advice on public breast feeding?

Answer 1

Just do it.

Anyone who objects is just an uneducated yahoo and should be ignored.

Answer 2

For me it always depended on how old the baby was. Both of my babies were born right before the holidays. So, we were out and about at different family gatherings (in homes and in restaurants) a lot. As newborns they needed much more tending and helping in getting started and maintaining a good latch, etc. So, I was always much more exposed during those feedings. During these early public feedings I would usually try to go to the another room or the car if possible (never a bathroom, yuck). Once they were a few weeks old and they don't need as much tending from mom it was much easier to just be discrete. Don't lift the shirt up high, just high enough to expose the nipple area. The baby blocks it from the front, the shirt from the top, the arm from the side, it is really just the stomach and the side that is still exposed. I usually covered that with one of the blankets. Turning your body so that the nursing side is away from others helps your side from being exposed. You could also cover the whole situation with a lightweight blanket (but I always felt that bothered my kids). Discretion is the key. I've had people not even realize that I had been nursing in front of them. They just think I'm holding my baby. I've even had people thank me and compliment me on my being discrete...so people appreciate you for thinking about how it might make them uncomfortable if you were just whipping it out and flashing it around. It takes a little practice because you usually don't have a pillow or an arm rest or you might be standing...so you might pracitce at home to see how it will go.Good luck!

Answer 3

As long as your not showing your boob or nipples I don't see a problem with it. Bring a blanket or a pouncho with you. It's a normal human thing. My friend had a incident with both of her kids (now 12 and 1 month old) in the mall and she was totally covered up. Once, with the oldest, a older man came up and told her what she was doing was wrong and rude. The one recently a guy just kept staring at her and she got up on it for it she was like "I'm feeding my daughter do you have an issue"

Answer 4

i'm uncertain precisely what they have available interior the united kingdom yet i'm particular there is merely as many nursing kit there as there are in North u.s.. something from ordinary accessibility shirts, toddler slings and shawls all designed to maximise your discretion. indexed under are extra advice for once you're out and approximately: i chanced on many a branch keep and mall have a separate washroom section for families which tend to incorporate an area for nursing, (you do not choose plenty better than a sprint privateness and a chair in spite of each thing). If not available, bypass right into a save and ask to apply between the exchange rooms to nurse. i haven't heard a 'no' yet and the family members and little ones shops are particularly wisdom. sometimes i could additionally nurse earlier leaving the abode and %. a bottle with pumped breast milk considering its sturdy unrefrigerated for hours...toddler would be hungry plenty earlier that. additionally, my first took me a sprint longer to get comfortable nursing around human beings. The greater circumstances you do it, it gets a sprint greater ordinary. by my third toddler i exchange into plenty greater open to having human beings around even if particular ones I never breast fed around simply by fact they made me experience uncomfortable.

Answer 5

A nursing top (expensive store bought or jerry rigged from a camisole top and tee shirt of matching color) is more comfortable and in many ways more "discreet" than a blanket. The only time I ever made an effort to "hide" my child during public nursing was to stop him from being distracted, not to protect the sensibilities of passing rubberneckers.

Do not go in a bathroom. Yuck.

The fact is women regularly show more breast out in public than I ever did nursing.

Answer 6

Good grief!
Whatever you do - DO NOT FEED YOUR BABY IN BATHROOM.
How totally disgusting that is and those that suggest it should try eating there themselves.
Public breastfeeding is entirely legal and protected. It is exempt from indecency laws and if you are going to do it you should be aware of your rights.
That said: Try to be as discrete as possible but accept the fact that it isn't always possible. People will complain or give you dirty looks - even if you are discrete and they can't see anything except what appears to be a sleeping baby.Clothing designed for nursing helps a lot and slings are great for it. Many suggest blankets but privacy is only guaranteed until your child can grab that blanket and pull it off. Ponchos are nice to wear but might also get uncomfortable for your baby as he/she gets older.

edited to add:
I just read some of your other questions (like the one where you said that you are 11 years old). Are you bored and just trying to cause trouble. You sure got a few of us heated up!

