According to a report by National Center for Health Statics only 12% of the women face fertility related problems, so either if you are trying a pregnancy or simply wondering if you are fertile
CONGRATULATIONS!! Odds are already in your favor. Ideally, the majority of couples get pregnant within 3 to 12 months of trying and moreover here are few tell signs that you are fertile enough to wash your doubts.
1. Your periods are regular
One of the most obvious signs of fertility is regular periods. Hence if you get your periods in a regular duration of 24 to 35 days your hormones are in perfect balance and your ovaries are producing an egg every month.
2. You have an ideal weight
However, your body weight has nothing to do with your fertility unless your periods are regular however weighing either too much or too little can invite fertility issues. In skinny women, a little fat can lead to difficulties in getting pregnant because their bodies conserve energy for the proper function of the other parts and may shut down ovulation. On the flipside, women with too much body fat can disrupt the functioning of hormones responsible for ovulation. Though in most of the cases heavy and thin women do get pregnant yet gaining or losing to reach a healthy Mass Body Index (MBI) would be a smart move for a healthier pregnancy and fast recovery from postpartum.
3. You don’t have a problem of fibroids and endometriosis
Women usually have a habit of ignoring subtle symptoms until they emerge as bigger issues. Ladies, pelvic pain, heavy, long and extremely painful periods can be signs of endometriosis or fibroids. Though, either of the conditions are not an issue in conceiving a child yet your chances of getting fertility related issues increases.
4. You are away from smoking and alcohol consumption
Smoking and drinking can severely damage your eggs and derail ovulation which leads to delayed or no pregnancy. Moreover, the risk of infertility increases if your partner smokes too, so if you are away from smoking you have good odds to conceive.
5. You can track when you are ovulating
Most commonly women ovulate in the mid of their cycle but ovulation can take place anywhere
between 6-7 to 19-20 day of the cycle. You are lucky if you can track the subtle signs and change in vaginal mucus that indicates ovulation.
6. You have regular check on STDs
Certain bacterial infections can spread to reproductive organs, like gonorrhea and chlamydia that may cause PID (pelvic inflammatory disease). Such infections can later lead to serious damage to fallopian tubes, ovaries and uterus if remained undetected. Sadly, despite of clear signs of PID infection like irregular bleeding, and pain during sex and urination two-third of the times it goes unnoticed and creates issues later. So if you haven’t got yourself checked for STDs lately and preparing for a baby, it’s a good time to visit your doctor.
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A woman felt uncomfortable about doing nothing more than feeding her baby. Public places are immensely crowded, with people pushing each other, being stared at and harassed. This ordeal doesn’t have much comfort to offer. In addition, it is rare to find nursing rooms in public spaces where a woman can breastfeed her child without the stares of objectification. The scorn of society is not the sole reason for the barrier in breastfeeding in public spaces. Lack of hygiene, no facilities of nursing rooms are among the other reasons which make the environment far from encouraging to protect the right of a child to be breastfed irrespective of where they are. Instead of misogynistic attempts to shame the natural act of feeding babies let’s ensure to normalize the gaze with which the society views the act of breastfeeding and work on providing well maintained accessible for all spaces free from intrusion at workplaces, malls, metro stations, railway stations and other public spaces for women to nurse their child without the fear of objectification or public glare. Let’s ensure no lactating mother gets directed towards the toilets to feed their babies.
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“Next station is Rajiv Chowk. Change here for the blue line. Doors will open on the right. Please mind the gap.”
It was during one of my morning metro rides. As soon as the door of the metro closed, a woman came running from the general coach. She seemed in a hurry. But more than her swing of motion toward the moving train, what caught everyone’s attention was her little baby draped in her dupatta crying his throat out.
She came to the women’s coach and sat next to me. And started breastfeeding her child instantaneously. The crying voice ceased just seconds after. Well, she answered the unasked questions pointed to her with many women gazing at her. She said, “I felt uncomfortable there” and smiled.
Breastfeeding In Public Is Uncomfortable
She felt uncomfortable about doing nothing more than feeding her baby.
Uncomfortable, embarrassed, vulnerable! Breastfeeding in public is a barrier to breastfeeding in general. But why is it a site of objectification? How society perceives the act of breastfeeding is a question of concern.
The Infant and Young Child Feeding Guidelines 2016 (IYCFG, drafted by the Indian Academy of Pediatrics (Indian Pediatrics 2016) states:
“Nursing in Public (NIP): Mothers should feel comfortable to nurse in public. All efforts should be taken to remove hurdles impeding breastfeeding in public places. Special areas/rooms shall be identified/ constructed or established in places like bus stands, railway stations, airports, etc.”
