I know I am walking on thin ice asking this question, but does anyone else feel that women who are breast?

Question

feeding should cover themselves in public? Please understand I am not trying to offend anyone. I don't have a problem with breast feeding, and I praise the mothers who do breast feed their children (I did many years ago). However, I think there is such a thing as modesty with it. I am not asking women to go shut themselves off from the world to breast feed, but I think they should cover themselves. Am I alone on this issue? I used to cover myself when I breast fed my children and never whipped out my breast for the world to see, and none of my children have emotional problems. I just didn't feel the need to say to the world "Hey look at me I am breast feeding. Woohoo". This question came to mind because we have a lady in our church (Catholic) who sits in the front pew with her family and she nurses her baby during the service. I went up for communion and here was her breast staring at me.

I didn't say I was ashamed of it, I just think there should be some modesty. That is the key word here show some modesty.

Retro Div this is the first time I have asked this question, how many times are you going to give a snotty reply to people for having an opinion about something.

Again, I must reiterate that I am not offended by it, I just feel women should show some modesty when nursing. I don't expect a mother to go nurse her child in the toilet, but I feel that there should be a cover -- and I am offended by the way some of the women/girls dress today leaving it all hang out the top end and practically showing the bottom end. But that is another story. I just wanted to know if people felt like I do that breast feeding mothers should be a bit more modest. Thank you one and all for your comments.

Answer 1

I'm not offended by women breastfeeding. i think it's wonderful to breastfeed your child if you are able. But I don't think showing some modesty in it would kill anyone. in a way it's being respectful to the people who do find it offensive or even those who don't find it offensive and even find it a beautiful thing but doesn't want to see the women's breast. a drape, a thin receiving blanket, something crocheted so air circulates easily, i don't think would be asking too much.

if it's 90 degrees or really hot out there's still ways to do it without offending anyone and still being respectful to those around you. sometimes if you hold the baby just right with the right top on you can't even tell what's going on.

me personally it doesn't bother me one way or the other. but my mother is a different story and is offended by breastfeeding in general (why i don't understand). i have a boob too so it's not like i'm seeing anything new...lol.

i can see both points of view. a woman should be able to breastfeed wherever they chose but in today's society there's got to be some compromise to keep the peace.

Answer 2

I always tried to cover up - not because I cared what anyone thought, but because I didn't want to be bothered by perverts. News flash, people - the purpose of breasts are NOT to be sexually entertaining! Women have them so they can FEED THEIR BABIES! What's gross or offensive about that? Why should a women have to cover up if she's exposed for the sole purpose of feeding her baby? I don't think she's doing it as a "Woohoo, look at me" thing, but as a "My baby is hungry and I don't care what you ignorant bottle feeders think" one. If you're all for breastfeeding, give the woman a break. Stop being yet another person who turns a the natural function of breasts into something that should be covered and shamed; I say good for her for responding to her baby's needs and not caring what anyone else thinks! Maybe she's offended by the idiots who make breasts into something sexual, don't understand that nursing isn't the same as a Girls Gone Wild video, and would rather stick a piece of plastic filled with substandard, chemical garbage in their children's mouth than "offend" others by giving their child the best nutrition possible. *Edit* To the woman who said covering up might help protect sex crimes - great job, moron! Yeah, it's the VICTIM'S fault when she's sexually assaulted! Just goes to show which ones were bottle babies, doesn't it?

Answer 3

I would be seriously interested in learning HOW to cover myself while feeding without suffocating the baby.
I can understand that some people feel uncomfortable at the sight of a breastfeeding mother because they don't know where to look....
Where I currently live I don't have that problem, it is prohibited to expose any private body part there, but on the other hand they have 'mother's rooms' in most public places. The rooms are nice, clean and quiet, they have a couch or an armchair a table and a changing table. If through dumb luck baby is hungry and no such room is near, I sit with her in the car with those sunscreen things on the windows and hubby standing guard infront of the car....At the beach we have a little cabana tent with us: I feed the baby in the tent with a towel covering the opening of the tent and hubby standing guard infront of the tent...If we are someplace else I have to either ask the store keeper, clerk in the bank or nurse at the doctors office if they have a room where I could nurse my child in privat (up until now I was always lucky), otherwise I always have a bottle for the baby with me, for emergencies.
My point is, it is possible to breastfeed without exposing oneself, but it is a real hassle. And I am sure that most women normally would not show their breast to the public, but as they need to feed their babies they have no choice at that moment.
But still: I seriously would like to know how I could cover up while breastfeeding, this would help me a lot.

Answer 4

I try to be modest, but that doesn't necessarily mean covering up with a blanket. Some kids just won't tolerate the blanket, and I'd MUCH rather use my shirt and positioning to be modest than count on the blanket and have my daughter flick it off.

I hate specially-made nursing covers. I feel like they are a great big billboard saying "NURSING HERE!" Adjusting my shirt and latching the baby on is much more subtle. Many times people will come up and want to hold or touch the baby, not realizing she is nursing. A lot of people think she is sleeping.

Breastfeeding is a beautiful, natural thing. I'm somewhat modest about it for my own comfort, but no, I don't feel that women "should" cover themselves. Covering makes it seem like a shameful thing.

