Breast is best, according to the Canadian Paediatric Society. So when my son was born on March 2, I embraced the advice of my pediatrician. About two minutes after his birth, I began breastfeeding. However, I would soon find out that good medical advice does not always match up with common social practices.
It was a bit awkward at first. I'm not an exhibitionist by nature. But the benefits of breast milk were a good incentive: strengthened immunity against infections and allergies, optimal brain development and guaranteed creature comfort for newborns, just to name a few. And I, too, wanted to enjoy the health benefits: breastfeeding meant that my uterus contracted back to size quickly after birth and that I would have better protection against breast cancer, a disease that my mother has had to fight off.
Breastfeeding is a personal choice and I'm not judgmental about it: It's a mother's prerogative whether or not to do it, and sometimes it's just not possible. In my case, my milk came in and I decided to breastfeed -- embarking on the second greatest challenge of motherhood, after childbirth.
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