Public places are immensely crowded, with people pushing each other, being stared at, and harassed. This ordeal doesn’t have much comfort to offer. In addition, it is rare to find nursing rooms in public spaces where a woman can breastfeed her child without the stares of objectification.
From a woman being mocked by a fellow employee in Kolkata for breastfeeding her child in the office to a magazine receiving flak for featuring a model posing like she was breastfeeding – it is unfortunate and illogically unsettling how so many people still consider breastfeeding a stigma and view the process as mere sexualization, exclusive for gaze.
There are no laws in India that prohibit breastfeeding in public. However, the environment is not conducive to a breastfeeding mother either in a metro or at the workplace?
This raises concerns about the social conditioning and unavailability of proper infrastructure in public spaces, including malls, metro stations, railway stations, bus terminals, airports for breastfeeding mothers.
The World Health Organization recommends exclusive breastfeeding for the first six months. The WHO also states within its guidelines:
Men Stare, So Do Women
The scorn of society is not the sole reason for the barrier in breastfeeding in public spaces. Lack of hygiene, no facilities of nursing rooms are among the other reasons which make the environment far from encouraging to protect the right of a child to be breastfed irrespective of where they are.
Michelle Branch, an American singer, recently took to her social media after getting flak by another mother for breastfeeding in public. Branch wrote, “I am in shock that this kind of judgment was coming from a fellow mom!”
I just got shamed by another mother (who was holding her own young infant!) for nursing my 6 week old baby on a bench at a playground while my toddler was playing 🤯 She said I wasn’t “being modest” I am in shock that this kind of judgement was coming from a fellow mom!
Well, it is ironic that you’ll find a smoking room around different public spaces, but rarely you would find a nursing room to breastfeed a child.
The concerning thing is the fact, in 2022, women aren’t able to enjoy the freedom to breastfeed in peace. The possibility of being stared at, photographed, and harassed grips the basic fact of life.
According to the survey conducted by Mompresso.com, a user-generated platform for Moms, 93% of lactating mothers feel uncomfortable in public because of a lack of breastfeeding facilities.
No Space For Breastfeeding In Public
Shaili (name changed), a resident of Delhi, says, “I felt extremely uncomfortable breastfeeding in public during the first few months. I was directed to the washroom. We wouldn’t want to eat in a freaking public toilet, so why do many think it’s okay to tell a mother to breastfeed their child in a stinking toilet where they themselves wouldn’t eat?”
Pallavee, an IT professional with a leading firm in Gurugram, says, “I have breastfed my child in public parks, toilets, malls, restaurants, and trains. I was nervous when I had to nurse in public, surrounded by glares. I will never understand why breastfeeding in public is shamed upon. There are no places where I can breastfeed peacefully. I gotta feed my baby.”
“I do not attract anyone’s gaze while I breastfeed my child,” said one respondent.
As of now, there is no law in the country which mandates public spaces to have lactation rooms. If metro stations had a nursing room, we, as a society, normalize breastfeeding and not stare when a woman breast-feeds. It could have enabled that lady on the train and many more like her to take care of her infant without panicking and rushing to avoid the stares of objectification.
We need society and laws to build a more empowering and accessible environment for lactating mothers and build necessary infrastructure which is clean and safe for a mother to breastfeed their child.
Let’s Support Nursing Mothers!
Larissa Waters, an Australian MP, made international headlines in 2017 when she breastfed her 14-week-old baby while addressing the nation’s parliament. Her gesture is a clear representation of how rarely there have been talks about breastfeeding in public.
Larissa Waters, Australian senator, breastfeeding her baby, while addressing the Parliament. Source: YouTube screengrab
Babies need to be fed. Let’s be more empathetic and make it better for them without making them feel unnerved. The feeling of humankind should incite compassion and not oppose or associate accusations of indecency with breastfeeding.
Instead of misogynistic attempts to shame the natural act of feeding babies, let’s ensure to normalize the gaze with which the society views the act of breastfeeding and work on providing well maintained accessible for all spaces, free from intrusion at workplaces, malls, metro stations, railway stations and other public spaces for women to nurse their children without the fear of public glare.
Let’s ensure no lactating mother gets directed towards the toilet to feed their babies. Let’s not objectify a mother’s choice – the next time!
