I am friends with a few women that all they can talk about lately is breastfeeding and all the issues that surround it. I fully support every womens choice (I also breastfed my baby for a year but don't and never felt the need to talk about it all the time) but I'm so sick about having to hear about it all the time. We are more than our boobs after all. How can I politely change the subject? And for all the moms I'm sure to offend, I don't need or want to change the subject all the time or everytime but I think as moms that rarely get to do something un-baby like such as having an adult conversation I hope & feel we are capable of talking about something else every now and again.
Thank you to the very few women that actually understand that I like my friends and just as they need to talk about boobs I need to talk about something else sometimes. I think I will "expand' my circle of friends to a few women that wanna enjoy a little girl time without the all boob talk all the time. to the other women,take it easy ladies. Why so serious and judgemental?
Gross! What a subject! I breastfeed my babies, but never talk about it. Maybe lay off from these friends for a while, sounds like they are boring and need something else to happen in their lives so they can have another subject.....
I breastfeed because I believe it is best for my baby......but I can't say I love it enough to talk about it.
Look, the truth is, breastfeeding takes up a HUGE majority of a mom's life. To ask them not to talk about it at all would be unrealistic. That is probably their time to converse with their friends too about their struggles and triumphs on a issue that, like I said, is about 90% of their mothering right then. Of course it's ok to change the subject or bring up your own conversations, but ultimately if you don't like it I would say don't hang out with them as much. Find someone to chat with that you have more in common with right then.
It sounds like you need to expand your social circle a little to include some non "new mommy" friends. How about a book club at your library, or your local town historical society, or garden club. I belong to all three of those groups in my area, and I am the only one with preschool aged kids. It is a nice little venture into the adult world!
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The good news is that this will come to an end soon. By the time the kids are toddlers, no one cares one tiny bit how they were fed. It's only a topic that interests new moms. No one else cares. Trust me, in preschool, no one even asks, "So, how did YOU feed your baby?" It doesn't matter. Beyond the infant age, there are other topics that will consume the conversation, like potty training.
Don't worry too much ... it will end soon.
hahaha i just choked reading your post.
change the subject. say: is that all you do? chase kids around with your boob? hahahaha. joking of course. i heard about it all the time when i was trying to breastfeed my twins. they weren't gaining any weight. then i introduced the formula and their weight skyrocketted. i was never breastfed. my mom's choice. i am 34 years old and as far as i can get i am have not been harmed by formula. so funny though. and yes so true. but you know that goes for most things. stay at home moms talk about how awesome it is all the time. the reality is if one has that need to talk about one thing the entire time something must be bugging the heck out of them. so just realize that.
sorry, i had to laugh when i read the title of your request. i also support whatever choice a mom makes, only i DIDN'T breastfeed and i have one of those friends like you're describing. can't tell you how fun it is for me to hear her talking about her "boob" all the time. luckily i only have the one friend who is like this. i agree with what someone else said...sounds like it's time you expand your friends circle!
I agree with ZooMomma. If they are breastfeeding babies, it takes up about 80% of their lives right now and they may not have another place to go and talk about this. If you want to talk about something else, then bring it up. If they don't want to talk about it, I am sure it will get swept under the carpet. If you feel uncomfortable with it then maybe you should find some different people to hang out with who have different interests.
Hi H.,
I actually have a sister-in-law that thought I couldn't cook because I didn't like to swap recipes, lol. People are people and they love to talk about what they do (i.e. they love to talk about themselves). I was never rude around the ladies that liked to quilt or the breastfeeding moms (I was one as well and will preach on the good things about it!) but I did change the subject a lot. It did always come back around but I asked different questions about them....like how's hubby's job or did you see so and so on the news.....the ladies here are right, once you get past the "tiny little one" stage and onto adolescence, you'll get sick of other subjects!! :)
God bless and hang in there!
M.
Breastfeeding, especially if you are facing challenges can be all-consuming - it will be what they are doing for 1/3 of the day and all they think about for the other 2/3 of the day. Talking about it is how they will learn - I wish I had had a group of girlfriends when I was struggling with nursing. You might just want to walk away and find conversation elsewhere and allow the ladies to enjoy this precious and short-lived time in their mommyhood. If their conversation offends you, just be honest - I'm sure they will be sympathetic to your feelings.
I am a HUGE fan of breastfeeding. However, you should make it clear that their pushing the subject is making you feel like they don't care about your choice to raise you child how you see best for your family. I have totally disagreed with people on this subject, but always try to show them respect. You should demand that of your friends as well. Breastfeeding shouldn't be an issue to cause you to feel uncomfortable with your friends. You should all just to agree to disagree!!
Well, if they are your friends, you should give them a bit of grace and ride through this with them. It's not like mom's with kids in school that are still sitting around talking about their breasts (that would be weird). It's just a phase, and you've probably had your phases of things too that didn't interest others.
If you don't make a big deal about it, and take control of the conversation with an engaging, funny story your friends would probably LOVE IT!
If this is what your friends want to discuss, it is obviously important to them. Introduce new topics when you can, but barring that, I don't see how you can control what other people choose to discuss. Perhaps you should hang out with other friends for now if you don't enjoy these folks.
