professionals from all around the world
install in all mothers and mothers to be; breast fed babies are healthier,
mothers are healthier, the cost is zero, and the wonderful bonding time spent
between the mother and the baby is indescribable. Looking back into my Irish background, it is
evident that the mothers in Ireland do not bother to breast feed their infants. In Ireland it is not discussed at the monthly
checkups or expressed through conversations with other mothers. Hazel Larkin, a doula in Ireland stated that the
mothers either give up too early or think it is disruptive. This is amazing to me. But I am sure that with the advocacy that
Larkin is pushing through her country she will see a difference soon. I have attached the complete article below
and other documentation of the importance of breastfeeding.
As an administrator of a child development center with a
capacity of fifty six infants; I take that role very important. That is fifty
six mothers that will need the encouragement from teachers in the classroom and
as well as myself. We have an area in
each classroom that welcomes each mother in and if she chooses to breastfeed
then that area is available to her. I am
an advocate for breastfeeding and I hope everyone joins me with this very
important topic.
Wow Crissy! Great post! I think it's wonderful that you are advocating for it. I also did some research on breastfeeding and the amount of positive things that come from it almost make it no-brainer but it amazes me how many mothers do give up quickly.
ReplyDeleteHello Crissy :) I am the mother of two beautiful little girls and breastfeed both with both expriences being so different.
ReplyDeletewith my first i was only able to for 3 months my milk dried up the doctors said it was due to the amount of morphin i was given during delivery and afterwards with her the doctors almost lost us both.
with my second i breastfeed for 8 1/2 months till she bite me till i bruised and bleed.
I state these two examples only because there is such a difference with each child each situation and i dont believe enough is done to help mothers here in michigan the formula is pushed from the moment the baby is born. My husband had to become my advocate and force the nurses to listen that we wanted no bottles or pacifers with both births the nurses were in process of feeding the baby a bottle even though the chart stated we planned to breastfeed.
with my first i was in recovery for so long but we had special bottles the were for breast feed babies and the nurse still gave her formula so latching toke extra time.
my second my husband had to ask a nurse to leave the room without the baby because she was determined the baby was going to take a bottle because i needed rest.
I think this is why so many moms just give up.
Great topic and wonderful post
Hello Chrissy,
ReplyDeleteI think it is great you were able to breastfeed your babies for 6 months. I spoke to my mother (like many mothers) and she didn't breastfeed after about a month. I am fortunate not to get sick so much because I know how important breast milk is for the immune system. I also spoke about breastfeeding in my blog because I feel all mothers should at least give it a try if they are able. I don't have any babies yet but I hope to breastfeed in the future. Take Care.
Thank you to everyone that has responded. I have a colleague who recently has returned to work and is breast feeding her child. I see her struggling to pump and of course it hasn't been easy for her because of the high demand of being available to the families and staff in our facility. One of the many reasons that I was not able to go further than six months. Good luck everyone!
ReplyDeleteCrissy,
ReplyDeleteI actually just had a conversation about this with a friend this evening. She is also a teacher and was talking about how hard it was to breastfeed at work. While her boss provided the space, it was hard to find the time. She found herself pumping and running to the fridge during recess and her prep times. Using those precious kid-free moments to pump took a lot out of her. She wasn't relaxing or preparing for their return; she was running around like crazy! She is currently pregnant with her second baby. Hopefully she and her principal can come up with some creative solutions to make it a little easier this time around.