Child Development and Public Health- Week 2 assignment

 The public health topic I chose to focus on this week is breastfeeding. I feel that breastfeeding is a very touchy subject, and one that often results in shaming of parents if they do not breastfeed their children. As long as a baby is fed and taken care of, it should not matter how they are fed. 

As a mother of four, I have experience with breastfeeding, however, my experience was not all that it is cracked up to be.  With my first born in 2011, I was excited to breastfeed because that is what I thought I was supposed to do. It would be a bonding experience for myself and my child. After about a month of breastfeeding, I was not able to keep up my supply and produce enough to feed him. At first I supplemented with formula and continued to try to breastfeed as well, but it did not work out, so I formula fed only. When I had my daughter in 2015, I tried breastfeeding again, but the same thing happened. I was not able to produce enough to feed her. When I had my third child in 2018, the nurse did not listen to my concerns and basically shoved breastfeeding down my throat, even though I knew my body. I switched him to formula about a week after getting home from the hospital. I recently had my fourth child in 2021. As soon as the nurses and doctors asked me about feeding, I told them I was not breastfeeding and would be doing formula. They listened, they understood, and they did not push. 

An area of the world I researched breastfeeding in was Islam. I learned that breastfeeding is mentioned in the Quran. One thing mentioned was that cultural practices get mixed and confused with religious practices, so it is important to help mothers understand the differences between the religious basis of breastfeeding and the cultural practices of some Muslims. It is the goal of mothers to breastfeed their children for two years, but it is not mandatory. In some cultures breastfeeding is frowned upon and in other cultures mothers wean their children between the ages of two to seven years old. 

The information I learned coupled with my own experience, reinforced how we should be mindful of others, their choices, and beliefs. We should always keep an open mind and try not to judge others.