Answer 7

I breastfeed in public. It's not the most comfortable thing to do, but your baby needs to eat too. You just have to cover their head and the exposed area with a blanket, a recieving blanket works good, and alot of times people don't even realize that you're breastfeeding they think your baby is sleeping and your covering their face from the light. I was really shy about it at first but I'm doing alot better at it.

Answer 8

There are times it will be necessary to do it in public and as the others have said, make sure you have a blanket, although it can be awkward juggling baby and the blanket when you go to fasten everything back up.

Many people object because of other kids being around, an age group such as 6 and up. Teenage boys will stare and laugh, which some will say that's there problem and some people like to respect others when out in public.

I am one of those and do believe it is considerate to always do it in private when possible, like the one other person answered saying go into the restroom. I've walked into the restroom many times to see a woman in there breastfeeding and I admire her for being discreet.

Its not saying there is anything shameful at all about breastfeeding, yet just like everything else, there is a time and a place.

I know very well the baby does not allow a "time" that we would like, as I always fed mine on demand. It seems like they always knew when we were going in to eat at a restaurant and that is right when they would wail for theirs first, so I would walk back to the car and sit there until she was full & burped, then it was time to change the diapers, thus, is motherhood!

It gets really discouraging when people try to go out to lala land to object to an answer. Goodness, if someone suggests a restroom, I doubt if they are suggesting the bathroom at the Mobil gas station.

Perhaps its all in where a person hangs out. When I've seen a woman nursing in a restroom, or when I've used a restroom, its not anywhere near what some people may imagine a restroom to be. The restaurants that I go to have a beautiful lounging area with sofas and tables and off from there is the vanity counter where you can find all kinds of toiletrey items to use, lotion, dental floss, mouthwash, tampax, pads, and these days, nursing pads and a burping cloth.

I don't think anyone of the girls or guys that suggested a restroom meant some dirty AM PM gas station or the restroom at McDonald's.

As for adults not eating in a restroom no matter how luxury it may be, makes one want to respond, duh, no kidding. However, its a baby, let's not go overboard, the food is not going anywhere but from the mother's breast and right into the infant's mouth, so what is so disgusting about that?

Okay, people can be gung ho about breast feeding in public and I'm sure the ones that went over board with feeding in the restroom are the very ones we see flapping their breast around out in public for everyone to see and challenging anyone to make a comment just so they can make their statement that breastfeeding is natural.

Personally, I like to make my statements with class.

Answer 9

There is nothing wrong with breastfeeding in public but be respectful to your self and to others and cover yourself with a blanket. I'm sure you wouldn't want to see some other lady's boob hanging out and we all feel the same way. I breast fed my daughter so i'm not judging you at all. I think it' s a very un-selfish thing to do and more people should try it for the health of their baby.

Answer 10

if you feel that you are going to be in a public place that does not offer a discrete "family lounge" area for your use (most of the malls in my city have either breastfeeding rooms or family lounges with curtained stalls for breastfeeding moms), then invest in several nursing tops. you can search any maternity clothing site (or store) for "nursing" clothing items. they are specially designed to allow for discrete nursing, and aren't big flags to the public like when you use a blanket or one of those cover-ups. If you wear one of the special nursing tops, people walking by may never even notice what you are doing.

personally, i am not comfortable doing that in public, and always try to schedule my errand running time so that i am home by the time of the next feeding. but i do have a couple of nursing tops for the days when that is not possible.

Answer 11

Lots of places have spots reserved for this to happen. If however there is nowhere to breastfeed either cover up with a blanket or be as private as possible. I personally haven't any problem with this but there are many closed minded people who look at it as being either pornographic or low class. But if a baby is hungry then he/she wants to be fed immediately. So all I can suggest is to try and be a little conservative when doing this in public unless you are somewhere where you know people will not be offended.