So Why All the Rubber Nipples?
Many people have still another problem with breastfeeding. If feeding a baby involved any other part of your anatomy—say fingers or elbows—no one would hesitate. But you have to use your breasts. And because every¬body in our culture is so much more comfortable seeing breasts used to sell toilet cleaner and cheese puffs, it’s hard for them to see what have evolved into favorite sex objects taken out of context. Bottles, rubber nipples, and formula are very far removed from breasts, and most people are much more comfortable looking at rubber nipples than they are with the possibility of eyeballing the real thing.
Yes, there will be pressure not to breastfeed. Yes, unless you live in a cloister, there will be times when you’ll have to do it in public. But it isn’t mandatory K.P. duty. Like pregnancy, it is for a finite period of your life. And it is mostly a pleasant duty. The good you do in this early period will last a lifetime for your child. (And no, they’ll probably never thank you for it.) Plus, there are ways around your own modesty, variations you will learn in this book so that you can feel comfortable.