By Elaine
Hi Everyone! I thought of something a while back that I
don't know if others have thought of or not, and thought it might be
worth mentioning. If you have children in daycare or pre-school or
even grade school, and you are nursing a baby, you may want to talk
with the older child's teachers...to make sure they support or at
least understand your support of breastfeeding.
Here's why...When I was 4 years old, my mom was nursing my younger
brother and one day at the nursery I 'breastfed' a stuffed animal
while some of the other girls were bottle feeding their animals and
dolls. Well, the teacher about had a heart attack, snatch the 'baby'
away from me, punished me and in general made a big ugly scene. It's
been almost 30 years, and I remember it like it was yesterday! It's a
wonder it hasn't affected my outlook on breastfeeding! (Or maybe it
has ... maybe I breastfeed for revenge! *LOL*)
But seriously, this was a horrible, terrible negative reaction., and
I'd like to think that daycare providers are much more informed and
knowledgeable today. I do know that my daughter's daycare is
supportive of breastfeeding, because I used to go there to feed her
when she was younger. But, I think it would be well worth mentioning
to anyone who cares for your older kids that you breastfeed, and that
you never want your child punished or reprimanded for doing the same.
After all, bottle feeding is unfortunately the norm in most places, so
why should we just assume that other people will be as understanding
with our children as we are.
I'm not really concerned with the 'pretending' thing with my son ...
he's much older now and I don't think would be in a situation like
this, but he is very aware of my breastfeeding, and when his little
sister was a baby he would quickly tell people that she didn't take a
bottle, "she's breastfed" or "she nurses". You can
read more about my little advocate at Big
Brother an Advocate! While I don't want him saying ugly words, or
talking about inappropriate or private things in class, I would never
dream of making him feel that such statements are inappropriate or
shameful! If anything, I am proud of his knowledge and support of
breastfeeding! And I've made a point to mention that to his teacher.
As my daughter has grown from a baby to a toddler to a preschooler, I
haven't noticed a lot of pretending to nurse in her play. If anything,
she brings the babies to me to nurse. But I've still made a point of
mentioning it to her care givers, just in case. And I've been pleased
that none of them have acted like it was a strange thing to mention.
We haven't had any negative experiences like the one when I was a
child, but I thought it was worth mentioning for others, especially
for those who have a young child in a daycare situation.
Please note, these are my thoughts and opinions
only. I am not a medical expert, so please use this message as a
starting point for your own information gathering quest ... and
consult your own doctors for specific medical advice.
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Breastfeeding
Reading
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