Annoyed w/docs or nurses?

[November1984]

Does anyone else get annoyed w/this kind of stuff?

Background: FF first, milk didn't come in + don't have nipples easy to latch on to I guess. Had a breast reduction in 2009 taking out many ducts (which still hurts and isn't 100% healed). Tried commercial pumps, etc.
Decided I was not going to give BF another try.

The hospital I am having deliver my 2nd asked if I would like to go to a breastfeeding course. I said no and explained my background and that I did not want to attempt BFing. The response I got back was, "Can we still send you?"

I abruptly said no, again.

If I tell a nurse I am not going to BF and info about my background I get, "You can still try" or "don't count yourself out yet".

I don't want to attempt. I make it clear, give more reasons than just what I want or don't want like my background info and they still seem like they are pushing it so much on me!

With my first one of the nurses would wake my up while I was recovering from my c-section and start trying to stimulate my nipples w/her hand while putting my son on my boobs a hundred million times. I wanted to slap her. She acted like she didn't have to ask me to do this.

I swear if they don't leave me alone I may flip out.

Sorry for the rant!

 

[MrsRabbit]

That would be annoying.

I nursed my first for 23 months. They wanted to send me to a breastfeeding education class with my second. I'm like why I nursed my first for 2 years. You'd think I'd have grown a second head to think I knew pretty much all their was to know about the issue.

I got out of the class.

 

[Foogirl]

It's all about targets for their accreditation. If you go on the course, they get to tick a box.

It's bizarre that some hospitals / staff will pressure you to BF but the next ones will pressure you to give the baby a bottle if they don't meet the magic number for weight.

I'm all for encouragement and education for women, but at the end of it all, it is a personal choice and that should be respected at all times. No one should feel pressurised one way or the other.

When Abby was in NNICU they put quite a lot of pressure on the mums to BF or express milk where babies weren't big enough to feed, and yet they gave Abby formula twice because they hadn't checked the freezer to see if there was milk for her. I will say though, the staff always asked if they could touch my boobs when we were trying to establish feeding.

 

[bubbles123]

They should respect your decision. You are not stupid. But as another person said, it's all about targets - if they get you to go they can tick a box and say they're meeting their Bf'ing targets.

 

[Faerie]

I got very annoyed on someone else's behalf at baby group! It was the session where they were talking about bfing, I must say I found it pretty informative compared to what I had in the UK (basically zilch).

Anyway, the midwife picked up that one of the girls had bf her first but didn't want to this time and the midwife was like a dog with a bone making her tell us why, in the end the poor mortified girl gave her very private reasons which she'd obviously not wanted to share with basically a group of strangers.

I was so mad for her, personally I do bf and love it and will support anyone that wants to or asks me about it but I don't like this attitude of attacking those that are quite firm in their decision not to.

Sorry, rant, but hugs to you and don't let them beat you down if it's not what you want.

 

[Eala]

The midwife who did all my antenatal care is a family friend. She used to be in charge of the kind of... breastfeeding support/information thing for her part of the hospital. She told me that she actually gave it up, as she was getting too annoyed with managers pushing her and her midwife team to "get women to breastfeed, however you can." It was putting a lot of stress on her, her team, and the mums-to-be! All because of Govt targets!

I ended up giving up BF'ing for very upsetting reasons. I've mentioned them before, when I've felt able to, but I don't always feel like talking about it. I'd be very very upset if I was pushed to "explain" when I didn't want to. At the end of the day, my body, my baby, my choice, and I shouldn't have to justify it to anyone.