Breast or bottle - how did you decide?

'When my son was born I was 17. I was determined to breastfeed. I put up with cracked and peeling nipples for weeks. I used breast pumps and expressed milk to enable other people to feed my son. It was wonderfully easy to feed him in the middle of the night and, even if he woke several times, my sleep never suffered badly. I lived in a deprived area of the south-west, and I constantly had pregnant friends saying to me: 'I ain't having a baby hanging off my t*t, I ain't a bl**ding cow'. I can't believe how selfish this view is. That is what breasts are for. So much research has been published on the benefits of breastfeeding, so please, even if you only try it for a few days, use what nature gave you.'

'It's a 'personal choice' if you smoke, or drink alcohol during your pregnancy, but that doesn't make it right. Women who choose to bottle-feed (rather than resorting to it because they have tried to breast-feed and failed) do so because they find it easier, less embarrassing, less stressful, less tiring, less-painful than breast-feeding. They do it because it suits their lifestyle. It's a selfish choice in that they are putting their own comfort before their baby's health and well being. I'd love to know what the writer (who claimed to have made a well informed choice to bottle-feed) read to convince her that formula is just as good for babies as breast-milk. She may be a very good mother, but she would have been an even better mother, if she had chosen to breastfeed her child.'

Don't make women feel guilty

'When I was pregnant with my first (and only) child, I made the decision that I would breastfeed because it was best for the baby. What seems to be overlooked is what is best for the mother. In my opinion, mothers are made to feel guilty about everything they do - whether it's about working or breastfeeding. When my son was born I was determined to give breastfeeding a go. It proved very difficult and I didn't get good advice and support from the midwives. I felt as if all the other mothers on the ward were managing and I was the only failure. I believe some babies take to the breast better than others and my baby wouldn't latch on. Feeling tired, drained and very upset, I made the decision to bottle-feed. The problem is that there's not enough help available, and just because it's what nature intended doesn't mean it comes naturally. I would just like to point out that comments like 'she would have been an even better mother if she'd chosen to breastfeed' from the woman above, are just the sort of comments that put women under pressure to succeed at breastfeeding and make them feel a failure as a mother, if it doesn't work out.'