Teenage breastfeeding

[MrsKitty]

I have found that I get alot of mixed reactions about being a teenage mother who breast feeds. I have had alot of older parents tell me not to bother, trying to give me advice and explaining that because I am younger it is easier to formula feed. I have had people been shocked that I choose to breastfeed, because young mothers "dont breastfeed".

I had a group of mothers at a breastfeeding support group ask me "Don't you think you are a little young to be breastfeeding?" That was the last time I ever went there.

I have also had alot of good shock. I never really like the shock..but atleast it is positive.

It is so important to me that teenage mothers are fully educated in their options to breastfeed. From my experince as a teen mother, knowing teen mothers, going to teen parenting classes, people just don't expect you to breastfeed so they dont throw out much information.

I started breastfeeding when I was 18. I am still breastfeeding now that I am 20. My son has just turned two. It would have been easy to turn to formula when everyone else around me was doing it, and expecting me too.

I am taking steps right now to become a post partum doula and breastfeeding counselor. I want to be able to volunteer my services to teen parents who are not getting this education from anyone else.

I am a teen mom who is proud to breastfeed, in public, at home, in a sling, co sleeping, and past the age of two.

[libertine]

How odd that you're obviously old enough to be a mother, but people think you're not old enough to breastfeed!

My mom had me at 17 and nursed me for well over a year. I am very proud of her for doing that, especially back in the 70's when even fewer people breastfed than do now.

Keep up the good work!

[still_me]

That is so cool that you are going to use your experience. It is a role model like you who will help girls truly succeed in breastfeeding.

[kasumisniper]

You rock MrsKitty. Good for you.

[sheltered]

I was 18 when I got pregnat with my son, and I nursed him for over 1 1/2..

[tressasmommy]

breastmilk is hands down THE best source of food you can give your baby, it doest matter the age of the breast it comes from, everyone knows breastfed babies have a higher IQlevel so ppl that comment on you bfeeding you should say "wow you must not have been breastfed as a child because thats not a very intelligent thing to say!" you go momma nurture your child to the best of your ability!!!


did you know it is believed the virgin mary was 14 when she gave birth to christ....i'm sure she wasn't too young to breastfeed.....

[camille97]

I had a group of mothers at a breastfeeding support group ask me "Don't you think you are a little young to be breastfeeding?" That was the last time I ever went there.



What an odd comment for somebody at a bf support group to spew.


Good for you for ignoring it and continuing to do what is best for your baby! :clap:

[Buttercup78]

I wish I had been informed about breastfeeding when I became a mom at 17. They asked "breast or bottle"? I said bottle and that was the end of the discussion. They didn't even offer info. Of course this was 17 years ago, so maybe it's different now, at least in some hospitals.

[lillylove123]

my cousin just turned 16 and will be having her baby in less than a month. she wants to breastfeed. i want her to breastfeed. but so far her attitude has been very bad. she got pregnant on purpose.. ( ya im serious) to make up for an abortion. she has always been a straight A student and has lots of friends but her attitude toward her family is horrable. she refused to take child birth class. she refuses to listen to her doctor and eat right. (She has high blood pressure). and sense she has the high blood pressure she automatically says well "i will probably have a c-section anyway. they gona do the c-section. they told me that is what would happen." but i think they told her that in HOPE that she wouldnt want one and would start acting right. . .
i hope she breastfeeds. but at the same time. her violent attitude and disregard to family and her child makes me believe it might be easier on the whole family if she didnt. . .

makes me very sad.

[BusyLady]

You should be so proud of yourself. I teach high schoolers and every once in awhile, I will get a pregnant student who decides to breastfeed her baby. It is fabulous and I always offer advice when asked. It will be so great to have someone like you their age helping them!

[snoykey6]

i am a really new mom i just had a little baby girl. i am only 19 years old but i chose to breastfeed my baby and it is such a wonderful experience. it is other moms like you that give me confidence that im not to young to handle the responsibilities of being a teen mom. but with the advice and reading the storys of other teen moms like you make me know that everything is going to be really alright and keeps me going thank you and be proud of yourself thank you

[Prettyskittle82]

You should be very proud of yourself!!! Most young mothers (older mom's too) don't try to breastfeed. You've done the right thing in making it through all the criticism even though it shouldn't have been there in the first place.

Good job!

[lasagna]

I had a group of mothers at a breastfeeding support group ask me "Don't you think you are a little young to be breastfeeding?"

That is the weirdest thing I have ever heard. Hmmm, you know, there is some cultural breastfeeding backlash, and I blame the breast is *best* campaign for that, to an extent. Breastfeeding, to some, has been lumped into this uppity mini van driving, britax buying, organic potato chips stereotype, of middle class moms who will only give the *best* to their precious babies. But that's not really where breastfeeding fits. Anyway, that comment about being young to breastfeed, reminded me of that.

