11 Signs You Might Be A Breastfeeding Butter...
/By: Kristy Kemp
Butter- Someone who claims to fully support breastfeeding, BUT really does not.
One day out of pure frustration of all the people who would comment, "I support breastfeeding and all, but just cover it up." I came up with a graphic introducing, "Butter" to the breastfeeding community and it caught on rather quickly. It made sense, it's someone butting into someone else's breastfeeding choices. I wanted a word that was satire, catchy, a bit comical, yet brought awareness to a serious issue, which is people who think they are supporting breastfeeding, they claim to support it, but they really don't. It's important to me that the, 'Butters" are aware of their Butterisms , because on the off chance they really do want to support breastfeeding and they just aren't aware that their words aren't true support , calling them a Butter will make them aware.
I also need to clarify that you aren't considered a Butter when you are referencing yourself. People get confused by that. For instance, when they say, "I support breastfeeding in public, but I personally only feel comfortable using a cover." No you aren't a butter when the conditions you place are only on yourself. It's when people try to place conditions on OTHER mamas. The whole point of the Butter word is to remind people to be supportive of ANY choice a breastfeeding mama makes. So that would be a contradictory use of the word if I would refer to a breastfeeding mom as a Butter who is only stating what her personal preference is.
It's not about name calling or anything like that. I have had a lot of people flip out over my use of this word saying how it's immature , I shouldn't call people names, yada yada yada. Which is funny considering they had no care or consideration for the mom they were criticizing. Again, when I refer to someone as a Butter it's just my way of making them aware that they aren't true supporters of breastfeeding. Which I believe to be a fact. If you want to claim to support something you can't only support it as long as they do it to your liking. Other people say, "Okay well why waste your time? Why do you need to call them out on their lack of true support?" Like I mentioned above , it's important to the breastfeeding community that people know what true support entails and what it means, it's important that the people are made aware they aren't really supporting breastfeeding on the off chance they may not even be aware and change the way they talk about breastfeeding in the future. Yes, I have had successful conversations with previous Butters , they realized the errors in their ways and have been promoted to breastfeeding supporter. True story.
If you have ever said any of the sentences below , you might be a Butter.
1.) "I support breastfeeding, but only if you use a cover."
Many moms prefer to use a cover and that's great if that is what makes them happy and comfy, but many moms and babies prefer to not use a cover because they simply do not want or need to. No justification needed really. This one is probably used the most out of all the Butter lines and placing your own stipulation on how a mom should nurse is simply not supportive of her breastfeeding rights.
2.) "I support breastfeeding, but only until age one or two then you should have them weaned."
The WHO actually doesn't even put an age limit on the age a kid should wean. They promote breastfeeding until the age of two or beyond. There is absolutely no scientific data to back why a mom should have her kid weaned by age one or two. So again, that is just yet another personal stipulation someone is trying to place on breastfeeding moms and it's not supportive at all.
3.) "I support breastfeeding, but only in the privacy of your home."
So according to this statement , they support you being a breastfeeding mom, but only if you never leave the house the whole time you're breastfeeding. Yeah, no , you don't support breastfeeding and you're a Butter.
4.) "I support breastfeeding, but wet nursing is gross."
Wet nursing is a fantastic option for moms and babies. A wet nurse is someone, usually a breastfeeding mom herself, who breastfeeds a baby that is not biologically hers.
5.) "I support breastfeeding , but not if you have alcohol."
Science and facts say that there are ways to consume alcohol safely as a breastfeeding mom. I understand that not every single breastfeeding mom wants to drink alcohol and that's their choice! No one is pouring alcohol down their throats, but them not believing there is no risks , is again, their personal OPINION and preference , when there are facts and science to challenge it.
6.) "I support breastfeeding, but use a pump so you can bottle feed in public."
Do I really need to entertain this with a response on why that statement isn't at all supportive? I guess so... No mom should ever feel like she HAS to pump , especially if she doesn't want to. Pumping is hard work and extra work , that no breastfeeding mom should be forced into. The law says she has the right to breastfeed in public, by someone suggesting she should bottle feed instead are definitely not being supportive of breastfeeding.
7.) "I support breastfeeding , just not in front of my husband or kids."
Saying that you would prefer a mom hide away if she needs to breastfeed and your kids and husband is around is implying that she is doing something wrong. You wouldn't say that had she whipped a bottle out , so it's contradictory to suggest that about breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is feeding, unless you're against them seeing the act of feeding in general then you shouldn't have a problem with them seeing breastfeeding.
8.) "I support breastfeeding, but do it in the bathroom or your car."
Okay , ew... How anyone could suggest a mom breastfeed in a bathroom and state they support breastfeeding in the same sentence, is beyond me. Again suggesting that a breastfeeding mom hideaway is not supportive of her breastfeeding rights at all. If you support breastfeeding then you would support it whether inside a bathroom or out.
9.) "I support breastfeeding, but only at appropriate time and place, and a Church or Funeral is not the time or place."
