"Proud Formula Feeder"?
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| Thu, 12-14-2006 - 8:27pm |
In my playgroup, I've noticed some members have a blinkie I haven't seen before: "Proud Formula Feeder". In the past, I've seen the "Formula Feeding Mom" and "It's formula, not rat poison", but this new one struck me as odd. I can understand simply stating that you formula feed or saying that formula isn't rat poison (because it isn't), but I've been trying to figure out just why someone would be "proud" to FF.
While I don't think that women should necessarily feel guilty about not BF, I don't get what about FF there is to be proud about. Most (or maybe even all) of the women with said blinkie acknowledge that breastmilk is better, so why would they be proud to feed their babies something they know is substandard, even if they couldn't BF and FF was their only choice? What do you ladies think? Is/should there be such a thing as FF pride?



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""You should see Stacia get going over there! LOL It's been pretty quiet for a long time over there, if you really want to get a feel you'll have to look back in the archives. She's one of the women that I learned a lot from, her and Amalie (ecomama123) among many others and how I wound up with an amazing homebirth I wouldn't trade for the world""
Just wanted to pipe up and second that!!! :)
Lori
**Navy Wife to Eddie since Dec 2002**
"In childbirth, if you go with the philosophy of "grin and bear it" as your approach to pain medication, the odds are pretty high that you will end up having pain meds, regardless of your commitment."
I agree. With my first, I planned to have pain meds because I really didn't understand the value of not having them. I didn't want an epidural because of having had 3 spinal taps when I was 10 -- I wasn't fond of people messing with my spine. It wasn't a good experience, as the stadol made me feel drunk and out of control.
My 2nd was med-free more or less by accident. She came really fast -- labor was under 2 hours. It was a good enough experience for me to decide to do it med-free the 3rd time and my determination is what go me through.
I had an epidural with my 4th because I hadn't prepared myself properly. I didn't like feeling like a spectator instead of an active participant.
This last time, I took steps to have the birth I wanted. I used a midwife, so right there, I knocked out half of the interventions. We think I was overdue, but were never sure by how much, but I didn't have to worry about being induced just because I was at 40 weeks.
I had no one hovering around me asking if I wanted an epidural (actually I had no one hovering at all because I was alone until 50 minutes before Will was born!). I moved around as I wanted. I got in the bathtub when I wanted. I had my cervix checked ONCE during labor and was never told that I couldn't push when I wanted to push. My water broke naturally 5 minutes before Will was born.
This was one of the greatest experiences I've ever had. I don't think it makes me superwoman because I've given birth with no meds. It did, however, make me FEEL like superwoman.
RPS
PS If anyone wants to read my homebirth story, it's posted on the homebirth board.
Awwww, thanks Jeanine! You're the second person to say that in the past few months!! Though I learned a whole lot from Amalie!
Jeanine's right -- I'm a very strong unmedicated birth advocate. However, with my doula practice on hold due to unsurmountable life obstacles at the moment, I've spent next to no time on the Chidbirth Choices Debate. You wont' find any argument from me that pain medications and anesthesia are risky to the baby and mother and should be avoided in the same way that formula use should be, or that pain meds/anesthetic is overused and women are not made aware of the risks and side effects.
I have to say that if I have a choice between a mother having a medicated labor or c-section and then bf'ing, or having an unmedicated birth and then ff'ing, I'll take the first one (not that anyone was reducing this current tangent to just those two choices lol). I feel as though I can mitigate the damage from a medicated birth to lead to successful bf'ing, but it's super hard to convince a ff'ing mother to relactate. Yes, birth trauma can last a lifetime -- that's for certain, but I think the effects of ff'ing also last a lifetime. Of course my ideal is unmedicated birth and full term bf'ing ;).
Spud,
I also thought that I could never manage childbirth without an epidural following the birth of my first DD.
It's all about degress of risk. On one hand the baby is exposed to chemicals for a few hours, maybe a day. The chemicals clear the body and it over. Ffing on the other hand is the wrong proteins, the wrong fats, the wrong balance of nutrients and the missing hundreds of ingredients during the period of time when only one food is the majority of the diet on top of it being the fastest period of growth in the lifespan. Whew!
That's why.
Debbie
I had an involuntary natural childbirth LOL, and the main thing I had to do was RELAX and not listen to the voice in my head that said I couldn't do it. I went really fast, so I didn't have much time or much pain (until the actual moment of birth), but I just changed my inner dialogue to 'your body was made for this, people do it every day'. I relaxed everything and just trusted the baby would come out and I wouldn't die. I didn't! I was really scared then, but now I think it's kind of cool. I do think attitude makes the difference.
Debbie
I'm not sure "we" do leave the risks of medicated birth alone...but it just so happens that this board is to do with BFing/FFing. Not birth. There IS an unmedicated birth forum debate. There is also a vax debate forum. I personally try and stay away from other debates in general on a forum where they are not the principle discussion subject...JMHO.
Fio
I used to say I had a high pain tolerance EXCEPT when it came to menstrual cramps. Those I was a wimp with. They made me vomit, have diarrhea...I was incapacitated 3 days out of every month when I was a teen. And yet...the WORST of my contractions when I was in labour was NEVER any more painful than my worst menstrual cramps when I was about 14-15.
It amazed me. In fact it was so unexpected that I didn't realize I was in labour until way far along since I was sure it "had to hurt more than that".
Fio
I like to think of it this way. I don't have an exceptionally high pain tolerance, I just have an exceptionally low tolerance for the unnecessary use of drugs personally. Especially when there's another person directly affected by my choices. I planned to not have drugs during birth and prepared myself for it through reading, classes, the correct care providers, support, etc.
-jeanine
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Cool!! Thank you!!! And here's hoping your dh's swimmers are in good working order when he gets home from deployment! ;-)
-jeanine
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