Fascinated by the image of a mother breastfeeding her child on the river
Photographer Cheyanne Booker, USA, shares photos from a project by a group of mothers supporting breastfeeding.
Booker, a 20-year-old mother from Mobile, Alabama, has posted a series of stories about women who struggled to breastfeed, but persevered and succeeded.
Booker said she was the only breastfeeding mom in the family, and her mother had never seen one before Blyss was born. However, Blyss struggled with weight gain, and everyone advised Booker to switch to formula, which frustrated Booker. Booker herself was frustrated that her body could not produce enough milk for her baby.
With the help of her sister-in-law, Booker gradually regained hope. She persevered in breastfeeding Blyss, and over the next three months, her weight increased by 97%. Currently, Blyss is one year old, healthy and still breastfeeding... "There were times when I wanted to give up because of negative advice, and now I am happy that I did not."
 |
"The stories that go with the images are the most important part of my project," Blyss said. "I want it to inspire all the mothers who are struggling to breastfeed and let them know that they are not alone in this fight." |
 |
Shelby Butler, a member of the project, confided: "My breastfeeding journey began with premature twins. Born at 29 weeks, they were too small, too weak and couldn't feed right away, so I expressed my milk, which was given to them through a feeding tube and later a bottle. Although I later tried to breastfeed them directly, they preferred the bottle." |
 |
Monique Johnson on breastfeeding her son and granddaughter: "The first time I breastfed both of them was when I realized how hard it was," she said. "I cried, I got angry, I wanted to stop so many times, but eventually I realized I couldn't do it with them." |
 |
Sam's son (left), Finnick, suffered from dehydration at eight days old. Thanks to breastfeeding, he overcame the most difficult period. Finnick is now 22 months old and still breastfeeds regularly. Phoenix (right) had trouble producing milk, so she and her husband collected breast milk from women who volunteered for Shelter. |
 |
Emily Lowell, who breastfed all three children, believes breast milk is the best defense against illness. |
 |
"When I couldn't breastfeed my youngest, Kam, I was devastated," Gwendolyn Martin said. "Once he was able to breastfeed, he clung to me. Now he prefers breast milk to any formula." |
According to Ngoisao.net
