Mother’s Milk a Lifeline Today, a Legacy of Health Tomorrow

Mothers are divine beings, chosen to shape the lives of those that know nothing more than the cozy embrace of the womb, and in this journey ridden with peaks and troughs comes the bittersweet experience of breastfeeding. It is a lonely passage to traverse, often stalled by gusty winds of exhaustion and weariness, soon ceased by the warmth of a suckling baby at the breast.

Words : Ronali Moonemalle Goonetileke

Some might call it a transfer of life, from one brightly lit flame feeding a wick eager to be set ablaze. A healing of the soul – both mother and child, nourished by more than a fluid that flows from the body, but sustenance that has been transformed by the blood that runs through her veins, the blood that carries the epigenetics of joy, trauma, and the lived experiences that have shaped her life.
In the lonesome solitude of breastfeeding, new mothers often go through significant changes in their body. For instance, fluctuating hormones, healing of open wounds, the feel of a hollow stomach, the physical and mental strain of engorged breasts and cracked nipples, learning to walk after surgery, the inability to switch off from a constant state of alertness while the eyes ache to close shut for respite. Some days are triumphant, while others feel like running a marathon with no finish line in sight. 
It is a challenging season to endure, especially with no immediate support system. Therefore, it is vital to bring awareness on the benefits of breastfeeding while making accessible the necessary resources and information for a mother, enabling her to continue for as long as she wishes to. ‘World Breastfeeding Week’ falls in the first week of August, and what better way to celebrate this miraculous phenomenon than highlighting its importance and advocacy for a seamless journey! Let’s take a look at a few factors that emphasize the importance of breast milk and why we as a community should care for the welfare of those in charge of raising the future. 

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