Breastfeeding ‘woes’ for new mothers
New Delhi: Suhani (name changed) dreaded the time when she had to feed her newborn since she felt she was not generating enough milk for her child, who would keep bawling despite being fed every two hours.
As a new mother, her feelings of happiness were overcome by guilt and helplessness as everyone around her told her that she should start giving formula milk to her child.
"It was a very difficult situation for me. I was under tremendous stress and to add to that, my in-laws would crack jokes like 'a milkrearing cow would have been better than you'. Even though these things were said in jest, such comments affected me so much that I was unable to generate enough milk for my son, who was subsequently fed only cow milk and formula," the 30-year-old woman said.
According to experts, every second mother is a victim of such misconceptions bandied about in Indian joint family set-ups, where the excitement over the arrival of a child leads to the mother being ignored.
During the International Breastfeeding Week that concluded on Sunday, experts stressed that family support is a must for new mothers since they are undergoing so much physiologically and psychologically.
"Every second mother I see here or outside the hospital is fed this notion that she is not generating enough milk for her baby.
The arrival of a baby is a joyous occasion and everybody has a lot of suggestions to offer to new mothers. For the new mothers, it is difficult to understand what they should follow. There is no mother who cannot make sufficient milk for her child," emphasised Dr Sakshi Bhardwaj, consultant, lactation sciences, HCMCT Manipal Hospitals, Dwarka.
Doctors also say stress is a huge factor that inhibits milk supply. The pain following a C-section coupled with sleepless nights affects the milk supply in a woman.
