Mother sues for £20k for being discouraged from bf while the wave machine was on

[sizeofalentil]

Daily Mirror link to the story here.

I'm totally for breastfeeding wherever and whenever, but I wouldn't want to eat my sandwiches in a swimming pool - they are so germy, like a human soup, so not sure a swimming pool with a wave machine on would be the best place to bf. Plus, obviously in this case there was the waves.

I realise that getting out of the water, especially if she had other kids, with a hungry baby would be a massive faff, but wouldn't the wave machine splash the baby and make it choke?

Serious question: AIBU to think this? Is bf in a swimming pool a done thing? Genuinely curious.

I'm don't know; I'm not a qualified lifeguard responsible for the safety of swimming pool users. Lunar suggested he/she was one upthread - I suggest you read his or her posts.

I'm merely pointing out that it's inaccurate to say that babies can breastfeed anywhere a baby can be.

But this woman was not told to stop breastfeeding in the middle of wave pool. She was offered a chair beside the pool. She was not told to leave the grounds in order to feed and she could have chosen to use the seat or not.

Her argument is as nonsensical as a woman suing a bus company because another passenger offered a pregnant woman a seat. She can't then file a lawsuit that the person offered her a seat, when she had the choice to sit in it or not.

You would not bottle feed a baby in a pool and you wouldnt feed a child in a pool if a toddler was hungry, you would take them out and give them some food,this is all wrong on so many levels.

"I'm merely pointing out that it's inaccurate to say that babies can breastfeed anywhere a baby can be"

no it's not. There cannot logically be any situation where babies can safely be held in arms where they cannot be safely breastfed. It's no different safety wise

She is an attention seeking, money-chasing twat.

Formula had many more safety/contamination issues that breastfeeding simply does not have.

I know what equality is - I'm asking about H and S. If the rules about food and drink are for physical or medical safety surely actually BF a child in a pool under equality isn't treating them more favourably? It's putting them at risk.

I don't trust the tabloids to give us a full account of what happened....

kiddingme what would be different from a safety perspective of feeding in the pool, feeding at the side and then getting in the pool?

Only the terminally stupid would think it a good idea to have a baby in a pool with an active wave machine, breastfeeding or not.

Well it's not encouraged to eat and then swim either. For the reasons I said it's about digestion.

I'm not sure why you are focussing on my posts - I'm one of few people who haven't actually called this woman anything negative.

I'm trying to question why they may have made the suggestion of a chair.

It's not 1:1 here, it's 1:2 under fives. So I can take two eight year olds, a four year old and my bf one year old all together.

The rules about eating in the pool aren't for any other reason than preventing food getting in the water. You can't prevent breastmilk getting into the water.

I don't think breastfeeding should be allowed in the pool anyway but this is a particularly ridiculous thing to sue about as it sounds like they weren't banning anything.

3. when the pool is warm and the air out of the pool is freezing
But in a wave machine, you go from being out of the water to under the water constantly - that is why it was a stupid place to breastfeed.

Not only do breastfed babies have a habit of posseting up milk during and after feeds, they also very frequently empty their bowels. Two very good reasons why I would not be happy to swim or have my DC swim around some selfish Bint breastfeeding in the pool.

And what is the £20k actually for? Has she suffered an injury or financial losses? No.

What Ice said. I have breastfed loads of times in our pool. It is an above ground pool so it is tricky to get in and out of when carrying a baby and with more than one DCs you cannot adequately supervise the ones in the pool from the outside. I would think that any public pool should have minimum age requirements for using the pool with the wave machine on. I would not want to be in charge of a baby/young child with a wave machine on regardless of whether they needed to bf or not. The woman does sound attention seeking which is a shame for bf.

kiddingme I'm not focusing. I've responded to a few people. It's a public forum.

I'm not particularly supportive of what this woman is doing. I think she's an attention seeking, money grabber.

Phrasing 'get out of the pool' as a concerned question is still 'get out of the pool' unless they routinely ask all of the other parents with small babies.

We have only got one side of the story, and that from sensationalist press. I know for sure that if she was able to tell her side (which she won't be able to because of the legal case ) that youd find that though in the wave pool the waves weren't on, and the amount is nowhere near the amount stated. Also she has not sued anyone in the past, she did make a complaint, but there was no legal involvement.

"Not only do breastfed babies have a habit of posseting up milk during and after feeds, they also very frequently empty their bowels. Two very good reasons why I would not be happy to swim or have my DC swim around some selfish Bint breastfeeding in the pool."

so you are against all breastfed babies being in pools full stop then?
Because if that's your objection, what's the difference between a breastfed baby who just got back in the pool after being fed on the side, and a breastfed baby who was fed in the pool? their bowel habits aren't any different, and most pools have double swim nappy rules anyway (swim nappy and swim shorts) and lots of babies wear wetsuits on top of that

More illogical nonsense

Not really - the possetting tends to happen immediately. In any case, it would actually be more considerate to wait a while before getting back in.

The fact that she's suing and had tried this once before says it all really. She's not fighting for her right to breastfeed she's fighting for £20k

Babies can be milk sick in a pool by the way, the chlorine deals with it so it doesn't matter. And for poo you'd hope they had a swim nappy on!

Not only do breastfed babies have a habit of posseting up milk during and after feeds, they also very frequently empty their bowels.

As has been said, what does that have to do with actually breastfeeding in a wave pool?

Babies can be milk sick in a pool by the way, the chlorine deals with it so it doesn't matter.

Well, it might mean that it is not a health hazard but it doesn't disolve it - it's still sick and it floats!

I've said it before but I once chaired a case in the Magistrates' Court of careless driving where the defendant had driven into the vehicle in front - driving while breastfeeding. There's stupid and there's stupid . . .

I'm amazed that would only be careless and not dangerous driving Andrewofgg. Death defying for the baby, especially as there was a shunt!