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My thoughts have been with Cafe MicheleZ, who just had twins two days ago! I wonder how she's doing ... probably wonderful and crazy and sleepless all at the same time.
It's called me back to my own hospital stays, all the flowers and gifts, and how wonderful it was to finally go home with my babies. The nurses told me I couldn't keep the receiving blanket (though I hid it in my bag anyway) but sent me out the door with a gift bag that included some creams and formula samples.
I breastfed my babies the first months, so I didn't have a use for the formula. When you think of it, it is kind of odd. Doctors and health experts always recommend breastfeeding, yet they send you home with formula. That's great for the moms who plan to use formula. It's so expensive and every little bit helps.
I recently read that more hospitals are offering a gift bag that promotes breastfeeding. It includes things like nursing ointment, nursing pads, breast milk storage bags, herbal tea than promotes lactation, and nursing bras.
I think this is such a great idea ... maybe new moms could be given a choice of what bag they want depending on the feeding option they've chosen?
In fairness, I did get some lanolin cream along with those formula samples in my gift bag. I found it also worked great on my chapped lips!
Did you use any of the stuff included in your hospital's gift bag? Did you feel it was pushing you to make a choice one way or the other?
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Comments (35)
I threw the damn thing out. It had formula, the bag was from a formula company, there were nursing pad samples in it and some mainstream not-so-helpful nursing "information" in it but that's the only way it was a breastfeeding bag. It was a sample plug, as always. They do that so you have it when you feel really down, stressed, and are open to formula feeding. I opened the samples and dumped them so there was no way it would be used by me or anyone else. I hate the maternity system in this country!
wow, that first responder really felt it was quite the conspiracy!
Anyway, I recieved the bag- it had some formula in it, and some nursing pads, as well as information about both breast and ff (oh and some great coupons for photo developing! ty)- I had already made a decision about how I wanted to feed my baby- these bags don't make decisions for anyone but the most weak minded or open to suggestion people on the planet- every mother I ever met already had thought about and knew what she intened to do BEFORE she recieved the silly little bag- of course it's a form of advertisement, as are so many things, and it's geared to their target clientele - the new mom- not a big shocker- they wouldn't give formula samples to construction workers now would they? and if they did, would the construction worker feel compelled to use it? lol....
I think it's great, but agree that they should just ask the mom which one she wants. Most moms have already decided before hand what method of feeding is best for them and their child, so it would be more efficient to have both bags and offer them to whom they apply. Either bag is a great help to a new mommy! Every little bit helps.
LOL! Not a conspiracy theory, anyone who has taken an advertising course will tell you that it is a commonly used advertising ploy. Samples are to be used so that they show you why you want it. When your nipples are bleeding, your breasts hurt, you're crying and the baby is crying, it doesn't take a weak person to turn to the bottle and formula samples. The strongest women I know would fall prey to that tactic. Most of the "failed" breastfeeders I know "Failed" because of this crap. No, hun, not a conspiracy but it is just a cold, hard, very well known, fact.
now that's something nice to hear, with my first daugther i kept the bag, never used it to go out but i did used eveything inside, even the formula at one point, it brought a couple of breast feeding items but not enough to push me into saying i have to breastfeed or bottle feed, i think that is our decision as moms what we want and a bag shouldn't force us into choosing what we want.
I agreed already that it's an advertising ploy- no hard brain work required there, lol...but if your nipples are bleeding and you and your baby are crying, with or without that bag some may consider formula- those who "failed" did so with or without that little bag from the hospital- that too is a cold hard fact. I never knew a mom who bf who felt compelled to change that decision based on a sample, and any mom who wanted formula for whatever reasons wasn't going to be deterred by the lack of a sample, kwim?
I think a bf bag is a great idea and they can simply ask the mother which she prefers- problem solved.
We left the sample bag at the hospital... I had made the decision to breastfeed and besides, those bags are ugly! For the mother with little to no support that is crying over her sore nipples or her baby's constant suckling (usually due to a bad latch), having that sample of formula could completely ruin all the work she's done. I don't know many moms that have used the formula in the sample bag, then just continued to breastfeed. And the doctors and nurses are making a lot of money by giving out the bags; they don't care about the consequences.
Advertising at it's finest. I gave all my formula in my bag to my mom to give to a food bank. I think they should save the formula for the moms who want to formula feed give them more samples cause that stuff is expensive. I know, I used it for my first child.
I wish I would have gotten a nursing bra in my breastfeeding bag. LOL The breastfeeding bags should have numbers to local breastfeeding support groups, LLL or baby beloved. And if mommy is planning on going back to work after maternaty leave there should be information on pumping and maybe some coupons for a high quality breastpump. When I went to work after my daughter was born I borrowed a breastpump but got brand new horns and tubing. I wish I would have known about how to keep my supply up and working 40 hours a week at the same time.
I agree with the first poster. I did exactly what she did :D
Wow, why would you throw it away when there are women who may need it?
My formula samples came in handy! A week after my daughter was born I got the flu pretty severely and ended up needing to go to the ER for some fluids. I was there for almost 10 hours and because it was so soon after I had my daughter, I didn't have breastmilk in the freezer. My mother was able to feed my daughter the formula while I was gone. The rest of the samples went to FF moms at a daycare for single moms who were full time students. With my next child, I plan to keep one or two for emergencies and donate any remaining to the food bank or a needy friend. Just because I choose to BF doesn't mean someone else doesn't and may need the formula.
I had no complaints about the bag. We were given a very cute receiving blanket, a few formula samples, diaper cream, diapers, and lanolin all in a plain black diaper bag (that worked perfectly for my poor single self). Of course it is an advertising tactic, but it wasn't completely geared towards FF.