I was never comfortable nursing Daniel in public. I can really only remember doing it once, most of the time I would sit in the car or find somewhere private. If I ever have another, well, I don't think I'll be so bashful. It irritates me that I would let him cry until I could get him somewhere instead of just letting him eat on the spot. Bad mommy!
So well said, as always! You have a way with words. LOL!! Oh, the HORRORS!!! :shock: What a terrible thing you were doing! I mean....FEEDING a BABY!!! :lol: What IS this world coming to?? Next, people are going to start teaching their OWN KIDS at home instead of sending them to school. What radicals, those FREE-THINKERS!!! Using God-given "milk-makers" for their original purpose to (GASP) feed.....a.....BABY, and using their brains to teach THAT baby they FED! UGH....LMBO....
I don't see the harm in seeking out a private place to nurse. What's the big deal? Does nursing have to turn into a free show? So the baby's hungry. A mom knows its child's feeding schedule, so when that time comes get somewhere in order to nurse. I nursed both mine for awhile and still I understand how some people don't want to see this.
The point is, Becky, it's not a "free show, and they don't have to see it. If the mom's are discreet and have a blanket over it, what's the problem with it? Also, it's easier said than done to know the schedule and just go somewhere. The fast-paced society of today does not always acquiesce to our schedules, no matter how hard we try sometimes! And I agree, why should we have to go sit in a bathroom, if there even is a place to do so in there, for a baby to eat?
I agree with being discreet. My husband can be a little dense sometimes. With Rachael, he didn't want me doing it ANYWHERE in public. It's "not proper". Then with Faythe, he loosened up a bit. Funny thing was, we visited a neighbor who had just had her baby. (Actually, it wasn't due for a week, we just stopped in and it just so happened they had just brought the little one home THAT DAY!) Anyway, the mom sat on the couch with her new-born under the blanket, nursing it. I talked with her just a few minutes...sure didn't want to overstay my welcome!!! When we left, Carl said something and I realized that he had NO IDEA that this lady was sitting there nursing right in front of him, lol!! And this is a VERY modest woman; there's no way she would "hang all out" in front of anyone but her own husband! The bottom line is, there's no reason not to be able to do it discreetly in public. But there's also no reason for feminine extremists to "demand" the "right" to bare it all any time or place they want.
I am with Ava on this one and I also agree with Jackie I have seen some women being not so discreet and well frankly I just dont want to see their breast flashed at me or my kids its really hard not to stare. I am not thinking with a dirty mind either I am thinking of modesty. Sure its a natural thing and I am all for breastfeeding and doing it where you need to do it no one should tell us where we can and can not breast feed. Come on though, a little blanket to cover it up or at least turn a bit to be a little discreet. You have to remember there is a lot of people out there like me that were brought up being modest and shy about the body it has nothing to do with a dirty mind. Sam
I'm not saying go do it in the ladies room, not at all. I believe nursing moms get pushy about this. Personally, I never had to nurse in public so maybe that's why I see it this way. But, I've also spoken to moms who feel like it's their right as a nursing mother to feed where ever they are, whenever it is. It is a fact that not everyone is cool about this -the older generation?- so why not use a bottle for public feedings?
I have had to nurse in public. When you have an infant who's screaming her lungs out because she's hungry, you've put it off for almost an hour after her "scheduled time" (I nursed on a schedule!), and you've already soaked through a double layer of breast pads, it's time to say the heck with everyone and just do it! Again, it CAN be done discreetly. I remember doing it once in the back of a church meeting. I REALLY wanted to hear what was being said, so I set a chair up in the very back and asked a friend if she felt I would offend anyone. My friend told me that no, I was covered up; if anyone was seriously offended about me feeding my baby, it was THEIR problem, not mine!
Nipple confusion, possibly. Moreover, because there is NOTHING wrong with nursing a baby. Nursing moms should have the right to feed their babies and babies should have the right to eat. KWIM?
I used to pump out extra milk and freeze it then when I knew I was going out or needed to go someplace in a hurry I would take it with me. It was wonderful for me cause someone else could feed the baby too especially the siblings who wanted to help. Of course this may not be for everyone but I did enjoy the breather once in a while. Sam
I think when it comes down to it, it's the people who are so extreme about either side that make it a debate, IMHO. I am all for nursing in public and God's intended purpose for breasts are to nurse infants, but it's out of respect to others around you to be modest about it. It's the extremists that make it all a crazy debate.
And because some moms don't use bottles for their babies. I was rather shy about nursing in public, but I had to on some occasions, and was very discreet about it. Nursing doesn't mean women blatantly bare their breasts for everyone to see---THAT I wouldn't agree with!
