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Breast Feeding Someone's Child

Breast Feeding Someone's Child

If you were in an awkward situation where a mother claimed that her child was in need of milk but her breasts were dry (and she has no formula on hand) and she notices you breast feeding and asks if you will also allow her child to breastfeed from you also... how would you respond?

How would your answer change if you found out that the child was born HIV positive?

Child Someones Feeding Breast

I wouldn't breastfeed anyone else's child unless I knew that person and her child very very very very well - in which case, in a dire emergency, I would happily share with them. But that is something much too intimate to share with a stranger.

A mother's breastmilk doesn't just "go dry" like that.

I'd get a cup of milk for them from the grocery...

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What about in a survival situation (earthquake, cave-in, whatever) where it happened that you were all stuck in a precarious situation and the mother was not breastfeeding, but lost the formula? You may be rescued in a couple of days, but what about till then? The HIV question also remains.

Child Someones Feeding Breast

My grandmother always tell me this story about one of my neighbor's son (this "baby" must be now 40 something). When he was born, he got some type of problem that required him to only drink breast milk yet his mother was not able to provide milk for him (her milk was little and not good). This baby was very tiny and my grandmother helped this neighbor to go around the neighborhoods with this baby in arms asking those mothers who are breastfeeding if they can please share some of their milk with this baby who was at risk of dying. They were not asking for breastfeeding the baby, just the milk and she always remembers how many women who were breastfeeding their own babies and their milk was leaking from their breasts were NOT willing to share their milk with this dying baby. Some women were more kind and helped them but a lot of them did not. She always remembers that.

I think I would do it without a doubt in an emergency case, knowing that I could save a baby's life by doing it. Heck, I would do it with many babies as I could if that would mean I would help them survive. No matter to me whether the baby has HIV or not.

Child Someones Feeding Breast

I agree that women would be paid by how much milk is produced, but since you could be doing other things than just sitting in a stall, as a cow would, it could be done at home, or even while working at another job. If you"re serious about women producing milk, instead of cows, then companies will make breast pumps to make them discreet enough that a woman could wear a shirt over it without anyone knowing what she is doing.

Breast Feeding Someone's Child

Breast feeding another child is only "unusuall" in todays society. I can remember ladies being paid to be a wet nurse when I was young. Many ladies are not able to produce good milk or enough quantity for their child so hired a lady for that. I do not know if they pumped or breast fed as they often also looked after the child as mom went back to work.

My own grandmother did this when she was younger as they were hard up and it was a viable job. Not to mention she had 12 of her own and loved babies. She often expressed disappointment in her older age of not being able to wet nurse. I never asked how the baby was fed but knowing her she likely did not use a bottle. When she dies ti was the biggest funeral I have ever seen for a person who was of a low social status in our community. Love knows no boundaries.

As far as HIV who care you are so unlikely to contract that it should be a non issue. After breast feeding in less then 10 seconds any of the virus left on the nipple is dead.

Being a high pressure in side the milk is only going out so I doubt you would be infected. The heart though is a different matter from the cold heart of science and not having breastfeed a baby I have no option on what a person would do just sharing some thoughts of what I have seen and heard.

My wife shared her milk with a neighbors child when my oldest was just starting to be weaned. Our neighbor had run dry but baby was still doing the night feed worked well as my wife would have just expressed it down the sink any how. We were very good friends with them. Did this for a few months then both were fully done and onto cups we did not bother with soothers or bottle just breast to cup.

Breast Feeding Someone's Child

I agree with krakyn. Wet nurses are only uncommon in our society. Good points! Remember when Moses in the Bible was found by Pharaoh's daughters. She knew the baby needed milk and sent Miriam (Moses' sister who was hiding nearby) to find a Hebrew woman to take care of the baby and nurse it. Miriam ran to get her mother so Moses' own mother (Jocebed) ended up nursing the baby, but Pharaoh's daughter did not know this when she requested a Hebrew mother to nurse the baby. Wet nurses were common.

My husband (dbackers) and all 5 of his siblings were nursed as a baby by his aunt. His mother is a twin, and they would nurse each other's babies when mom needed to be somewhere, but baby still needed to be fed. I don't think dbackers or his siblings have any major emotional issues from having been breastfeed by someone other than mom, except that maybe he likes breasts too much! I have never had someone else breastfeed my 5 children, however, I would not mind, if they needed to. I have always tried to be back from the store or meetings in plenty of time to feed the baby. Or, I bring the baby with me. My sister-in-law has a baby one day younger than mine, she has offered to nurse the baby when I left to go somewhere. She said if he was crying, I can feed him. She said it might be a little weird to me at first, but I could do it. I told her I have no problems with that at vice versa. I don't want my baby to be hungry and feel like his needs are not met. I have no problems with having someone I know well feed my child.

I don't feel the HIV is a big problem. HIV is contracted mainly by blood, only in rare instances through the milk. I am currently a nursing mother. I have absolutely no problems feeding someone else's child or having them breastfeed mine. However, I would only want it to be someone I knew well (close friends and family) only because I only leave my children with someone I know very well who I know loves them.

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I try not to think of Suckling off my aunt's breasts. If I dwell on that too long the emotional scars start coming to the surface.

But in all serious I guess its ok to do this, but I am just not used to the concept of sharing mother's milk with different kids.

My wife is right, I am partial to breasts.