The Problem of Positive Thinking

Your friends and mother and doctor will tell you all the great stuff about breastfeeding – “It’s wonderful, soothing, magical, fun, natural, empowering, and so good for the baby!”  This will easily convince you to breastfeed, but it may also set you up for a very upsetting experience.  These well-intended advisors think, why be negative?  This is why - when you expect a happy, loving experience and get a lot of very hard work, anxiety, and possibly some serious pain, you have been set up.  Add to that a baby who isn’t gaining weight or even becomes dehydrated and you have yet another exclusively formula-fed baby and yet another woman who gets an understandably bitter taste in her mouth at the mere mention of breastfeeding.