Shocking Time cover shows mother, 26, breastfeeding son, almost four

By Kristie Lau
PUBLISHED: 10 May 2012 Source : Daily Mail Online
A mother of two has told of how she breastfeeds her two sons who are aged three and five.
Jamie Lynne Grumet, 26, has appeared on the cover of Time magazine breastfeeding her three-year-old Aram as he stands on a small seat to reach her.
The Los Angeles mother has spoken about how she applies the same attachment parenting method to her adopted five-year-old son Samuel. 

Controversial: Jamie Lynne Grumet has appeared on the cover of Time magazine (above) as an attachment parent. She has told of how she breastfeeds her three and five-year-olds

Ms Grumet was breastfed by her own mother until the age of six.
In a larger feature story about the controversial parenting technique, she tells the magazine that she is able to recall memories of being latched onto her mother's breast.
She said: 'It's really warm. It's like embracing your mother, like a hug. You feel comforted, nurtured and really, really loved. I had so much self-confidence as a child, and I know it's from that.'
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She has aimed to provide the same type of support to Samuel, who was adopted from Ethiopia in November of 2010.
Samuel was breastfed by his new mother instantly. He is latched to her breast 'maybe once a month.'

Like-minded: Blossom star Mayim Bialik wrote a book about how she breastfeeds her three-year-old

Ms Grumet said: 'Being able to give him that [comfort] with the trauma that he faced was really, really important to me. I didn't realise how much it would help my attachment to him.
'When his English improved, because the connection was there, he didn't do it as much.'
The mother has written on her blog about how much Aram, who will turn four next month, enjoys to be breastfed.
In one post, a photograph of Aram in the Playboy mansion has been uploaded.
The picture is captioned with the text: 'I've breastfed Aram at the Playboy mansion. I actually felt it was the most appropriate place on earth to do it.'
There is no explanation to explain why she believes this.
Ms Grumet is completely aware of how unorthodox the parenting technique, which was originally coined by U.S. pediatrician Dr William Sears, can be perceived. But she strongly believes her methods are 'biologically normal.'
'There are people who tell me they're going to call social services on me or that it's child molestation, she said. 'I really don't think I can reason with those people.'
She believes that the more people see it, the more it will become 'normal in our culture.'
'There seems to be a war going on between conventional parenting and attachment parenting,' she continued. 'That's what I want to avoid. I want everyone to be encouraging. We're not opposing teams.
'We all need to be encouraging to each other and I don't think we're doing a very good job at that.'
The technique also involves parents co-sleeping with their children and wearing them in a sling to ensure they remain physically close to the body.

 

Ms Grumet believes Dr Sears is 'great' and a 'gentle spirit.'
'I've read all his books.I find what he's saying to be non-judgemental and relevant to what's happening today and what we're finding out about some of the issues that are popping up with out children's health,' she said.
'I feel like he really is doing this because he knows this is best. And the way he does it is graceful and educational rather than condeming.'
She added that her mother was also a fan of attachment parenting for its health reasons.
'She wasn't a hippie,' she said. 'Everyone thinks she must have been because we lived in northern California. My dad did go to Berkeley, but he was a nutritional scientist. He got his master's there and his PhD. My parents were really into nutrition.'
Ms Grumet wrote on her blog: 'I love how my mother never made breastfeeding a dirty or secret act.'
It is not the first time the parenting technique has come under the microscope in recent times.
Blossom actress Mayim Bialik recently wrote a book about how she breastfeeds her three-year-old son and allows her six-year-old to sleep on a mattress on the floor with her and her husband.

BREASTFEEDING: THE STATS

• The World Health Organisation recommends breastfeeding a child up until their second birthday 'or beyond'
• Many American mothers fail to meet the WHO's recommended time period
• According to the Centers For Disease Control And Prevention, 75per cent of mothers begin breastfeeding a child once they are born but only 44per cent continue to do so past six months
• Of the 44per cent that continue to breastfeed, only 15per cent are using breast milk exclusively
• The CDC also found that by the age of one, less than a quarter of mothers are breastfeeding at all

Dr Bialik, who has a PhD in neuroscience, told Newsok.com: 'When we treat our children kindly and expect love and give love, we hopefully are raising children that then expect that and give that to the world around them.'

She kept both of her children close to her person for many of their first months by placing them in a sling across her body every day.

A $35 sling was used for both Miles, six, and Fred, three, who were kept laid down rather than upright to ensure the baby kept its natural shape.

The couple have also allowed their children to develop correct toilet habits as soon as they realise their body’s natural signals.

Dr Bialik said in regards to diaper use: ‘You’re basically training your child to use their pants as a bathroom and two years later we have them turn around and do all sorts of complicated manipulations to get them to unlearn.’

