A hospital in Manchester is being criticized for releasing posters of a toddler breastfeeding her doll in their efforts to promote and increase breastfeeding rates. Reports state that some hospital visitors/employees find that this is not normal and pressure mothers to breastfeed instead of supporting them.
My toddler, who is still nursing, also breastfeeds and babywears her dolls! I think she finds it normal to feed her babies (dolls) with mommy's (her) milk instead of giving them the bottle. When I'm there and playing with her dolls, she lets her dolls nurse from me.
Personally, I'd rather see her try to breastfeed her doll than bottle feed it. I believe that by learning that breastfeeding is natural at an early age, she will be part of the "new generation" who will have no hang-ups about breastfeeding. Hopefully, when she becomes a mother later on, she will also find that breastfeeding her baby is the most natural or "normal" thing to do.
My daughter breastfeeds her dolls and so do the kids of other breastfeeding moms I know. My daughter received a baby for her birthday that came with a bottle and it is for her water. There is no pretend milk in that bottle. I wish it hadn't come with a bottle but that was the compromise and she doesn't know any different anyway.
ReplyDeleteHow ridiculous that people are up in arms over that poster!
Oh well. That's the majority of the British public for you I guess.
thanks for dropping by, Melodie! was wondering how moms in other countries would react.. as pointed out in one of my forums, usually, the people who complain are those who feel guilty for not having tried hard enough to make bf successful.
ReplyDeletehey jen! a few months before maya arrived, i was reading yana a book on being a big sister and it showed the big sister helping dad bottle feed baby. so when maya was born, she'd insist that i bottlefeed maya so she could help, but after explaining that mom's milk is best she understood and now breastfeeds her dolls and the doll's bottle now water and not milk :)
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