Movement sees moms breastfeed together
‘Our bodies make this substance that’s just perfect for our babies,’ says organizer
Breastfeeding did not come easily to Regina mom Chelsea Wong.
Born with lip and tongue ties — extra tissue that restricts movement of the tongue — her son Edison had trouble latching on. Things got more difficult when teeth started coming in.
“There were so many struggles at the beginning, we almost stopped. It’s not an easy process,” said Wong. “Sometimes it comes easy to women, and it was harder for us.”
With some support and determination, she persevered and on Saturday took part in the Quintessence Challenge — a worldwide event to have mothers breastfeeding simultaneously.
Designed to celebrate, normalize and promote breastfeeding as well as provide protection and support for breastfeeding women and their families, the event started in B.C. in 2001 and now takes place in cities across Canada and all over the world.
Nine months old, Edison is still breastfeeding and Wong has a messages for other moms who might be struggling:
“Try all avenues,” she said, adding that she worked with lactation consultations, a family doctor, dentists and midwives. “At the beginning, I worked so hard to keep going ... If you have the milk, just to keep trying.”
Kim Smith, one of the organizers of the event, is an international board certified lactation consultant and doula. She said even after 17 years after the founding of the Quintessence Challenge, the message still needs to be heard.
“We have about 90 per cent of women initiating breastfeeding, but that drops off fairly quickly to about 40 per cent that are actually making it to six months,” said Smith.
“It’s new for all those new moms, so you just have to keep on bringing the word out there and encouraging them,” said Smith.
Breastfeeding is a way to bond with your baby, provide them with good nutrition as well as ensure food security, she said.
“There’s nothing else like it. Our body makes this substance that’s just perfect for our babies. It changes every feed ... based on what our babies need at that time of the day,” said Smith, adding breastmilk is also an immune booster.
It’s also free and requires nothing but mom and baby, which is particularly important if you don’t have access to things such as clean water or electricity, she said, pointing to the issue of severe storms, which may limit access to necessities.
In Regina, moms have a few resources to draw on including a local branch of the volunteer group La Leche League, which is led by experienced breastfeeding mothers, accredited to give “up-to-date breastfeeding information, encouragement and support.”
There are also lactation consultants working in private practice, the Maternity Visiting Program offered by the Saskatchewan Health Authority and many mom-to-mom groups in the city.
“We do have support building in the city, it’s just a matter of reaching out,” said Smith. “They’re not alone in their struggle at all and as soon as they actually reach out for help. They ’re going to discover that there are lots of women in the same position.”
“But also don’t feel like it’s bad if you can’t,” said Wong, who was determined to breastfeed, but acknowledged that it’s not necessarily the right thing for every woman. “A lot of women have this stigma that formula is wrong, and it’s not. Your baby needs to get fed.”
While there is a stigma around formula feeding for some, a stigma around breastfeeding, especially in public, also exists, making it diffi- cult for some moms to embrace it.
Wong recalls her frustration when she would get stares from strangers. At first she would do everything she could to cover herself as much as possible.
“But as he got older, the covers get so hot under there and he hated it. So I would just whip it out and if people saw my nipple I would just stare ( back) at them,” said Wong. “I was going to do what’s needed to be best for my son and not stress out.”
Smith said breaking the stigma around public breastfeeding is an important way to ensure moms have the freedom to be mothers away from home and not feel pressure to formula feed instead.
The Quintessence Challenge kicks off World Breastfeeding Week, which takes place during the first week of October.