Like a Mother: A Feminist Journey Through the Science and Culture of Pregnancy

the utter obliteration of their previous selves?

What he didn’t know, and what I had unconsciously come to realize, was that I was already a different person. I hadn’t delivered the baby yet, wasn’t officially a mother yet, but labor had already changed me.

Prolactin, a hormone produced by the pituitary gland in the brain, compels alveoli cells to draw sugars, proteins, and fat from a mother’s blood so that these macronutrients can be used as the building blocks of breast milk.

lactose,

Breast-feeding is an intense relationship but ultimately one that lasts only a short period of time.

It’s not how you give birth, it’s how you’re cared for that really matters,”

Today, feminism means supporting women in whatever method of birth that they want.

Studies show that breast-feeding is good for a baby’s immunological health: breast-fed babies have lower instances of colds and viruses.7 And when they do get sick, breast-fed babies are often able to recover quickly because their mother’s body produces the specific antibodies needed to quell their infection.

The reality of microchimerism requires us to reconsider our concept of “self” entirely. We are never alone; we never have been.