Yoga as a (cliched) metaphor for child-rearing?

The other day on NPR I heard an interview with Claire Dederer, who just published a book called Poser: My Life in Twenty-three Yoga Poses. I haven't read it yet (have bookmarked it for my next Amazon order), but from what I heard it seemed to be very engaging and interesting. Not so much about yoga, actually, and a lot more about motherhood in a certain milieu the author very well described: that of a very liberal, privileged, urban, educated social circle where one cannot merely raise kids, but is expected to do it a certain way... A way that involves breastfeeding for an extended period, co-sleeping, making your own baby food, eating organic, cloth diapering, baby wearing, etc. And she talked about this unhealthy pressure she felt to do all of these, this deep instinct of women from her generation (she's in her early forties) to raise their children differently than their own mothers did (her mom ran off with a hippie).

I've been thinking a lot about that discussion. I felt it hit close to home, since, well, I do a lot of these... Is that surprising, given that I am a liberal, (just a tiniest bit) privileged, urban, educated female? It took me aback a bit to hear her speak about it in somewhat negative terms -I had never heard or thought about it that way...

I think doing anything just out of social pressure is doing it for the wrong reasons, period, although I can understand how it might be hard to resist. Additionally, taking anything to the extreme can also never be good (she says anyone who used a stroller was automatically deemed an "uneducated dumb*ss" !!!) Finally, as hinted by the author, all of this is simply, unapologetically, all about the kid, regardless of your own welfare and even health (she ruins her back while carrying her gigantic daughter everywhere, hence being introduced to yoga). Which we all know is sometimes necessary and alright. But also a slippery slope towards becoming unable to have normal conversations anymore, not to mention totally forgetting about yourself.

It's also funny to consider how different social expectations can be from one society or circle to another. People are quite pro-breastfeeding here, but then anything longer than six months is considered a big achievement, or maybe even some kind of a martyr-like sacrifice. Apart from that, all of these other parenting choices she discusses would be either considered "way too hard, probably even impossible" by most, or downright judged (co-sleeping in particular).

I mean down the road, everything I do (from the natural childbirths to the babyfood making, organic if possible) is a big messy mix of yes, making a point of questioning everything and trying to make choices that make sense to me -not necessarily what is more widespread. But also: complete chance, winging some things, copying my mom when it comes to food, wariness, laziness and cheapass-ness, drawing personal satisfaction in self-reliance, etc.

 Thoughts?