Normalizing Breastfeeding

In his radio program last week, celebrity host KC Montero set the breastfeeding community aflame with his views about breastfeeding in public. According to him, he is not against breastfeeding in public but as a courtesy to other people around he believed that breastfeeding moms should cover up. This move will also stop perverts from staring at the mom’s exposed breast. A lot of people share his sentiments.

To be honest, way back when I was still single and totally unknowledgeable in breastfeeding I also have the same opinion as KC. I don’t understand why some women breastfeed their babies sans a cover.  Seeing their exposed breast makes me uncomfortable. Also, there are men around them. In my uneducated mind, I judged these mothers as without shame. It would have been easier for everyone if they will just bottle feed their babies.

Never did I thought I'll be breastfeeding my own baby when I was younger and an ignoramus to breastfeeding. 

Fast forward to when I became pregnant. I hoarded any information I can get about being pregnant, the baby growing inside of me, and how to take care of the baby when I give birth. I admit I’m totally clueless about taking care of babies, much more about feeding them. The book What to Expect the First Year gave me my first lesson about breastmilk and breastfeeding. It was a life changing event!

Breastmilk contains components that not even the most expensive formula milk has. Breastmilk contains antibodies, growth factors, enzymes, and many more wonderful ingredients which make it the best food for babies. Also as I have learned from our childbirth class instructor and breastfeeding advocate Miss Chiqui Brosas breastmilk changes as your babies grow. It actually adapts to your baby’s needs. Truly, the term liquid gold perfectly describes breastmilk.

Poster above was developed as a student project for the Breastfeeding Course for Health Care Providers, Douglas College, Canada. 

Aside from that, breastfeeding has benefits that go beyond feeding the baby. It promotes the bond between mothers and their babies. Breastfeeding moms are at a lower risk of having ovarian and breast cancer. They also experience less post partum depression. There are just so many advantages in breastfeeding that choosing to breastfeed my little Queen B has become a no brainer.

I plan to breastfeed Georgina for at least two years. Of course, I don’t plan to spend the next two years locked up in the house so I can always nurse her privately. Actually, almost every weekend after giving birth, J and I along with our Georgina go out. We take her with us when we do our groceries. She is with us to attend church service every Sunday. We already went to Bacolod City with her twice. We even bring her with us whenever we have get-togethers with our friends. The only instance we don’t bring her with us is when we go to the wet market and when we do this we are usually gone for less than an hour. I also don’t bring her with me when I’m having my nails or eyebrow done. Since she still needs to feed every 3-4 hours nowadays (in the first 3 months, it was every 2-3 hours), there are a lot of times I have to nurse her in public.

While in a shopping mall, I prefer nursing my little Queen B in the comfort of a breastfeeding station. I especially love the nursing rooms of Ayala Malls because of their relaxing and cozy atmosphere. In these rooms, there is usually a couch so the mom can lie back while nursing her baby. Some even have changing stations so one can easily change the baby’s nappy (This comes very handy especially during the first month when babies poop almost every after feeding).

One of the cubicles inside the Breastfeeding Station of Alabang Town Center located in their Family Room. 

But I don’t go looking for the breastfeeding station if she gets hungry while we are having lunch or dinner in a restaurant. I feed her right then and there while having my own meal too. I have also breastfed Georgina numerous times in various coffee shops and milk tea houses. If J and I are not in a hurry to go home, we spend hours in these places and not worry where I’ll nurse our baby. Majority of those times, I use a nursing cover or scarf while breastfeeding my little Queen B.  

During our wedding anniversary dinner. 

Breastfeeding with a cover is my personal choice. I am actually comfortable with a little cleavage exposure. I have worn two-piece swimsuits several times. I have a few dresses with plunging necklines. So why cover up while breastfeeding when I am actually using my breast to do its real function?  

