A nurse who doesn't breastfeed

Specialties Ob/Gyn

Published

Are you a nurse who doesn't breastfeed or know a nurse who doesn't breastfeed?

Someday when I have a baby, I'm going to bottlefeed. Yeah yeah, I know all the health benefits of breastfeeding and all that. And I teach my patients that. But I also respect their decision if they choose not to breastfeed. I personally don't find it's something I want to do. Feeding formula is NOT POISON and these lactation consultants need to stop acting like it is. I was given formula when I was a baby and I turned out just fine. Nobody even knows the long-term benefits of breast milk. Working as a postpartum nurse, I feel like I'm going to be judged beyond belief for not choosing breastfeeding when I become a patient someday. It's always in the back of my mind.

Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.

1) only about 3% of women have true primary lactation failure. The other 97%, it is a result of poor breast-feeding management. It can be worked through.

2) it can be hard work, but it can be done. And for those babies for whom it doesn't work, there is always pumping and giving expressed breastmilk. There is also a window of learning between four and six weeks in which babies who previously could not latch on will spontaneously go to the breast if the milk supply is sufficient. There are also nipple shields for those babies who will not latch.

3) Federal laws protect breast-feeding and pumping mothers. For those mothers who prefer to just not pump, there is such a thing called combi-feeding, wherein women breast-feed when they are together, and formula feed when they are apart. It works.

4) The vast majority of medications are actually totally okay with breast-feeding, and L3 designation is similar to a pregnancy category C.. In other words, the benefits of breast-feeding outweigh the risks of the medication.

5) see number three above. why would that be a reason to not breast-feed?

6) breast-feeding after a cesarean should really not be that big of a deal if given appropriate education. In addition, women can choose to give formula the first day or two, and then breast-feed after that..

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And for those babies for whom it doesn't work, there is always pumping and giving expressed breastmilk.

This is what I did. Logistically, it's the work of breast feeding and bottle feeding and the benefits of neither. I made it work and I know a lot of women do but there were weeks where I was fueled in this task exclusively by guilt and sadness at not being able to breastfeed.

So yes, there is always that. But I think there's a reason it's not a more common choice and why it's almost always (ime) a second choice and not a first choice.

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And re #5... it's not a reason not to but it's a reason why some women give up or don't try. If support for breastfeeding wasn't important, we wouldn't need lactation consultants. I think it's important to take some of the responsibility and blame for low breastfeeding rates away from mothers as individuals and place it on a society that isn't really organized in a way that promotes breastfeeding.

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Specializes in Nurse Scientist-Research.

I dislike the way "bottlefeeding" has become a euphemism for feeding infants cow milk. Calling it "bottlefeeding" isn't exact and normalizes when we feed milk to infants that comes from a very different species.

Feed your infant what you like, but recognize that it is what it is; non-human milk, and that's the biggest issue.

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Specializes in Critical Care, ED, Cath lab, CTPAC,Trauma.
To those nurses who either chose or were unable to breastfeed, I want you all to know that I believe that breastfeeding is best, however, breastfeeding is not for everybody. The most important thing is to love and enjoy your baby. As an IBCLC, I have supported many new mothers in choosing to bottle feed. There are often many reasons that mothers feel that breastfeeding is not for them. No one should ever be judged for bottle feeding. I would rather a mother bottle feed and enjoy her baby than breastfeed out of guilt and not bond and enjoy her baby. Just MHOP.

Peace

THANK YOU!

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I worked full time and breastfed my son. Pumping was not fun whatsoever at work, but I wanted to give my baby the best I could.

But if moms dont want to breastfeed it doesn't bother me. What makes me mad is when moms really want to breastfeed but some nurses push them to supplement because they don't want to deal with any latch problems. That's a different argument though.

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Specializes in Na.

I could not agree more. That is the most frustrating part of my job as a hospital LC.

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Specializes in L & D; Postpartum.

Count me as one of them. My kids are now 42 and 37. I won't bore anybody with their accomplishments or GPA's, one of which was stellar and one of which was not. Both are accomplished adults now.

Breastfeeding has become some kind of badge of honor. Young nurses I know post pics on FB of little Johnny all happy after "breastfeeding." As if little Johnny wouldn't be happy after a bottle feeding too.

I find there is little, if any, support for women who choose NOT to breastfeed. Positioning for that is important. Burping tips are needed. Encouragement to not believe that La Leche lie that says All Bottle Fed Babies were Propped with a Bottle and left on their own at one point or other. And above all, they should not be made to feel guilty about their decision, which could and probably is, based on their own personal lives, that of their family, and other factors that might seem unimportant to the proponents of Breast Only, but so what?

Breast feeding moms after birth and while still in the PP unit get a disproportionate amount of time and attention from the nurses. Is this fair? Not really. But even nurses just assume that "she's only bottle feeding, so what is there to teach her?"

I am now retired after 35 years of nursing, but I never once and I do mean never, gave more kudos to one mother over another about that decision. And I tried to give all of them the same level of attention. Nor did I offer, unless asked, what I myself had done.

If we are to teach, then let's teach....without the bias.

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Specializes in OB-Gyn/Primary Care/Ambulatory Leadership.
Encouragement to not believe that La Leche lie that says All Bottle Fed Babies were Propped with a Bottle and left on their own at one point or other.

It's called La Leche League, and "they" don't say that.

Teach without bias, indeed.

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Specializes in Maternity.

"Breast feeding moms after birth and while still in the PP unit get a disproportionate amount of time and attention from the nurses. Is this fair? Not really. But even nurses just assume that "she's only bottle feeding, so what is there to teach her?"

Really? That has nothing to do with breastfeeding and more to do with poor nursing care if that is what you experienced. Your blaming a breastfeeding mother's needs as the reason you feel bottle feeding mothers did not receive the same nursing care? In 27 years I have never seen that. I'm sorry that this is what you have experienced. Did you try to implement change and help the nurses see that the bottle feeding mothers were being neglected? Or did you just blame breastfeeding?

You sound defensive when you lead your post about how your kids turned out. I don't believe this thread is about slamming bottle feeding, so not sure why you felt you needed to make that comment.

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Specializes in Eventually Midwifery.
It's called La Leche League, and "they" don't say that.

Teach without bias, indeed.

^^^This^^^

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Original Poster, if you haven't already, read the book Bottled Up. It's all about how the "mommy war" on infant feeding methods is completely uncalled for and how the evidence actually doesn't support FFing as being as detrimental as many people claim. The author also writes about how the strong push for BFing is having some unintended consequences for at-risk infants. It's a worthwhile read.

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