For what it's worth, from my informal surveys, it seems to me that older moms are more likely to start breastfeeding, but of the older and Younger moms who do start breastfeeding, it's the younger moms who are more likely to breastfeed longer. Of all the moms I've met who nursed 1 and 2 year olds, the majority of them were young. When you're talking about the giving the *best* stereotypical group of moms, then tend to wean early.

I think in some ways it may be easier for the younger moms to nurse longer, because they are already used to people thinking they're doing unconventional stuff in the first place.

[lasagna]

ftr, I got pregnant at 19, and that baby nursed for 3 years.

[Jmom1010]

Kudos to you. My friend's daughter just had a baby 2 weeks ago and she is nursing too. I sincerely hope she keeps it up and I am offering her all my knowledge and support to help her suceed. I'm not sure why people don't expect teen mother's to breast feed. But I do remember me as a teen and I'm not sure I would have been responsible or mature enough to keep it up once I found out all the work that is really is. But that was 20 years ago and there was not as much support for breastfeeding out there. Thankfully that has changed and hopefully attitudes towards teen mothers breast feeding will change as well. What I can tell you is that at the breast feeding support group I went to we had a teen mom and she was welcomed with open arms.

~Karen

[Funmommy]

You girls are all WONDERFUL!!!!
I had my first son at 21 and my next at 22 (ok not actually a teenager but...mentally :) )
and there wasn't much said at all about BF. Soooo I started BF but ended up FF within 2 months. I had my next son when I was 33 ans still there wasn't much said about BF. So once agaun I started out BF and ended up FF within 2 months. I'm now 37 with a girl (3.5 mnths old) and again not much was said about BF .... but there's a difference ..... I found this site and I'm still going strong. I'm planning to go till at least a year but will probably go longer. Now I tell everyone about this site and hope others get the help they want or need from this site. I'm soooo happy to see that BF is becoming more talked about with the younger crowd. You should all be proud of yourselves for doing the best for your babies and yourselves. I wish I had had this site or someone to talk to when I was younger. Keep it up ladies YOU are our future.

Funmommy/Nadine

[kat_langan]

I think there alot of ignorant ppl out there who have no right to question you and think you are "too young" to breastfeed, since when does breastfeeding have an age on it? I am glad to hear someone of my age that is breastfeeding, and I think its awesome no matter what age you have a chid, I sure hope my daughter like your son, keeps breastfeeding beyond a year!

[NEWNANA]

I think it is great that you chose to breastfeed!!! I was a teen mom and my teenage daughter is pregnant now. She has told me that she wants to breastfeed and I am so excited!!

No matter what the mother's age it is always wonderful when mom makes the best decision for her baby.

[mama2twoluvbugs]

I hear ya there, I had my first son at 16, so i was still very much a teenager and I breastfed him for over a yr( i wasnt aware of childled weaning) and I got lots of bad responses and very few good, its great that you want to offer support to other young moms...I wish that I lived in n area where training for such a thing would be a possibility!!!

[Jen0608]

Well I know how hard it feels to be a teenage mom but I think she can bear with it

[lolabear]

i had my first at 21 and a lot of people assumed i would FF, my bro would tell me all the time its easier to FF but to me it was easier to just pop out my breast and latch her than get up and make a bottle at 3am LOL

my neice and my fiances brother (his gf) just had babies and theyre young and they both said they wanted to bf and did for a few weeks but going out was more important and they didnt wanna take the time to pump milk and all that goes along with bf, so i think thats why other teen moms get the bad wrap as well. i dont look down on anyone for their choice, but when i know them and know its out of sheer laziness then i kinda think well why have kids if you dont wanna do the best you can for them?

side note my niece just broke up with her DH and said he could have the baby b/c she "doesnt have time for her" :rolleyes: so right there says she didnt bf b/c she didnt care about the baby

[Wibblypig]

Hi,

I have just stumbled across you post on the search for BF information for teenage mums as I talk and support teenage mums who want to BF.

I just wanted to send you big hugs and give you a pat on the back, WELL DONE! :)

Vicki

[stephers4913]

im 16 and my daughter is turning 5 months. i always had that intentions of breastfeeding and looked forward to it. i was really bothered when i couldt get her to latch. i tried for two months even with help from a lactation center. she just wouldnt latch. i didnt want to formula feed so i tried pumping. that worked out until she was about three and a half months. school was starting and i was gonna go back. it was so hard to do school and pump that i didnt pump as much and i stopped producing as much. thats when i switched to formula. it hurts me really bad when people comment on me saying that i should have breastfed when i tried and struggled. i think that teenage mothers should be more educated of breastfeeding. i have friends who are mothers who never thought about breastfeeding and it angers me because that is the best thing anyone can do for their baby.

