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Infant feeding

Get advice and support with infant feeding from other users here.

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Original poster

breast feeding areas...

10 replies

mum2b09 · 28/04/2009 12:10

went into my town centre for the first time with my 5 week old dd last saturday and was disgusted with the lack of places to breastfeed. john lewis had a tiny little breastfeeding room with about enough space to fit 2 prams although there were about 8 chairs. it was situated off a canging room so it stunk of poo (obviouly im used to that smell now but still!)

I tried to bf in a cafe later on that day very discreetly, one of the staff noticed an gave me abit of a funny look. if they dont like it should they not have more areas for us to feed??

its the most natural thing in the world.. i just think its awful that feeding your child can be frowned upon in public

OP posts:

foxytocin · 28/04/2009 12:35

Aww mummy. don't try to bf discretely. You can never please everyone so you may as well please yourself and be comfy and have a cuppa and sandwich while your baby eats too.

Maybe the staff didn't look at you funny. May be you are feeling a bit hypersensitive as you are feeling vulnerable as you are new to feeding. Completely understandable for you, I want to add.

Even if she did look at you funny. it is her hangups and issues. Tough. she can't do anything about it so she might as well get used to it. Maybe she has a twitch, look only at the positives of why she looked funny. and may you have many more feedy snuggles.

foxytocin · 28/04/2009 12:36

i meant mum2b

ShowOfHands · 28/04/2009 12:43

Roffle at 'discrete' bfing. Do you have to be in a different room to your baby?

Feed where you want and when you want. You have every right to and should be proud. I do understand though if you want to do it somewhere private, I did at first.

Do you have a Mothercare? They generally have good feeding rooms.

nickytwotimes · 28/04/2009 12:44

A cafe seems the ideal place for bfing.

Keep at it. Noone will see anything anyway once your wee one is on and you deserve a nnice place to sit and a drink/snack for doing it. Here in Scotland, you are allowed by law to feed anywhere you like and it is an offence to ask a woman to move on/stop. Of course there are still starers, but it does seem to have helped a lot.

KiwiPanda · 28/04/2009 12:54

mum2b I felt like that at first - and was constantly convinced people were looking at me disapprovingly but as I got more comfortable with it myself I stopped thinking that. I think it's partly just your completely natural self-consciousness. I do have a nursing cover though which I use on rare occasions when I feel like that again - for example feeding DD on the rush hour train to Gatwick

Re John Lewis - their facilities really vary. I've been to two or three of them and some are great, some are rubbish. Strange that.

Original poster

mum2b09 · 28/04/2009 12:56

im comfortable with bfing in public it just seems that other people hae a problem with it.. i love bfing and have no intention of stopping as my dd is gainig weight realy well and is a lovely little chunky baby which i wouldnt give up for the world..

Can i just ask whatdid you girls do when you went to a ice resteraunt and had to take you dd or ds with you did you bf there i dont mind but a few peope have been abit funny abou me feeding i places like that.

OP posts:

foxytocin · 28/04/2009 13:02

argh! i see discretely so much on here now I am starting to copy it. plus dd2 jumping on my lap and banging the keyboard makes things worse.

and that is the truth I tell ya.

foxytocin · 28/04/2009 13:05

i have bf indiscreetly in a couple pretty posh restaurants (with older babies/toddlers too - one was 16 mos old once) and I don't look around looking to see what other people's face look like. I am far too busy having a good meal with the good company I bring along.

MamaHobgoblin · 28/04/2009 13:12

Mum2b09, I almost always go to John Lewis when we're having a shopping day (Reading) because their cafe is stuffed full of breastfeeders! I noticed this before I got pregnant. I've always felt comfortable and 'protected' there. The only time I thought someone was giving me an odd look was when it turned out she was approving and then came over to beam in my face!

Obviously not all JL cafes are the same, but I think a lot of groups like to meet there with their babies, so keep on trying and you might feel more comfortable. I know their 'family room' is a bit pants - our local one always smells of poo too. Just stick to the cafe and smile! In my experience, most people are either happy to see it, or haven't noticed in the first place.

FrankMustard · 28/04/2009 13:17

I had same experience with tiny feeding rooms in JLewis and when I attended a wedding with ds2 years ago, the hotel could only offer me a disabled toilet as an area for feeding privately (my dress didn't allow for being at all subtle!) so I ended up in a room miles from everyone else because I refused to be sent to a bathroom for it!
Aside from that ufortunate experience, I didn't make mistake again of wearing inappropriate outfits and used to bf anywhere and anytime - cafes are excellent places and you should be able to feed happily without weird looks whilst enjoying your hot choc etc!
Esp when you have more than one dc,if you're out and about, you need to be able to feed whilst they are kept happy so we used to take over corners of coffee shops regularly!

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