Totally Inappropriate Vent

I have to say this b/c it gets on my very last nerve...I am so tired of reading about moms (on bbc) that "don't make enough milk" to breastfeed their babies. Do I actually care how you feed your baby? Not at all. All of my boys have used formula at some point and I am really glad there are such great ones out there. I choose to breastfeed b/c I subscribe to The Lazy Mom's Guide to Feeding which involves no prep work & no clean up (& hands-free feeding so I can type this! ;) . Anyway, I really get tired of reading about mom after mom who "doesn't make enough milk". Apparently, this phenomenon is pretty exclusive to the United States. I think it stems from TONS of pressure to breastfeed, but not really having the desire (or whatever) to actually stick with it for the recommended year. I totally understand that frustration also...in the beginning it can take a TON of time and have many hurdles to overcome. [I do understand supply problems can occur with working moms who have to pump...I truly feel bad for them b/c pumping gets old so fast & it is so difficult.]

BUT again my problem comes with the claim...

First, I have to say in about 99% of the cases it is probably completely untrue. It is pretty rare for a woman not to be able to exclusively BF a single baby (even twins) and generally involves some type of medical disorder that the mother would be aware of before giving birth. Seriously, there are women in Ethiopia living on 500 calories a day that are nursing their babies so really you don't need much to be able to nurse.

Second, I think it scares new moms and prompts them to give up too soon. If they continually hear from other moms about how hard it is to have a good supply, they start to doubt themselves and then get into the whole supplementing/weaning pattern which just creates a self-fufilling prophecy. I had a friend (who has no kids yet) ask me how in the world I made enough milk to feed twins when 3 of her high school friends couldn't make enough to feed their singletons.

Third, I think it is disrespectful to those who choose to formula feed from the start. It creates this whole vibe of "I only formula feed now b/c I physically couldn't nurse."

Anyway, there are a million legitimate reasons why people choose to stop nursing and I just wish people would stop using this "party line" excuse and actually open up and discuss some real issues that can come about when nursing. I think that would benefit everyone!