[sarahplustwo]

I think people give me odd looks too I am 19 now with my 2nd child that i am bf and i bf my 1st when i was 17 I just tell people thats what there for! With this child i am not as shy about it I bought a sling from hotslings and it covers everything even my tummy so i just walk arround store bf and no one even knows! I find that bf babies dont spit up as much and just seem happier I feel sorry for anyone who does not get to bf because it is a very good thing for both mother and baby. My number one tip is to have a good support group who can help you get started my mother and mother inlaw both brest fed their childern until way over the age of a year so i had help and dont give up befor three weeks because it just gets more and more simple

[breengracie]

I am 19 years old and will still be 19 when I give birth to my baby girl and completely plan on breastfeeding. Well at least I want to, everyone says that breastfeeding never works. If anyone has any tips for me I posted a thread in the general breastfeeding forum.. Anyways, what could possibly be so wrong about a teenage mother breastfeeding? Just because we are younger doesnt mean our bodies wont produce the same healthy milk as an older mom. Plus the fact that we are teen moms breastfeeding goes to show all the people who say "you are way to young for a baby" just how responsible we can be with our childs. Some women dont even bother to try. Even if its for a week, thats when the baby gets the most important part.

[MrsKitty]

Breengracie :) you can tell those people that they are silly. If breastfeeding "never works" then how the heck did we survive for centuries on breast milk? The idea that younger moms can't make good milk is ridiculous. I was pregnant at 17, had him at 18, and we are still breastfeeding three years later :) Amazingly, he survived on my "young mom" milk .. not just survived, he THRIVES on it.

Tips? Educate yourself. Read read read, and read some more. Be prepared. Get an advocate in your life. Your partner, your mother, your best friend. Someone who is on board with breastfeeding and will help you when your having an off day, someone to remind you how important breastfeeding is, and who you can vent too if you are having difficulty. If you are having a shower, let people know you don't want bottles and soothers and other anti-breastfeeding paraphernalia. Don't keep formula or bottles in the house for "just in case". and most of all... ENJOY:)

[lactivist_heather]

Great job to all you teen mom's out there who breastfeed!!! You are giving your baby the best start to life! There are so many health benefits for both of you.

If you are a pregnant teen I would encourage you to read as much information as you can on breastfeeding before you have your baby. It will help you know how important breastfeeding really is for both you and your baby.

[Nurseliz]

You go girl. You are far and above more mature than most parents out there.
Your support and advice is much needed to teens!
Liz, RN, IBCLC
www.askthelactationconsultant.com

[christie1076]

im 18 i've been nursing my son since birth he has never had formula and im very proud i think its great you've been breastfeeding for 2 years GL.

[lacieface]

I've had mixed reactions to my breastfeeding my daughter. She's about to be 6 weeks and I remember telling everyone in my family while I was pregnant that I wanted a natural birth and to breastfeed. My husbands mom said I wasn't going to be able to handle the pain of either. The first part didn't go the way I wanted, I ended up going in to the hospital in early labor and they wanted to "speed things up" and I ended up wanting the epidural from the pain of the pitocin, but everyone (husbands family moreso) is in shock that I'm nursing her. As if I'm not suppose to be "strong enough" or something to deal with it. There was one not-so-supportive nurse in the hospital I delivered at who didn't even bother to help me when I asked for help getting her to latch on. Everyone else told me how wonderful it is that I'm breastfeeding and that most young mom's who deliver in the hospital don't even bother to try. Which saddens me..a lot.

[cupidsgirl]

I'm in the same boat as you. A lot of people are surprised that I like breastfeeding (and now relactating). I think its because some teen moms like to party and everything, so they don't wanna deal with all the "work" breastfeeding comes with, when in reality, its a lot LESS work. LOL imagine that. Its like the lazy moms ultimate tool. Pop a boob in and seven out of ten times, my kid is asleep! Woohoo! LOL.

I'm going to go to school to become a Nurse Practitioner and see what I need to do to become a Lactation Consultant/Midwife as well. :] Kudos to you momma!

[jlynn]

That is awsome. Education is key. I teach breastfeeding classes and love it. It is so rewarding - and moms who are educated and prepared have better outcomes. I've seen it.

[jlynn]

Thats awsome. I just started teaching breastfeeding classes - it is so rewarding. Moms who are educated and prepared have better outcomes. I've seen it!!

[lindsey1516]

Hey, so I’m 17 years old and in high school and I’m currently taking a sociology course.
I'd be really appreciative if I could get as many past/present teen moms as possible to take this survey.
I created the survey myself and it’s related to teen pregnancy.
This survey is COMPLETELY anonymous and is used for research towards a school project and results will be seen by my eyes only.
The survey has 10 quick questions and will literally take you two minutes.
You're welcome to skip any question(s) you are not comfortable answering as I completely understand.
Please take this survey only if you have had a child or children before the age of 20 (19 or younger)
And please pass this survey along to other present/past teen moms you may know.
Thank you so much for your time

http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/MMQGBMJ