Great Story in The Huffington Post

Mama · 04-15-2010, 08:04 AM

What would it be like if all moms got great breastfeeding support in the hospital, right after birth? <a href=" http://www.huffingtonpost.com/melissa-bartick/ipeaceful-revolutioni-mot_b_536659.html">This piece in the Huffington Post </a>shows the stark differences between two scenarios... one with great support, the other a typical scenario for most moms in the U.S. The piece is written by <a href=" http://mamaknowsbreast.com/2010/04/interview_with_author_of_breas.php" >Dr. Melissa Bartick</a>, one of the co-authors of the recently published <a href="http://mamaknowsbreast.com/2010/04/new_study_says_lack_of_breastf.php ">study</a> that found that nearly 1,000 lives and billions of dollars would be saved if 90% of moms breastfed. (Be sure to read the whole Huffington Post story). After Bartick outlines the difference between the "ideal" situation, and the reality most moms face, she concludes: 

So, now that you've heard the difference between what your experience could have been like, and what it was actually like, you tell me:

Do you feel guilty for not breastfeeding? Or do you feel angry because it didn't have to be this way?

And if you answered "angry," then take that anger, and write to your hospital -- tell them you want them to become a Baby-Friendly hospital, so that no one else will have to go through what you did just to feed your child. Write to your state and federal legislators -- tell them to support laws that make breastfeeding easier, like licensing of lactation consultants, and the requirement that insurance companies reimburse for lactation care and services. And write to your US representatives and senators, and tell them you want tax-credits for onsite childcare, and that you don't want the US to continue being the world's only developed country without paid maternity leave.

Yes, I'm a researcher and a physician, but I'm also a mother. Since I live in the United States, you can probably guess what my birth experience was like. Maybe you've heard me on the news saying that moms shouldn't feel guilty. I've been there. So take that guilt and turn it inside out, and do something positive so that other moms don't have to go through what you did. We all deserve better.

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