Breastfeeding in Public

In the US there are more places that will look down on a mom for breastfeeding, than look up to them.

I love how the UK is a bit more supportive on the subject.

"Breastfeeding Mums - Pop in and have a FREE cup of tea if you need a pit stop... no need to eat, no need to ask - please relax." 

"Laundromat - Go ahead and breastfeed. We like both babies and boobs!"

Images were found on Facebook. If you know who these belong to, let me know, and I'll source them.

I never felt comfortable breastfeeding in public. I wish that I had. The cover-ups that my sister uses didn't work for us. Both of my sons had latch problems in the beginning. I had to see what I was doing. When they were a little older, they were active breastfeeder's. Meaning they would walk and fidget on me before they could even crawl. My mom and sister would laugh every time they watched my son's breastfeed back in the day. Trying to cover up an oh so active eater as them just isn't possible.

I would hide away in dressing rooms when I was out shopping, or breastfeed them in the car. I would not breastfeed in the bathroom. To me that's a dirty place. Would you eat your dinner in the bathroom? Why expect a baby to do that?

Did/do you feel comfortable breastfeeding in public? Where would you go to breastfeed?

Nursing in Public

First off I love this link! It's a very sarcastic post about how Breastfeeding is Offensive - NOT! Basically it illustrates how many women who breastfeed show a lot less than women in magazines. It socially acceptable for women to show their breasts in a sexy way, but not in a natural way? So crazy how a lot of society is!

Here are four tips for nursing in public-

1. Practice in front of a mirror. Reason being is that it's awkward at first. That shows on your face. If you are in front of a mirror, you will get used to it. The less awkward it is for you, it is the same for others.
2. Prepare things ahead of time. I usually made sure I went to places that had areas to breastfeed. Some places have mothers rooms. Babies R Us and Von-Mour are a few places that do. Other good stops are places that have more than one dressing rooms. I used to take clothes in with me to act like I was trying on something; instead I was really breastfeeding. You want to make it comfortable for you and your baby. A restroom wasn't that place for me! I would have rather gone to my car than a restroom.
3. Dress so it's easy to breastfeed. It doesn't have to be a nursing top. Just try and dress with loose clothing. Many people like a breastfeeding cover. This allows for privacy, yet has easy access. My sister used to breastfeed in public. People would come up to her to see the sleeping baby. That is all they thought, was that her little baby was sleeping. When in fact he was breastfeeding.
4.  Have extra nursing pads. I leaked a lot more with baby number 1 than baby number 2. Sometimes a baby starts crying, and a mom starts leaking. It doesn't even have to be your own baby crying to have this happen. This is when extra pads come in handy. Layers help to. If you leak, you may want a thin shirt or jacket to put over your shirt.

In Regards to the Previous Post

• I have no problem with people nursing in public.
  
• I have never felt comfortable nursing around people myself. I have nursed in front of family, and the Baby and Me Group that I went to.
• I would have been more open minded towards nursing in public if I did not have so many struggles in the beginning. It was just so hard latching both of my newborns. I really had to see what I was doing.
• When both of my babies got older, they were too active to nurse in the public eye.
• If you are someone who is like me and feels uncomfortable nursing in the public eye...dressing rooms in the mall work great to sneak into. Many malls also have a Mother's Room outside the restrooms.
  
• Sometimes I'd just pump before hand, and give my baby a bottle in public.