Non-medical assistance on Facebook maternal and breastfeeding support groups

Abstract

Virtual communities have quickly become very important social spaces on the Internet. They have many different social functions. This chapter is to describe the functions of selected virtual communities and online support groups that bring together omen at an early stage ofmotherhood. This period is treated as critical time in womens life. The chapter presents the role of the Facebook support groups in difficult situations connected with breastfeeding. They are a place for building a new platform of social structure of maternity, and hence, a very important place ofsocial construction of motherhood. Maternal and breastfeeding Internet support groups are examples of social networks which integrate people who are in similar social life situations, sometimes in the same critical moment. Social support in this case significantly weakens the adverse effects of stress, especially the stress oflife events.