This study aimed at investigating the feeling of pregnant and post-partum women HIV bearers for not being able to breastfeed. It is a qualitative study held from October to December 2003, in Fortaleza CE. Five pregnant and eight post-partum women HIV bearers were interviewed through a semi-structured interview. The results show that pregnant and puerperal women think that maternity would be complete if they could breastfeed. They said that the fact they cannot breastfeed brings guilt, frustration, suffering, unfulfilled wishes, impotence and destroyed dreams. However, they also show indifference to the important fact of not breastfeeding. It is concluded that the women with HIV manifested physical, economical and psychological difficulties because of the not breastfeeding.
HIV; AIDS; Pregnant women; Breast feeding