The polite thing to do when someone is nursing is to look at the person and not stare at their breasts. At no time is it socially acceptible to stare at a women's breasts, unless you're intimately involved or she is a stripper or other such occupation.

I find it very hard to believe your fellow churchgoer's breast was "staring at" you. The breast is only exposed very briefly, if at all, and the only way it could possibly stare at your for even a moment is if you're staring at it.

Answer 5

Actually, Retro is right. This is the second time you've posted this question. But since you asked, maybe you should find something a little better to do with your time than criticize how, when and where a woman feeds her baby. If people would stop turning breasts, which are MADE FOR FEEDING BABIES into sexual objects, there would be no problem with it. It's generally the ignorant bottle feeders who say, "Eww, that's not what breasts are for!" To anyone ignorant enough to believe that, please don't have kids.
Furthermore, who are you to go around saying she should cover up? Maybe she's offended by the way you eat, but would you agree to eat with a blanket over your head if she were?
Really, just look away and let it go.

Answer 6

Sometimes covering leads to *more* skin showing. If I try to cover my son while he nurses, he will tear the blanket/shawl off and pull away from the breast. This leaves my entire breast showing, whereas little to none shows when I nurse him without a cover.

I do believe women should be modest while breastfeeding, but that can't always be achieved by using a cover.

Answer 7

I am a breastfeeding mother and I do not cover myself, but I also don't "let it all hang out" either, the way I hold my baby the only bit you see is a small bit of flesh over the top of my babies head. If women who breastfeed want it to all hang out it is their choice, don't look!! Most of us actually are discreet or do cover up, or even slink off to a parent room to breastfeed away from prying eyes who are judging how and why we are doing it.

Answer 8

I think that breastfeeding mothers should show a little modety when nursing in public.A light shawl or receiving blanket will not suffocate the baby. Some nursing moms feed the infant in the bed and they express no concern of rolling on the baby or the baby suffocating on the bedcovers..While nursing is a natural event it may make others feel uncomfortable for others.In the very least it is awkward for people to be dining and have a partially exposed breast in their line of vision.It seems when this issue is brought up the supporters of breastfeeding will say they don't care what others think , it is their problem.In the past, womwn covered themselves for modesty sake.I'm reasonably confident that breast milk quality is not affected by covering up.The bonding with your baby is not affected by covering up .Other than boldly saying "I'm a better mom because I nurse " why the resistance in showing a little respect for others.Breastfeeding is meant to be a time of not only feeding the baby but to provide mother and child intmate time together.It was never meant to be a spectator sport.

Answer 9

As a mother and a grand mother of 4, I am thrilled that so many young mothers breast feed, I do agree that they should cover themselves in public, It is a natural,healthy thing for a woman to do. But it is a natural healthy thing for men to look and they are not seeing a breast feeding mom they see a breast on a woman. If a woman wants to show the world her breasts,it is her choice but don't I have a choice in what my 9 yr old grandson gets to see? He has 2 sisters and we are trying to teach him that girls need privacy. That he is not supposed to walk in and see them in a undressed state.It makes it harder to teach children why they shouldn't show themselves in public.Children emulate what they see and I don't want to tell my 4yr old grand daughter to get her baby doll off her chest.Yet if she is bombarded with the site that will be what I will have to tell her. Elementary children are being expelled from schools for "sexual lewdness" and they don't know what that means nor are they really being lewd they are just copying what they see.The last case that I heard of was a 5 yr old expelled for burying his face in the teachers breast.Tell him it just for babies!He still feels like a baby his self and doesn't.t understand! Please do breast feed your babies just show some awareness for others around you. They are aware of you. Every man and boy has a pen*s do we want them showing that in public all guys pee in public but they are discreet and don't show themselves to everyone that is around. The is nothing more narural than peeing both women and men do it. Should they be allowed to wave it in public. As one woman said they breastfeed openly in other cultures, they also have nude cultures were the men are exposed for the world to see.In Africa a lot of cultures let it ALL hang out.I don't live there.You don't have to cover the babys face, just your breast. Have some decency for the rest of the community. It might cut back on sex crimes.

Answer 10

I'm for breastfeeding and understand that when baby is hungry you feed him/her wherever you are. I think it depends on where you are. Being in a church I believe you should be respectful and atleast cover up as much as possible. Say your grocery shopping or in a restaurant..please cover up the boob part as much as possible b/c that's just something I don't want to glance over to see. Breastfeeding is a beautiful thing but heck I don't wear shirts that show more boob than that. It's just common courtesy to do so.

I laught at you people who bring up the bottle feeding to compare to breastfeeding...just to let you know that bottles are plastic containers containing breastmilk or formula and a breast well is part of a human body. So if you want to compare the bottle then lets just throw in bottled water that we drink in public..lol..by the way when they say too much boob out or flop it out I understand..my friend would not wear breastfeeding friendly shirts so she would wear a tank top and take boob out from the top so ya her nipple would not show b/c of baby but heck her whole boob was there...yes there are tops and ways to do it discreetly but don't bring out the whole boob.