Ms Grumet is angered by others who judge her for breastfeeding her children for an extended amount of time.
She wrote on her blog: 'When critics are making very uneducated analyses of these issues (with absolutely no persona experience), it actually hurts the mothers trying to care for their children.
'Find me a child that was breastfed past two that said they wished they hadn't been.'
She continued: 'Motherhood is hard enough then to hear constantly how you are caring for your child is "weird" or makes people "uncomfortable" is almost too much to handle.'

Read more: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-2142487/Time-magazine-cover-shows-Jamie-Lynne-Grumet-26-breastfeeding-son-4.html#ixzz1uXB5lHNc
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Parenting

Q&A with Jamie Lynne Grumet

A conversation with the woman on TIME's May 21 cover

By Kate Pickert | @katepickert | May 10, 2012

Jamie Lynne Grumet, a 26-year-old mother of two in Los Angeles, is on the cover of TIME this week breast-feeding her son Aram, who turns 4 next month. Kate Pickert, the author of the accompanying cover story, “The Man Who Remade Motherhood,” spoke with Grumet about attachment parenting, adoption and breast-feeding, topics Grumet writes about on her blog I Am Not the Babysitter.
It’s clear from your blog that you’re into attachment parenting. Are you a fan of Dr. Bill Sears?
He’s great. I’ve read all his books. He has a very gentle spirit, and I find what he’s saying to be nonjudgmental and relevant to what’s happening today and what we’re finding out about some of the issues that are popping up with our children’s health. I feel like he really is doing this because he knows this is best. And the way he does it is graceful and educating rather than condemning.
(PHOTOS: Behind the Cover: Are You Mom Enough?)
How old are your children?
My adopted son is 5, and my biological son will be 4 next month.
Tell me about becoming a mom and breast-feeding your children.
We were starting the process of adoption when I got pregnant. We weren’t expecting our biological son at all. He was born two months early, and preemies that age don’t have a sucking reflex. The nurses in the NICU [neonatal intensive care unit] — they kept trying to put him on formula. I couldn’t see him for three days because I was so sick. I was basically passed out from the medication they were giving me. My husband is so great — he would bring the equipment in and actually do the pumping while I was asleep. It was a full family effort. My mother breast-fed me until I was 6 years old, until I self-weaned. Her encouragement to breast-feed is why we were so successful.
(QUIZ: What’s Your Parenting Style?)
And your adopted son?
We were able to bring our son home in November 2010. I know so many amazing women who have induced their lactation, but I had milk [from feeding my biological son]. I had one of the easier situations as far as adoptive breast-feeding is concerned, but it was considered extended breast-feeding. And it was transracial. And he was adopted. I was ready for attack as soon as I posted one of the pictures [on my blog].
Being able to give him that [comfort] with the trauma that he faced was really, really important to me. But I didn’t realize how much it would help my attachment to him. When his English improved, because the connection was there, he didn’t do it as much. So now he’ll do it maybe once a month.
Why did your mom breast-feed you for so long?
She wasn’t a hippie. Everyone thinks she must have been because we lived in Northern California. My dad did go to Berkeley, but he was a nutritional scientist. He got his master’s there and his Ph.D. My parents were really into nutrition, that’s why.
(MORE: Parents Do What’s Right for Them, Not for the Kids)
Do you remember breast-feeding?
Yes.
What’s that memory like?
It’s really warm. It’s like embracing your mother, like a hug. You feel comforted, nurtured and really, really loved. I had so much self-confidence as a child, and I know it’s from that. I never felt like she would ever leave me. I felt that security.
Extended breast-feeding is one of those attachment-parenting things that can be really challenging for moms who work. Are you a stay-at-home mom?
I stay at home. I blog from home. And I homeschool. I think if [attachment parenting] is working for a family, that’s what should matter. If it’s too hard on the parents, it’s in vain if there’s an emptiness about how they’re living their life.
(MORE: Why Breast-Feeding Isn’t the Bugaboo)
What do you say to people who say breast-feeding a 3-year-old is disturbing or wrong?
They are people who tell me they’re going to call social services on me or that it’s child molestation. I really don’t think I can reason with those people. But as far as someone who says they’re uncomfortable with this, I don’t think it’s wrong to admit this. But people have to realize this is biologically normal. It’s not socially normal. The more people see it, the more it’ll become normal in our culture. That’s what I’m hoping. I want people to see it.
There seems to be a war going on between conventional parenting and attachment parenting, and that’s what I want to avoid. I want everyone to be encouraging. We’re not on opposing teams. We all need to be encouraging to each other, and I don’t think we’re doing a very good job at that.

Read more: http://healthland.time.com/2012/05/10/q-a-with-jamie-lynne-grumet/#ixzz1uXD8AgaS