Sir, – I fully endorse the sentiments of Prof Afif El Khuffash on Ireland’s “shockingly low” breastfeeding rates (“Women don’t treat breastfeeding or breasts as a sexual thing. It’s mainly males”, Health, July 27th). He states: “We lack support in the community, we don’t have enough midwives to give enough support and time to mothers following the delivery of their babies.”
This week, which marked World Breastfeeding Week – as well as my son’s first birthday – I happened upon a feeding log I made last year.
Reading this back made me pause: establishing breastfeeding was the most difficult and painful thing I have done. It took many months and almost everyone around me begged me to stop.
While my decision to persevere undoubtedly took a toll, I’m proud that I pushed through the pain and made it to a year of breastfeeding my son.
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I required considerable support to reach that point, and this was only possible because I was in the fortunate position to be able to afford the services of multiple lactation consultants, GPs and a cranial osteopath, among others, not to mention the necessary paraphernalia, treatments and antibiotics.
I hope that Ireland can do better in this regard and provide the full range of services required by mothers within the community-based public health system.
I also hope that as a society we can become more supportive of the decisions and actions of mothers around feeding, whatever they may be. From my own interactions, they are rarely made without strain and, regardless of that, they should be respected.
Every new mother is told to trust her instincts and she should be given the space to do just that. – Yours, etc,
LUCY MOYLAN,
Phibsborough,
Dublin 7.