True support of breastfeeding means supporting a moms need to feed and a baby's need to eat , no matter where they happen to be. A baby doesn't have some magical brain power that tells them not to be hungry at a church or funeral, that's ridiculous. Plus, The Pope openly promotes and encourages moms to breastfeed we should take a page from his book.
10.) "I support breastfeeding, but I do not think you should plaster breastfeeding picture all over social media."
Posting breastfeeding pics is just like posting about any other part of your life. Moms have many reasons for why they like to post the pictures the main one being for the normalization and support of breastfeeding. Being against breastfeeding pictures is being against breastfeeding, which means you are wrongfully claiming to support breastfeeding.
11.) "I support her right to breastfeed, but I don't think the business should receive backlash for asking her to cover up they were only doing their job , trying to make the customers happy."
A business is a public place which means an employee requesting a mom leave, move to a different location, or cover up, they have now infringed on her rights according to law to feed her baby. It's absolutely crucial that they realize they cannot do that and it's important to bring awareness to it which in turn might cause them to get backlash so that other businesses learn what not to do and how to properly handle a situation if it ever came up. If you think that breastfeeding moms should just lie down when they get discriminated against then you do not fully support their right to breastfeed.
8 Reasons Why You Are Crazy For Sexualizing Breastfeeding...
/By: Kristy Kemp
The purpose of a breast is to produce milk and feed our offspring. It has always been that way, is that way, and will always be that way.
Yet nowadays when someone sees a breast or thinks of boobs it isn't the fact they can produce liquid gold that goes through people's minds. It's Cup size, how firm they are , how perky they are, how good the cleavage looks in a shirt, and viewing them as sexual objects. Big corporations with the "sex sells" philosophies perpetuating the sexualization of boobs. Now I'm not saying boobs can't be or aren't supposed to be sexual. I'm saying if you want to view them as sexual objects do not let that overshadow what their true purpose is. If you look at boobs more in the sexual sense than in their biological sense that is fine too. This isn't about condemning those who like seeing boobs or using their boobs in a sexual manner. This is about letting people know that when they mix sexual in with biological you have a recipe for disaster, That's when people like me need to spread reminders to people about what the true purpose of a woman's breast is for. Society has sexualized boobs so much that now people look down on moms who choose to use their breasts for their biological purpose.
I recently posted a picture of a little boy pretending to breastfeed his sibling and the comments it received was atrocious. Some people are even associating this photo with pornography and called it offensive. You know what's offensive and disturbing? Someone looking at a picture of a toddler and a baby imitating a NON SEXUAL act and thinking anything sexual about the photo. How disturbed are we as a society for our minds to immediately go there? That's how warped our perception of breastfeeding and breasts have come.
1.) I mean, I know some people like to include food in their sexual endeavors, but the act of eating food is in no way sexual. When a baby is breastfeeding a baby is eating, just like you and I would eat a hamburger. If seeing someone eat is what turns you on , whatever floats your boat , I'm not here to judge whatever gets you rocks off, but if seeing a baby eats turns you on, you have some serious problems and you may need to get your head checked out. You are also a danger to society.
2.) If you associate anything sexual with breastfeeding, let me ask you this, if you saw a cow nursing her calf would anything sexual come to mind? Would you see it as pornography? If you say no, you're a hypocrite and if you say yes, then you truly are a disturbed individual, just keep in mind Beastiality is illegal so be careful with that.
3.) Does anything sexual come to mind when you see bottle feeding? Then the same should apply when you see breastfeeding. Bottle feeding and breastfeeding share the exact same concept. Stop with the double standards. If it helps any, just imagine the act of bottle feeding when you see breastfeeding, it will take you right back down to reality.
4.) Breastfeeding is about survival, not sex.
5.) A child pretending to breastfeed is no different than a child pretending to bottle feed. If a child was breastfed or is breastfeeding and if the child sees their sibling breastfeed, it only makes sense that their feeding method they make believe would be breastfeeding. For pornography to come to your mind when you see a child imitating the act of breastfeeding, is so off track and completely disturbing. Breastfeeding is not sexual therefore and child imitating it is not sexual. Stop sexualizing children or at least stop admitting to it because I'm pretty sure admitting to sexual thoughts about children is frowned upon by the law.
6.) I know a ton of people who have foot fetishes. Meaning the sight of feet turn them on sexually, no kidding. So I guess allowing our children to wear sandals or lets get crazy, and let them walk barefoot, that would be considered pornography too according to some people's mindsets. Just because you view something sexually that doesn't make it so. So anyone who sees anything sexual about breastfeeding they better never allow their kids to play footsies either!
7.) If sexual thoughts come to mind when you see breastfeeding you are selfish. It means you are putting your preference for boobs before a baby's need & right to eat. How would you like it if someone said, "Ew porn!!!" Every time you took a bite of your sandwich? Babies have the same right to eat their food without negative implications the same as you do and breastfeeding moms have every right to feed their babies the same way moms who feed with bottles do.
