Response to "Breastfeeding Isn't Everything"

I didn't intend last week's article about breastfeeding to encourage and find support with so many moms. I hope you know that I'm not a typical "mom blogger" who fills your screen with flowery images and "you're so wonderful" encouragements.

But you ARE wonderful. Really.

I had a number of responses through Facebook, some public comments and some private messages. All were from women (no surprise there). The most obvious comment was,

It's interesting that YOU are writing about this. :)

Tell me about it.

My favorite was an old friend, who wrote this:

THANK YOU! As an adoptive mom, who never got the opportunity to "make my child smarter, etc" through breast milk. . . . Thank you! I am happy for those who get to breast feed, but for me and all those who are unable to breast feed for myriad of reasons, this does not mean that our children will be emotionally and cognitively damaged because of this singular factor. 

There are many reasons people are the way they are. The breast-feeding push seems to be rampant on Facebook these days with pictures of mom's breastfeeding on a nearly daily basis. 

By the way, I would have breastfed if I could have so I don't have a beef with it in general. I just have a problem when it is put in pictures and in media over and over again as evidence of superior parenting.

Since we have entered the world of Facebook after our kids were babies, I'm glad I've been spared images and propaganda on this matter. 

The purpose of this post wasn't about breastfeeding or not, but just the unfounded claims that breastfeeding makes kids smarter. Here's another response I received:

Thank you for this post, I have formula fed babies by choice...and the reactions I get for this are pretty interesting, really I think it translates to some as: "I smoke two packs of cigarettes while I feed them Tennessee Honey Whiskey straight from their bottle". But I am BIG on reading. Read to your children!

Or even more humorously, 

I was formula fed, & I am practically a genius.

But honestly, I wish I had gotten some feedback from the other side. Anyone out there want to add another comment?