WARNING: THIS IS A COMPLETE AND TOTAL "RANT" IF YOU ARE EASILY OFFENED, PLEASE DON'T READ :)
okay, here it goes, i'm going to piss off half my friends and family, but i need a place to vent and this is it:
i was at a function a little while ago and i was sitting at this table with 4 other ladies and one was very close to delivery so naturally the topic of giving birth came up. we all told our birthing stories, etc. etc.
there was one lady in particular who was very outspoken about the importance of natural childbirth (which i happen to agree with and see the benefits of). she seemed very "earthy" for lack of a better word. but then her story telling of the natural birth took on a very accusatory and judgmental nature. saying or insinuating things like, "if you really loved your child, how could you possibly take medicines that could hurt them?!" i'm all for doing things your own way, but i try not to get "judgy" or make others feel bad for the way they choose to do things. this lady was definitely laying it on thick. okay, i understand being passionate about things though (as you'll see in a few paragraphs, i'm quite passionate about some things too :))
then the topic of immunizations came up...can you guess? she didn't believe in immunization either. again, i can actually get on board with this, to a degree. i feel we should go in more educated on immunizations...but i digress. so, this lady lectures us on what immunizations will do to your child, again with this "if you love your child how could you inject them with, blah, blah, blah." she must have used the "if you love your child" line 10 times. which, in my opinion is a very judgmental beginning to a sentence! we ALL love our children NO MATTER our decisions on ANY of these topics!!!!
well, now the topic of nursing (or breast feeding) comes up. you may think you've guessed it...but you'd be wrong...she DOESN'T breastfeed!!! you should have heard the excuses spewing out of her mouth! her first argument..."i just didn't make very much milk." well, a soft spoken lady spoke up (i was proud of her because this was quite an intimidating lady) and told her about a breastfeeding class she took (at WIC many years ago) by a pediatrician, that told her that any lack of milk is directly related to the mother's diet. which, i know to be true, as i took the same class:) i remember not making very much milk for little william, but i wanted to make sure he got all the benefits of breast feeding, so i had to put my weight loss on hold and let him have my body a little longer.
then she used an outrageous line...are you ready..."yeah, well, he kept spitting up, and my doctor told me that he was probably allergic to my breastmilk and to just switch to formula." BS sista! in that same class i took at WIC (and i researched it online before i did this post to make sure I'M not spouting BS) breast milk, is one of the few substances on earth that people are not allergic to. let me rephrase, that YOUR baby is not allergic to. there are some cases back when wet-nurses were common, where a baby didn't take kindly to a particular type of breast milk. but YOUR body works for 9 months to cook up the perfect recipe for your little one. it is designed specifically for
your baby! there are times when he may be allergic to something in your diet. i remember vance having a strong reaction to anything spicy, and drake having an extreme reaction to anything with garlic. but the committed mother figures it out, adjusts her diet, and let's her baby now have control over her body AND her diet for a little while longer.
well, i let her know (i think very kindly) about what i just explained and where i learned it. so finally she just said with a laugh something to the effect that "it beats getting up every 3 hours. just let your husband do the work! chuckle chuckle."
okay, now for my rant: if you're interested in some of these facts and statistics there are TONS online. one particular website i liked was: www.breastfeeding.com (stats are greatly increased the longer you breast feed. pediatricians tend to agree that 12 months is the ideal length).
one of the biggest and most proven benefits of breast feeding is a boosted immune system:
they show enhanced vaccines
higher immunites to the flu
higher immunites to diarrhea
higher immunities to herpes
higher immunities to respiratory infection
higher immunities to multiple sclerosis
and tons and tons more!
on an interesting side-note, the program WIC, which deals exclusively in the health of women, infants, and children in need, will not let you opt out of both immunizations and breast feeding. if you choose NOT to breast feed, then you MUST immunize. and like wise if you choose NOT to immunize (which they're okay with, they're one of the few programs that actually gives both sides of the argument instead of just one), then you MUST breast feed. if you're going to be a member of their program then they make sure that your baby is getting their immunities somewhere!
boosted development and intelligencehigher IQ
congnitave development
social development
(people love to try to disprove the IQ one, as society DOESN'T want to believe this. so they keep testing and retesting and retesting...and every test shows a slightly higher IQ to children that were breast fed as babies. nothing huge...but still higher)
long term benefitsless likely to develop:
diabetes
childhood cancer
hodgkin's disease
okay, there are tons more, if you're interested research it yourself. let me restate: i am totally okay with women who choose not to breastfeed. i have sisters/sisters-in-law whose children just didn't take well to it...and who can bond with a baby screaming at your breast every 3 hours. just don't tell me i don't love my child because of it. i'm also okay with women who choose to do natural childbirths and no immunizations, as long as they're presented in a non-judgmental manner. for example, a good friend of mine (caitlin, you're a total rockstar!) recently, after much study and preparation, decided to do a home birth. it went smoothly, she loved it, and the baby was healthy and strong. when she was deciding to do this, not once in any of her posts, did i feel judged for NOT doing it her way, but rather i was INSPIRED! me," miss i can't handle pain," was inspired to possibly try a home birth! this same friend was also the one who inspired me to get more educated on immunizations. she has a beautiful and eloquent way of expressing herself and she PROVES that this can be done through LOVE and not ACCUSATIONS.
now, i know right now i'm too angy to be inspiring :) i had a lady i didn't know, insinuating that i didn't love my child because i had an epidural and got them immunized! but i also nursed all 3 boys for 12 months, i have the saggy boobs to prove it! i gave them everything i possibly could, including my body for 21 months. i'm sure most of you are disgusted at this post, but as i didn't have the courage to say any of this to this stranger, i needed a place to vent! let the judging of me begin :)
Vance and Dad...
Vance with his best friend Kobi, and his sister Morgan. They both won too! Go Windsor Wrestling!!!
Drake wanted in on the action after watching for so long...
Will was such a good helper with Drake. I don't know what we would've done without him! At the bottom is a game Will invented to help keep him entertained :)
