Social Pressure

Social norms around agricultural participation shaped maternal feeding behaviour. Cultural norms equating femininity with physical wholeness compounded loss of self-worth following mastectomy. The study interprets farm attendance pressure as prioritising farm work over early morning childcare and feeding. Disruption of established roles as wife, mother, and caregiver generated intense guilt and grief among participants. Visible treatment markers such as PICC lines and alopecia subjected patients to public scrutiny, causing embarrassment and avoidance of public spaces. Mothers feared judgement if they arrived late to the farm because of cooking, dishes, or childcare. Late arrival to farm work could result in being assigned harder tasks. Family visits produced conflicting emotions, as the warmth of connection collided with the shame of being seen in a weakened state. Peer interactions during treatment were ambivalent, more often heightening fear and anxiety than providing solidarity.