feeding baby when out

[fernie3]

My baby is two weeks now and I havent left the house since she was born as I am so nervous about her needing feeding out. I will have to leave the house at some point though!. The problem is she is wanting feeding every 30 mins during the day sometimes so if I go out I would be having to stop every 30 mins to feed her (which then takes about 3o mins!).
I am also a little nervous of where I am actually allowed to breastfeed - could I sit in say sainsburys cafe? or in one of the baby changing rooms in debenhams for example?

I have a pump but havent been able to get more than a tiny amount out (less than 1oz). We also tried introducing a bottle of formula which ended up with her being VERY sick and since my son had reflux we have decided to avoid that just in case it makes things worse - she is a little sick with BF but the bottle made her very sick.

How to you organize feeds going out? The breastfeeding itself is goign well now so I feel ready to face the world a bit!

Shoe departments usually have something to sit on also, if you're really stuck.

From a practicality point of view, I used to feed and then get out the door as fast as possible, as I was on a timer!

First time round I just went to the nearest park and built up my confidence from there. DS's hour long feeds as a tiny baby did restrict my movements but with time feeding does get more efficient. It IS nerve wracking the first time but your confidence will grow. As other have said, I have never had a negative comment but have had some lovely positive ones.

Someone on mumsnet told a story once about feeding in the furniture department of John Lewis rather than the stinky feeding room (off the nappy changing room), so I chose my favourite sofa and made myself comfy there once. Was very comfortable! I am sure you will want to save the adventures for when you are more confident though...

well I went out today we were out for three hours and i was all prepared to feed her out - and she didnt wake up! lol.
I did get the courage to feed her in front of visitors at our house though (I have been going in another room before now) which I was pretty pleased with - no one said anything negative in fact my sister in law said "you should never be ashamed of feeding your baby" which was nice
Im getting there slowly! and it was nice not to have to faff around packing a huge bottle bag to go out as well!

Good on your Fernie And thats nice of your sister in law. I remember when DS was six (?) days old, my mum had (helpfully ) arranged a Body Shop party here, and one of the ladies she invited was a midwife, who brought her 12 year old daughter. The daughter went up to her mum at some point and said, "SirBoob was just feeding DS in front of everyone" in a kind of "Oh my gosh" way. The midwife came in and gave me the biggest of big hugs and said, "That's it now, you've done it once!" - and she was right, it was dramatically easier and less nerve racking after having done it that one time!

Well done, be proud of yourself, am smiling for you :)

Glad you've made your house your own and well said SIL.

yep, defo the vest down, loose top up or open approach...I am not in the least bit shy but it took me a few goes to get used to it...more concerned about people looking at my ds...we breastfed in all the parks in my city 3 week before his EDD, early baby....more worried they'd call the social! he now feeds better outside than in and I am convinced its because its where I am always calmer and happier. so perhaps choose somewhere you're happy and feel safe for your first few goes?

i find the BF tops from H&M work well - i've got loads in different colours and usually just wear one of them with a drapey cardi for wrapping round DD. In fact this cardi from white stuff is the most perfect thing ever for BF as it wraps right around the baby and covers everthing - top tip, the pink version is in the sale at the mo! A nice big cream pashmina is useful too.

I've BF all over the place with DD2 as I have to, and have never had a bad comment. With DD1 i was a lot more nervous about it and always made sure i was within easy reach of mothercare or boots as they had mother and baby rooms.

good luck, it's not that bad and you need to leave the house!

I definitely didn't make my house my own

If/When DC2 comes along, I am not moving out of my own living room for anyone! I was a bit shy at first while getting the hang of bf, and it just became a habit. I still slope off to feed DS now and he is nearly 11mo. I have never been bothered feeding in public though, just in front of some people I know!

I find feeding in the back seat of the car pretty good. DS often sleeps or looks about in the shops, then gets hungry before we leave, so I usually stick dd in her car seat with a snack, then I sit in the back with het and feed ds. It's usually quite a nice relaxed end to shopping and means they're both set for the journey home

I also feed anywhere else I need to, and like the others have never had any negative comments. Once you have a bit of practise, nothing shows anyway, and you quickly get used to draping your top down as soon as feed finishes

I use vest/nursing bra combo, and also mothercare nursing vests, which are fab and hide the side of your boob, which is useful while you build confidence

good luck

Go for it, I remember feeling so chuffed with myself after my fisrst public feeding.
As many others have said you are allowed to do it anywhere but you need to feel comfortable.
I did the vest underneath another top to make me feel better and not cold.
For first outing try somewhere baby friendly, John Lewis always good, local playgroup, or ask NCT or La Leche groups for places local to you that are very friendly.
If you can go with a friend, especially if you know of other people with small babies who will be feeding too.
Have fed two children each for 12 months and never had any negative comments about bf.

It does get easier the more you do it and you should be really proud of yourself :)

I am a very outgoing person, but did find it daunting at first. I breast fed on demand exclusively for 4 months. After a few weeks I realised that if I hid away in designated shopping centre rooms etc. or people's bedrooms then I'd miss out. The following helped me

• some breastfeeding tops are more revealing than others. Empire line ones and ones with lining that only reveal the nipple that is then covered by the baby can make you feel less exposed. Light cotton scarfs can be useful shields and add coverage.

• I did find breastfeeding rooms in shopping centres but half the time they'd be full or the nappy bins would stink. So I just looked for comfortable looking cafes/ bookshops/ restaurants and tended to pick a more secluded section. Ones that have sofas are handy to avoid a numb bum if you're in the same position.

• you can get feeding covers but my ds got to hot under the one we tried.

• try and start off with coffee mornings where nobody bats an eyelid or go out with another mum for lunch

• I recommend taking a laptop or reading material eg. magazine in a format that you can dip in and out of one handed. Then you're not just sitting there bored. Or use it as a time to eat or phone a friend so you're not just waiting for the baby to get on with things.

• first few times if you're nervous, the baby will pick up on it and milk might not be as free flowing so its worth persevering.

• I have a Stokke Xplory and as quite a tall pram was able to strategically place it so anyone who did see anything would have had to be really looking.

• I found people tend to prefer a contented feeding baby than a crying one. By the end of the nine months I'd found myself breastfeeding on a plane, funeral, 3 weddings it got to the point where I decided I didn't care what strangers thought and the more I did it the more everyone would get used to it. On holiday in America people would stare but that was more out of surprise as bottle feeding is so much more prevalent out there.

• I had friends who came to coffee mornings who were very shy and would use the bedroom for feeding, but then she'd miss out on most of it.

The best way I found to boost mt confidence at first was to go out with friends from my nct class, there was 4 of us feeding so there was safety in numbers:) However I am now happy to go out by myself and feed. It's taken 8 weeks, though this is more to do with difficulty with feeding so did not like feeding out.

ikea are very good
family friendly loos with comfy chairs, bf hidey nooks in the cafe if you want but dont feel you have to use them, and a very scandinavian bf friendly feel.
best of luck. x

Congratulations on getting out. I've found feeding whilst out much easier than I expected. The nicest thing is that feeding DD has attracted loads of comments but all of them positive. People have told me that seeing a baby bf-ing is the nicest sight in the world, that I'm a great mother, that they admire me for persevering with BFing, and have told me DD looks really happy and healthy. If anything the nice things people say can be a bit overwhelming!

Most people don't notice because DD is quiet and snuggled up in my arms. I found that coffee shops were the best place to feed in the early days because DD seems to find the noise of coffee machines quite soothing and that helped her to concentrate.