8.) If you don't have a problem with kids seeing the Victoria Secret ad at the mall , but you take issue with them seeing breastfeeding then you got it twisted. We live in a "sex sells" world there is sexual implications all over the place that children are exposed to and no one bats a damn eye, but see a breastfeeding mom and we lose our minds. It's backwards thinking and it also makes you a bit crazy.
If you relate anything sexual to anything related to breastfeeding, you are delusional, disturbed, crazy individual. Breastfeeding and sex are not even words that we should be using in the same sentence , let alone associating them with each other. Breasts can be sexual, breastfeeding can never be sexual. Learn it, Live it. Love it.
Times that makes it okay to associate sex with Breastfeeding-
Nursing Time Tea
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By: Allie Pollman
Nursing time tea made by Fairhaven Health, is a great product for nursing mothers. It gives the nursing mother a healthy boost to her supply. The ingredients are all safe for breastfeeding mothers. The product is fenugreek free, which is a plus, as some breastfeeding mothers or their babies cannot tolerate Fenugreek. The herbal tea is made with many herbs proven to be good for milk supply. The tea consists of fennel seed, blessed thistle, alfalfa, and goats rue to help with production and quality of milk. The lemon verbena is a flavor enhancer. With this loose leaf herbal tea is best used with a tea ball to contain the strained herbs after steeping. The tea has a soothing quality for colicky and gassy babies and it is a fast acting solution. Drinking two to three cups daily is very helpful for supply. Just one teaspoon of the herbal mixture and a quick 5 minute steep, and it is good to go.
I used this tea to start a stock pile in the freezer for emergencies. As a stay at home mom, it is good to have a little stash for daddy to feed baby when mama needs a break. In my first two uses, I pumped an extra six ounces after each feeding. I am not a fan of the herbal flavor of herbal teas, so I found that adding a little bit of honey and a little bit of freshly squeezed lemon, the flavor was more for me. I used the coffee maker to boil my water when I was in a time crunch. And it became a part of my morning routine. I highly recommend this tea to mothers looking to give their supply a boost or even just to help with the quality of their milk.
11 Ignorant Things People Need To Stop Saying About Breastfeeding!
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By: Leah Mutart
As I'm sure everyone knows, I breastfeed my son; and while I, personally, never caught any flack for nursing in public, I know of too many women who have. There are so many arguments against breastfeeding in public and I would like to address some of the most popular ones.
1. "Just cover up!"
Sure. Let me throw a warm blanket over my child's head, depriving him of fresh air. Plus, who wants to eat covered up? It's pretty boring to look at essentially nothing, right? Because it's so boring and stuffy, many children (my child included) will thrash about doing all that he can to get the blanket off of his head causing an even bigger scene than had he not been covered to begin with.
2. "It's simple. Pump and bottle feed! Duh"
Have you ever pumped? Do you know how annoying it is? Or how painful it can be? Do you know how hard it is to find time to pump when you're also nursing every two hours around the clock? I hate pumping. It's time consuming, there's tons of pieces to wash and sterilize. Plus some women (like myself) do not respond well to a pump. It can take me two 20 minute pumping sessions to provide just one bottle. It's all around just inconvenient. Many aspects of my life have become inconvenient since having a child. Showering, laundry, cooking cleaning, has all become challenging and inconvenient for me. I knew it would happen, I'm not complaining, just trying to make a point. Breastfeeding (while it has had its challenges) has become one of the most convenient aspects of being a mother for me. My point being, if peeing has become inconvenient for me, and I find breastfeeding incredibly convenient, why on earth would I create another inconvenience for myself to appease someone who is not my child? Did I mention some babies, like mine, refuse to take a bottle, anyway?
Benefits To Breastmilk Or Risks When You Don't Consume It?
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By: Kristy Kemp
This may piss some people off , but I'm saying it. It's not so much that there are all these extra benefits to life when you breastfeed, it's the risks that can happen when you don't and yes there is science to back that up.
No one is saying if you don't breastfeed, your baby is doomed to an unhealthy life. Many babies who weren't breastfed go on to lead happy, healthy, productive lives. So now because of this misconception people are publishing all these articles devaluing breastmilk or trying to show "proof" that these benefits aren't all they are cut out to be. Well, no one is promising that breastmilk is gonna keep you disease and illness free. Just like with risks, it is not a predetermined future!
In order to be "politically correct" we started promoting breastfeeding by wording it as breastfeeding benefits, rather than the risks of not breastfeeding and that has a lot to do with where we went wrong. In 2002, the Ad Council conducted focus groups to develop the National Breastfeeding Awareness Campaign, targeted at reproductive-aged women who would not normally breastfeed. They found that women who were advised about the “benefits of breastfeeding” viewed lactation as a “bonus,” like a multivitamin, that was helpful but not essential for infant health. Women responded differently when the same data was presented as the “risk of not breastfeeding,” and they were far more likely to say that they would breastfeed their infants. [1]
