Category Archives: breastfeeding

Why do YOU choose to vaccinate or not? Part 1

I never considered not immunising BiP, it was something that never crossed my mind. It wasn’t until met other mothers, in person and virtually, that I discovered that many parents we choosing to either delay or skip immunisations all together. I am in the process of collating information on the parents who choose to go down the non-immunisation route but I have to admit I am struggling.

The law in France
In France there are 3 mandatory vaccinations that children MUST have by law; Diptheria, Polio and Tetanus in order to attend kindergarten, daycare and school. Failure to provide proof that your child has been vaccinated is illegal under French law (and in Italy).

What are other Mummy’s doing?
So, when I asked some Mummy’s internationally why they vaccinate/delay vaccines or choose not to vaccinate their children here is what I was told (please note these views are not necessarily shared by MummyinProvence – i.e. ME!)

MummyinLondon says: “We choose to vaccinate, but more slowly than the UK’s schedule, I believe they do too many at once, and my daughter reacted very badly to one set of vaccines, which made me change how I view them. I think they are necessary, but we give too many too fast, and our babies bodies are too little to cope.”

MummyinMelbourne says:“We chose to vaccinate accoring to the normal schedule of vaccinations in Australia. This is because I believe it is safer to give a small amount of the disease in the jab, then to put your child at risk of catching something that could kill or badly harm them. There are also some childcare centres and schools that wont accept a child that is not immunised, so this did have some influence.”

MummyinIllinois says: “We chose to fully vaccinate according to schedule. I did prioritize vaccines though and try to spread them over a few weeks. I feel the risk of disease and sickness is much greater and more detrimental than the potential side effects. I vaccinate myself too (flu, h1n1, pertussus). My daughter is in daycare, thus increasing their necessity, in my opinion.”

MidwesternMommy says:“There is no credible medical proof to delay or deny vaccines and unless we want horrible childhood illnesses that were once though eradicated to return, vaxing is the way to go”

MommyinJAX says: “So this may make me an uneducated mommy in this regard, but technically I’m not educated in medicine so that is fine. I did not go to medical school, I do not have a degree in medicine. Therefore, I follow my doctor’s advice. Websites have made me more aware of controversies but for the most part has not changed how I parent. I will vax based on what my doctor suggests. I also have kiddos in daycare, this is one less hassle I have to deal with (getting exceptions for not getting my child vaxed).”

Carnet de Sante - Legal French Health Record for all children

MommyinKentucky says: “We do the scheduled vaccinations. I researched on my own, but I do not have a medical background. I searched for a pedi that I trust, and since she is educated in this profession, we trust her judgement. I think it is important to have a pedi that is educated, and current on issues, and one that you can trust, and always be sure to discuss any concerns with them.”

MommyinSacremento says: “We are doing all the scheduled vax’s except we delayed hep b. Our ped said it wasn’t necessary and I didn’t want to do anything unneccessary at birth. I have to admit I’m a little worried about all the vax’s, but I’m hoping that the benefits outweigh the risks. I’m really just trusting my ped on this, after taking a lot of time selecting him. I definitely want to vaccinate Tommy against the fatal diseases, but sometimes it seems like an awful lot of injections. It’s definitely a tough one for me.”

MommyinTX says: “We delay some vax’s, like the Hep B. He did not get it at birth as there was no need for it; he just now got the 1st dose of Hep B at his 9 month appt. I don’t feel any need to justify our decision, it is what we chose to do & it is what it is. We will not do chicken pox (varicella) and we don’t do rotavirus. Those are not necessary. Catching chicken pox won’t kill him, nor will rotavirus.”

So that’s it for today – I would love to hear from other parents who are choosing to not vaccinate their children and their reasons why. I promise to have your voices heard!

What’s your problem with MY breast?

Exclusive breastfeeding until 6 months is NOT harmful!

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Breast-Feeding-007 The World Health Organisation (WHO) states that exclusive breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life is recommended and breastfeeding for 2 years (with the introduction of solids from 6 months) is beneficial. So, when I came across Sarah Boseley article in the Guardian Newspaper today entitled “Six months of breastfeeding alone could harm babies, scientists now say” I was (almost) lost for words!