Ha, my and... was cuz I was following Ava Rose's comment. Can you believe three of us got our comments in at the very same time?!
This is what I intend to do, God willing. I'm just so afraid the baby wont be as easy going as Tanner was as an infant. That boy ate anything, out of whatever. We had to change his formula 4 times and he didn't care what it was as long as he got fed. I've heard that some kids get use to having the breast, then get picky and wont drink it out of the bottle. That's what I'm scared of, because I really want to feel like I can leave the house without worrying about the next feeding if the baby is with daddy or grandma, or whoever.
The pump doesn't work well for all women. It took a while for my body to respond to the pump. Everytime I tried the pump, I never extracted enough milk. I also did not like it because I did not want my milk flow to slow down. So for me, the pump was more of a headache then a blessing. Patty
I think the people who freak out over a mother feeding her child, while covered with a blanket REGARDLESS of where she is, are as ignorant as the mother who flops out her bare breast to feed her kid. Jenn is right, the extremists spoil the party. But everyone step back and realize... Anyone who makes it harder for a "Covered" mother to feed her child is literally making a mother feel bad for doing the right thing, in the right way. And that is just sad. Isn't that like making a homeschool mother feel bad for homeschooling, simply because YOU have to explain to your children WHY they are not in school? It is ludacris. And the issue of it offending someone... PAleese! The older generation also wouldn't let you say the word pregnant in public. Oh! And before that, WOE to the obviously pregnant woman who has shown her self in public! Oh the horror! Thank goodness we have moved pass that. I hope that when my daughter has her children that she can feed them any place she wishes, while covered, of course. While covered While covered While covered. Please define how THAT would be a problem to ANYONE. And the next person who says. "Just go somewhere private". Uhmm... if not a bathroom, which we all agree is GROSS, then WHERE, hon???? And above all WHY WHY WHY???? If you have on clothes, then I suppose you do not need to HIDE that pimply gross rear end from my public eyes, then, eh? (That's how people seem to be treating covered breast feeding moms. Just soooo sad. Speaking of offended... Don't come in public to buy tampons! You are offending me! What am I supposed to tell my 5 year old son, when he asks me what "That Lady" is buying? I mean Gosh! Have some discression! And what Am I supposed to do when walking through Walmart or the mall when my kids see ladies underware, or Victorias Secret? How Am I supposed to explain WHY women need those TOP parts of the underware????? Oh! And please for the love of god stop putting vaginal cream in your shopping cart! I mean GAWD! Can't you just go to some DARK and DISTANT store to buy those things? I could go on.. but that would just prove my point more, that those who give grief to the COVERED breast feeding mom are hipocrites and so so so so so so sadly wrong for making her feel bad. EVER. And yes, I am soooo offended that I did not spell check... Kiss my grits! But ONLY if you have a blanket to cover your face! Bwaaa haaaa haaaaa!
Jen, you're a RIOT!!! Breast pumps are the most wonderful inventions in the world IF you get a good one! Rachael was born in June, and I was planning on going back to the classroom the end of August. I bought me a battery powered pump; it was a TOTAL waste of money!!! Then lmy best friend bought me a good electric pump. Sent it all the way from Florida (where she lived) to Ohio. And she wouldn't let her husband label the package "FOR BOVINE USE ONLY", lol!!! Carl would have gotten a kick out of that! Anyway, I nursed Rachael on a schedule. I would nurse her first thing in the morning, then I would pump at lunch. I could do this in the privacy of my own classroom. I could lock the door and draw the window shades. My pump would do both breasts at once, and it took me about 20 minutes. I could get four to five ounces per side when I was nursing strong. It was small and portable. I would pick up Rachael from my Mom's. I would transfer the dated bags of milk to her freezer, for Mom to use to give Rachael a bottle at lunch time. I would nurse again at dinner, and at night. Eventually, Rachael stopped nursing at night, but I continued to pump then. When I quit nursing (she was 1yo), I had about three months supply of milk built up. I have since given my electric pump to Carl's cousin who was having difficulty working and nursing. (She has since quit her job!) I know nursing isn't for everyone, but I also know I'd never be able to do it if I hadn't had that pump. The battery one would never have worked, and I never would have invested the money for a good electric one. I truely believe most women who have difficulty pumping simply do not have a good pump to begin with.
I think you're right Jackie! With my first, after the self-pump ones failed, I tried a battery powered one too. It just wouldn't work right or at all and I'd be in tears! What a waste! The electric ones are definitely the way to go!
