Arguably one of the first things you hear about when you announce your pregnancy, is the inevitable sacrifices you'll be making. You'll be sacrificing your body and sacrificing your ability to sleep and sacrificing your ability to be spontaneous. You won't always get to do what you want to do and, to a certain extent, your constant sacrifice will continue until your babe becomes a fully-functioning adult. It's no surprise, then, that breastfeeding requires sacrifice. While so many of those sacrifices are worth it, there are sacrifices you make while breastfeeding that aren't worth it; Sacrifices that no one should make, even and especially a mother; Sacrifices that can put women in danger and make them feel uncomfortable and threaten their mental, physical and emotional wellbeing.
Of course, certain sacrifices are unavoidable when you're breastfeeding. You're going to be tired; You're going to probably put your daily showers on the back burner; You'll be giving up complete body autonomy which, honestly, sucks. However, there are other sacrifices that really aren't worth it, and deciding to end or alter your breastfeeding experience because of those potential sacrifices and how they make you feel, is not only understandable, but should be supported. You shouldn't force yourself to breastfeed in public if you feel uncomfortable or safe. You shouldn't force yourself to breastfeed if you're a sexual assault survivor and feeding your child is a trigger. You shouldn't force yourself to breastfeed if you feel like your mental health is at risk. While society constantly tells mothers, especially new mothers, that they must sacrifice ever part of themselves in order to be "good mothers," the opposite is true. If you want to be a great mother, you need to take care of yourself. If you want to be a great mother, you need to love yourself and value yourself and realize that you are just as important as anyone else.
That can be a hard lesson to learn, it turns out. It took me far too long to realize that I needed to put myself first if I was going to be the mother my son deserves. However, I finally did learn that valuable lesson, and I know my parenting and my son benefit exponentially because of it. So, with that in mind, here are some sacrifices you shouldn't be making. Not in the name of breastfeeding or, well, anything else.