The report, published in the British Medical Journal, states that “doctors from several leading child health institutes say the evidence for the WHO guidance was never there – and that failing to start weaning babies on to solids before six months could be harmful.” The study however, does exclude baby formula, positioning it as a healthier option in terms of aquiring a balanced diet for a baby under the age of 6 months.

Whilst I am pro-breastfeeding, and I honestly do not care how someone else feeds their baby as long as their baby is fed, I do take great offence when someone tries to imply that I am doing my child wrong by feeding her the way nature intended! Justification for this report comes in the shape and form of deficiencies and food allergies all of which begs the questions – how have they managed to collate such data considering clinical trials on babies are unethical and therefore do not exist? A study based on empirical data alone is clearly flawed! Who paid for this study to be conducted? Breastfeeding certainly does not fit in with mass consumerism … baby formula companies despise breastfeeding women because, once they’ve breastfed for 6 months the changes of them converting them to become a customer is almost impossible.

Waiting until 6 months to introduce solids is based on a range of physical factors; 6 months is the average age a baby can sit unassisted and therefore, safely swallow food. The gag reflex is moving further back in the babies mouth (a reflex designed to PROTECT a baby from having anything other than milk) which means they can readily accept solids. But hey, what’s the big deal? A baby isn’t a person right? They should be force-fed before they are physically ready because that’s what reports say!

So my parting questions are: If exclusive breastfeeding for 6 months is indeed harmful how, since the beginning of time did we survive without purées, rice cereals and formula? What about the fact that breastfed babies are sick less often (despite the implied iron deficiency in the report?)

Many breastfeeding women come up against a number of obstacles, personal and physical during their breastfeeding journey, with little support (in my case especially) but we persevere, cherish and embrace it because we rely on something that no study can ever quash … a mother’s instinct.

Who’s breast is it anyway?

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How you feed your baby is a personal decision only you should make for your child yet whatever method is chosen there will be debates. Bizarrely, breastfeeding, which has been the nourishment of choice since time began, has become a controversial issue. This week Gisele Bundchen said that there should be a law forcing mothers to breastfeed for the first 6 months of their child’s life. Whilst I do not agree with this notion I think the virtual flurry of debates it has provoked can only be a positive thing. Perhaps the more celebrity’s who speak out about breastfeeding the more new mothers will be encouraged to start – maybe a more radical stance is what is needed to get people really talking (and hopefully breastfeeding).

When Salma Hayek spontaneously breastfed a baby in Africa there was a media frenzy debating herintentions behind her actions. In my mind it seems quite logical – hungry baby + breast with milk = feed hungry baby! Her actions, selfless and caring, were twisted and construed as a publicity stunt some even suggesting that it would have been more appropriate to offer the baby formula or express the milk into a bottle first. What is with this idea that the breast is distasteful or unsanitary? Are breasts just for exposing in the bedroom, in strip clubs and the French Riviera? Have we forgotten the real reason why women have breasts?

From my own experience breastfeeding my baby has prompted numerous questions and odd looks from those around me. I’ve been asked why I am breastfeeding and that surely it must be such a pain for me to do so. I have even been told that formula is far better for my daughter than my own breast milk. Now, whilst I do understand this may be the case for some women this is not the case for me. I have been asked how long I intend to breastfeed for to which I have started lying in order to stop the jaws dropping when I say “I hope at least one year”. Its even been assumed that I breastfeed for fun and now that my daughter is 3 months old I should put her on a bottle. Hmmm … after 6+ weeks of cracked nipples, sore breasts and all the other aches and pains I’ve just got the hang of it so I am not quitting now! I never anticipated such interest in what I did with my breasts.
Interestingly, just one in five women who start breastfeeding (which is less than 60% in the US) continue to breastfeed for 6 months despite it being a recommendation from the WHO. Whilst I understand that there are a number of factors which influence a women’s decision to formula feed their baby the debate is certainly a lot more reserved. If anything, formula feeding has become the accepted norm and breastfeeding is the taboo.
At the end of the day, whist I support any celebrity attention breastfeeding gets, especially if it encourages more women to do it, I am yet to fathom what it matters to anyone else what I do with my breasts (or what you do with yours!)

