The Boob Job.

   I know what you're thinking; this is another internet article about increase of breast implants among people, or about dangers of implants to your health. I would like to surprise you with the notion that this post is about the job your breasts were designed to do .... to feed an infant. Breastfeeding has gone through a bit of a makeover in last few decades as researchers discover how beneficial, nah, important, breastfeeding is for both women and babies. Let's explore the topic of breastfeeding.

   Hundreds of years ago, breastfeeding was not something that any mom-to-be had to "decide upon". No midwife visiting her said "Are you planning on breastfeeding". Breastfeeding was just what a woman did to feed her infant. Here is a great article on the ins and outs of breastfeeding, and one in New Yorker about pumping and breastmilk that is no longer fed from a breast. And if you are interested on reading up even more on how breastfeeding has changed over the years and cultural norms, Kelly mom (a great resource site for breastfeeding support and help) has a number of articles about it. But I am not here for history lesson on breastfeeding. As beautiful as paintings of Mary nursing Jesus by famous painters, African carvings of mothers breastfeeding their infants, and even as an inspiration to modern photography, it is still not a representation of modern motherhood. A bottle still stands as representing a new baby. Have you seen this Baby on Board sign? It's shaped as a bottle (I would have loved to see one shaped as a boob though ... ). Baby stores are stocked full of bottle feeding equipment, and formula and bottle samples are given out to every mother that is due to give birth. After all, no company can make money on a mother breastfeeding her child the old fashion way (you know, boob to mouth, no middle-man equipment). Breastfeeding is cheap (you only need an extra 400 - 500 extra calories a day to make milk), it's convenient (no bottles to prepare, no nipples to wash), it's always the right temperature (yup, body temperature), you always have it with you (no need to keep your boobies on ice for the fear of milk spoiling), it is designed specifically for your baby (breastmilk changes from season to season, throughout the day, as the baby grows), plus it's a complete nutrition for you baby, breastfeeding protects mother from certain cancers, and it helps mom loose weight gained in pregnancy. 

   So why don't more mothers choose to breastfeed. Some moms don't like to be "tied” to the baby, some women have to return to work shortly after birth and are not wanting to, or can't pump, some feel that breasts are sexual in nature and feel weird in thinking that an infant would be fed by them, some are not informed enough about the benefits of breastfeeding, but the most likely case is that some women just don't have the support around them to proceed. You know that old adage about how it takes a village to raise a child? Well, it takes a village to help a breastfeeding mom. It is in everyone's benefit to help moms to breastfeed. There are numerous studies that breastfed babies have better health, higher IQ's, less diabetes, cancers, and illnesses later on in life! This all translate to less medical expenses for our country, and that is your business, even if you don't have kids. So how do we support moms?

   Let's get one thing straight, breastfeeding is natural but it's by no means easy. Most people have this romanticized view of breastfeeding where the baby is born and feeds happily at a breast without complications. The reality for most moms is much different. Especially, in the first weeks of life, breastfeeding can be very hard!!!

   Before I was pregnant I had a vision of what breastfeeding was going to be like. I thought that I would feed my baby for only 9 months (until what I thought would be the time when my baby cut their first tooth!, because I thought that after that it would be weird to feed a baby by breast. I thought that the baby will have a bottle often and that I would only breastfeed when I was at home. Boy, was I wrong.

   Minutes after Funky Monkey was born a nurse suggested that I try to place him to my breast since that would help with the uterus shrinking. I took prenatal classes at the hospital and read many books before hand, so I was somewhat prepared in breastfeeding positions and how to offer the breast to the infant. He latched on very well, but was I ever in for a big surprise. Breastfeeding felt funny and kind of hurt, and I felt weird having people stare at me feeding my son (yes, even my husband). I was hoping that it was just because I was not used to the sensation, and that it would get better with time. But it got worse before it got better. About 2 days after we got home my milk came in. Many people tell you about the problem of not making enough milk, but I was in a boat of making too much. I had such a strong let down that Funky Monkey would choke on all the milk. My breasts were always engorged and sore. I went up 2 bra sizes in 2 days. I fed my baby often, probably as often as I cried. This was not an image of what I thought breastfeeding was going to be like. Many people who didn't breastfeed their kids couldn't understand what the whole issue was about. My husband even remarked that maybe we should try formula, but I was determined to feed my baby with what was best. And breast is best!

   Over the next 2 weeks I was at a crossroads. My breast became sore and my nipples were cracked (now I know that it was from bad positioning) but I never gave up. My husband became my wonderful defender, and although he felt a little jealous that I was the only one who could fully satisfy our baby's needs (he is still there even after 4 kids) he supported my decision to see this through. And then breastfeeding got better and easier. My baby's cry for food was a little remainder from mother nature to sit down, put my feet up, and rest while I fed my baby. He ate very often, every 45 minutes during the day and every 3 hours at night. And he grew! And I was confident that my body was nourishing my baby the right way. And every time I fed my baby I felt like I earned my super-woman’s cape!

   I breastfed Funky Monkey just over 2 years. And then came Girly Monkey. I was not a new mom, so I knew what to expect. My husband was already on my side and I had wonderful midwives that supported breastfeeding. I breastfed her until I was 8 months pregnant with Little Monkey, just past her 2nd birthday (yes, you can be pregnant and breastfeed). Little Monkey was also breastfed past his 2nd birthday. And now I am once again marvelling at the miracle of my body nourishing my baby. It's an amazing process. A woman's body knows how to grow this little life, how to birth it, and then how to nourish the infant. It's a primal feeling that connects a woman to all the mothers of the past and future. From the process of growing a baby inside your body, to the body knowing just what to do to birth this baby, to finally providing the food to finish the job of creating a new life. Sometimes, it's hard to trust you body. sometimes, you feel like you need to measure and test that you body knows what to do. But ultimately, in breastfeeding, as in other parenting aspects, sometimes you have to be guided by faith in what you are doing, perseverance, and support of others.