VETERAN’S ORDEAL GOING VIRAL …
Breastfeeding is a very personal thing, and every mom has to decide for herself whether she is going to do it. At this point it’s pretty well established that breastfeeding benefits infants, but it remains a personal choice – and we don’t begrudge mothers who chose not to do it.
One thing we do loathe? Governments and big corporations which demonize breastfeeding – or put roadblocks in the way of mothers who make the choice to breastfeed. Take United Airlines, which did a number on Elisabeth Keturah – a medically retired veteran with a nursing daughter who was traveling to visit her family this holiday season.
Keturah specifically chose United because of its baggage allowances for military personnel, however the airline refused to provide her access to her suitcase during a layover – leaving her without her breast pump for sixteen hours.
That doesn’t sound like a big deal, does it?
No … but if you are a woman who breastfeeds, you know it’s a huge deal. Aside from being incredibly painful, it can lead to an inflammation of the tissue known as mastitis. Which is dangerous.
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Although I am sympathetic to the unique hassles of breastfeeding, a few points bear mentioning.
ReplyDeleteWhen they were checking in her bags, she couldn't have said "this one is carry on"? She said they just took it, but that makes little sense. You're holding the baby, and you're holding the diaper/baby stuff bag. That's how it's done.
Not that it doesn't suck, but I think she simply wasn't thinking, and handed them all her bags. So she would have been on the first leg of the flight with no bottles, no pump, and so on. She knew then, that she needed it. Why not let the flight attendants know en route, so they could possibly make arrangements when the plane landed.
They said they could get the bag, but it would take up to an hour. Why didn't she just let them do it? And why did she need to "go back through security", to get her bag? Surely the airline staff could have a security person bring it to her once it was located?
And if she was in the airport, I find it hard to believe there was not a single shop that sold bottles and formula of some sort, which the baby could certainly make do with. It might not be as wonderful as breast milk, but if the kid is hungry, she's going to eat.
And if she "can't" nurse from a breast...well, if the baby is hungry enough, and it's got a breastfeeding nipple full of milk in front of her...she'd almost certainly figure it out. If she's one that is simply picky about the nipple, she wouldn't starve herself just to demand a "favorite" nipple type.