The Art of Breastfeeding – the early days

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6a0133f2021451970b0133f2cb1e5c970b-320pi During my pregnancy I had the romantic idea that breastfeeding was going to be a sublime experience; beautiful, intimate and above all easy. I knew I wanted to breastfeed and didn’t explore any other options – I was actually excited about breastfeeding my child. I attended meetings about breastfeeding, excitedly purchased my nursing bras, nursing pads and a tiny tube of lanolin ointment (just in case I needed it) and I was all set to fulfil that ideal in my mind of being the next Madonna and child. All my preconceptions were shattered the day my baby was born.

The moment my daughter came into this world she was sucking, hard. She latched on to my breast like a pro and sucked for hours. I was so elated at having given birth to a foodie (like her parents) that I failed to notice that she was destroying my nipples because of improper latch. In the early days each feed got harder than the last. I’d cry when she cried because I was so terrified of having my tiny baby, who fed like a barracuda, back on my breast but I had to feed her. I would grit my teeth and wrestle my newborn baby into all sorts of bizarre positions in an attempt to ease the pain and give her the milk she needed. Before and after every feed I would cover my nipples in lanolin – they were ugly, deformed, cracked and very, very sore – I spent the first weeks of my daughter’s life topless and it was far, far from anything sexy – how could this be normal?
Some people told me it was not normal. That breastfeeding shouldn’t hurt especially after 2 weeks. I felt I had failed. I was miserable. It DID hurt. I turned to friends and family for their advice and support to only realise that they too, had forgotten the pain or obviously took to breastfeeding like a duck to water. I was lucky enough to have one friend who told me to ignore everyone, yes it hurts and pain has no time limit – as long as the baby was gaining weight my pain was secondary and it was only temporary. The day my tiny baby threw up pink (because I was so cracked and sore she had swallowed blood with my milk) I realised why so many women give up breastfeeding.

However, I was determined not to give up. I found that as my daughter got bigger the feeding got easier – I am not sure if its because we managed to find better feeding positions, or her latch improved allowing me to heal or it was a combination of those things. For me, it took a good 2 months to be able to say that breastfeeding no longer hurts and its actually become enjoyable. I can assure you that I never thought I’d ever be able to say that.
I tried pumping so I could give myself a break and a chance to heal but my daughter would never accept the bottle despite all our efforts. It was back to me, and only me to feed her which was time consuming and hard especially when you are tired, hungry, need the bathroom (and sometimes all 3 at the same time)
Now when an expectant mother asks me what they can do to get themselves ready for breastfeeding I encourage them to read up on it. Usually they have the same notion that I did. Only thing that may have helped me with feeding my little barracuda baby would have been to take the Dyson and attach it to my breasts for 6+ hours a day!

Today I look at my healthy baby girl with her delicious chubby cheeks and that is all the motivation I needed to persevere and get through the pain. Whilst I do not liken myself to a 21st century Madonna with child, my romantic notion that I had pre-baby as far as breastfeeding was concerned aren’t as far fetched as I thought when I first started. As cliché as it sounds, the phrase “no pain, no gain” certainly rings true for me and my milk monkey!

Giving the gift of breast milk

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Last week I decided that I wanted to donate my breast milk – yes, you can donate human breast milk. I had been pumping excess milk for a couple of months, storing it in the fridge and trying to give it to my daughter in a bottle but she was not interested so ultimately she ended up bathing in it! Now, whilst its fabulous for her skin there are much better uses for it. So after a quick discussion with my 3 month old she decided that she was more than happy to share her food with tiny babies who needed breast milk to grow big and strong like her. I called the nearest Milk Bank and signed up!

For those of you who have never heard of it – premature and sick babies need human breast milk to survive. They have yet to find a formula that is suitable for babies in NICU’s all around the world.

I was thrilled to receive my sterile bottles in the post yesterday and I have already pumped my first bottle!

The tubes there are for the blood tests which are required as part of the donor screening.

I could have dealt with my oversupply issues using various breastfeeding techniques but instead I am celebrating the gift of extra milk and giving it to those who need it. I can only donate until my daughter is a year old so I have a limited time of giving those tiny babies the opportunity to grow big and strong.

Milk banks all over the world have a huge shortage of milk – please consider donating if you can. Every drop counts.

For more information on milk donation click here

For those in France who are interested in donating their breast milk here are a list of lactariums

http://www.perinat-france.org/guide/adlf-association-des-lactariums-de-france-16-37-178-0-163.html

MUMMY IN PROVENCE

Bridging gaps in global parenting