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My wife had a Caesarean section and was unable to produce milk. She went out and filled our freezer with some milk a friend donated her. I went along with it si
by patorjk 11y ago
My wife had a Caesarean section and was unable to produce milk. She went out and filled our freezer with some milk a friend donated her. I went along with it since I knew it was healthier than formula and didn't want my son missing out on any needed nutrients. However, we definitely got some strange looks from family and friends, with many people thinking it was gross. Hopefully its less weird in the future.
- anon4 11y agoIf people are okay with donating blood, I don't see what's so strange with donating milk. Maybe try explaining it from that angle.
- quesera 11y agoThe American fear of boobs is such a bizarre thing. We will happily artificially impregnate cows and pump them til they're dry to extract an inferior product, but cower in fear of the free, natural, superior option. We've been lied to for decades, and our too-smart-for-that-malarkey grandmothers are dead. This is a good addition to the what-will-future-generations-think-we-were-stupid-about lists.
- niix 11y agoI'm not sure when "weird" became the stigma around feeding baby, but its unfortunate. My wife and I have a 3 month old, and if our baby is hungry - she breast feeds him. (Mind you she is very conservative about the whole process). Its amazing the people that give strange looks in a restaurant, after all everyone else is eating. Why can't our son?
- JoeAltmaier 11y agoI'm with you. Most natural thing in the world. But of course the issue is, partially disrobing in public. We all know this. And the more mothers respond by not breastfeeding in public, the less the public sees it and the less they are inured to the sight. So the taboo gets stronger.
- Lawtonfogle 11y agoBecause we don't live in a culture that mandates you hide your fork and plate when they aren't being used to eat with. Imagine a culture where forks are taboo and often times illegal to be shown in public, except when you eat and where most people don't use forks. Where giving a child a picture of a fork (that isn't being used to eat with) is a significant social social breach that will get you hated and labeled for years and perhaps even a crime. Use of a fork in public in such a situation would get weird looks. In fact, even imagining such a society seems absurd, but that is how our current culture is (at least where I've lived at).
- userbinator 11y agoWe will happily artificially impregnate cows and pump them til they're dry How many people who grew up exclusively in an urban setting have seen a cow being milked? I think that's a huge part of the grossness factor. Someone who grew up on a farm and sees cows being milked periodically will think nothing much of it.
- quesera 11y agoIt's a good question. I think there's some aversion to the pumping apparatus being attached to human udders because it seems so foreign and, well, cyborgish. It's also uncomfortable at the beginning, and tedious at times. And pumping itself is a relatively new phenomenon. Not the ideal way to effect the goal, but a sometimes necessary practical compromise. I can think of plenty of reasons not to like it.
- athenot 11y agoAgreed. It's really sad that breasts have been fetishized to the point that their primary function has been obscured and become socially awkward. We humans are mammals and breastfeeding is pretty much the definition of being a mammal.
- JoeAltmaier 11y agoHm. My wife had a CSection and milk was no problem. Why did they seem related?
- Mz 11y agoIt is apparently a known thing. From the article: For first-time mothers, those whose babies were delivered by Caesarean section, and mothers of preemies, the milk supply can take even longer to start.