To be honest, I’m doing it so I won’t be stared at while nursing my baby. I also want to avoid negative comments about where I am feeding my baby. If they can’t see my boobs even if only a portion of it is exposed then no one will ever ask me to leave the premises. With my cover, I can breastfeed wherever I am without worry. But the debate of whether to cover up or not that ensues after the KC incident led me to re-evaluate my choice.

I am proud of my decision to breastfeed my baby and I strongly encourage future mothers out there to do the same. I believe that breastfeeding is an act of love. The first weeks of breastfeeding can be very difficult for most mothers. Sore nipples, engorgement, and sleep deprivation – these are just some of the difficulties breastfeeding moms have to go through to ensure her baby is properly nourished. Only my strong and deep love for my baby kept me from giving up.

Unfortunately, we live in a society where breasts are considered as sexual objects. Exposing one’s breasts is viewed as an act to attract the opposite sex. Females displaying their shapely breasts are often seen in various advertisements as endorsers. Infant feeding is the last thing breasts are associated with.

A lot of Victoria's Secret models are actually breastfeeding advocates. This image is from weknowmemes.com . 

A campaign called Normalize Breastfeeding aims to change this perception. It encourages everyone to view breastfeeding as a normal and the best way to feed a baby. Whether the mom chose to do direct latch with her baby or exclusively pump milk, that mom should be supported by the society. Whether she decides to stay at home or work, that mom should be supported by the society. Whether she wants to cover up or not, that mom should be supported by the society. The Normalize Breastfeeding Campaign aims to remove the chains that bound breasts to its current status as sexual objects and not its natural, God-intended purpose of providing nourishment to a baby. A breastfeeding mom should not be sent to the bathroom to nurse her child. Breast milk is not a waste of our body meant to be excreted in the bathroom.

Last August 1, I joined thousands of breastfeeding mothers all over the world in the Big Latch On event. It was a liberating experience. I was wearing a tube maxi dress in which I have to pull my dress downwards so I can nurse my little Queen B. The top part of my breast is bare for everyone to see. Sometimes even my nipple is exposed when Georgina unlatches to look around. It is my first time to nurse her with that much skin exposed in public. At first I am very conscious but with everyone acting normal, I am immediately put at ease. It would be great to have that same feeling every time I need to nurse Georgina in public.

Nursing my little Queen B while listening to the lecture at Hakab Na 2015. 

Some time ago I came across these gorgeous photographs of breastfeeding mothers captured by photographer and mother of two Ivette Ivens. She herself is a breastfeeding mom. She had breastfed her eldest until he was a little over 3-year old and still breastfeeds her younger baby. Her photographs are stunning! Yes, breastfeeding mothers do not always look like that (I wish we do!). Her book Breastfeeding Goddesses’ blurb says: ‘Breastfeeding can be messy, uncomfortable, and even painful at times, but the mother’s inner consciousness tells another story. The images in this book depict the way each woman feels while nursing: pure, beautiful, saintly, celestial. She is a beauty in an ancient mural. A powerful miracle in the snow. A golden ray on the shore. A Breastfeeding Goddess.’ Those words perfectly capture a breastfeeding mom’s feeling while nursing.  

A breastfeeding mother is beautiful inside and out.  From www.ivetteivens.com . 

Breastfeeding moms bare their breast to feed a hungry child and not to be the center of attention.  From www.ivetteivens.com .

On my next public breastfeeding session with my little Queen B, I still plan to use my nursing cover. I’m using it not because I’m still scared of other people’s perception but because my Georgina is easily distracted. The cover lets me limit her view therefore encouraging her to nurse without interruption. For now, she is comfortable breastfeeding under the cover. (She actually likes being under a cover. While in bed, she loves it when I pull the blanket over us. Maybe it reminds her of her time inside the womb. It never fails to put a smile on her face.) Yet I will gladly remove my nursing cover and breastfeed sans it in public when that time comes when she no longer likes being under the cover.

Breastfeeding is such a beautiful and selfless act of love. It is not something to be ashamed of. It is meant to be celebrated. It is meant to be normalized.  

#xoxo