breastfeeding in public

[kittenbaby]

hi girls
ive just been thinking about breastfeeding and i think its something i want to do well at least give it my best shot
do you know what puts me off though the fact its not our legal right to do it in public
which i think is outrageous
i think it must be horrible to do it in public and be told off
or to leave wherever you are
im shocked by the amount of people that think its disgusting !!

and have to put up with comments and stares
how do you go about dealing with this?
do you have any hints and tips?
or even better quick one liners to say to rude people? be good to have a quick answer to fire back at anyone that wants to have a go !!
im not very good at thinking of something quick to say at the time,then i always think afterwards ....why didnt i say such and such !!
im shocked by the amount of people that think its disgusting !!

Get good at doing it really discreetly, then IGNORE IGNORE IGNORE.
Noone can make you leave anywhere. What will they do bodily remove you while you have a baby on your boob, I don't think so.
I fed DD2 at 9 days old round an amusement park and all I got were women looking at me with gooey Aaaaaaaah faces and saying Oh look, isn't that lovely.
So don't stress. If someone asks you to go say I will leave when I have finished feeding my baby. Then finish, get up with dignity and head held high and go on your way.

I was scared too with dd1 and tended not to, but with DD2 I just didn't care and fed her everywhere.
You'll be ok.

RPG, it sounds like you had a terrible time with your first. Hoping things are going better for you this time around.

As for the pressure from your MIL, I would ignore it. I had alot, and I mean alot of pressure to formula feed and I just did what I wanted. If I had gone along with the pressure I know that it would have made me very unhappy. I always listened to the advice politely, but then did what I wanted, thinking its my baby not yours IYKWIM.

Was talking about this thread last night to DH and his advice was to tell anybody who bothered you to F**K Off. Not very polite but straight to the point.

He also said that if anybody was in a cafe, shop etc and was asked to move, then ask the person if they really want to be on the local news and in the National Newspapers because thats what happens now to people harrassing bfing mothers

Don't think he's a bfing militant, just think he's getting more millitant about everything in his old age!

I spent so much time waiting for a rude comment when feeding dd4 for a year. Never had one at all.
Now feeding ds1 (6.5 months) and again the most Ive had is in the school playground when a dad came over to see ds1 and stroked his head and then realised I was feeding him Poor bugger nearly died

I was at the school fair on sunday and ds1 was moaning so I asked dh to stand in front of me while I latched him on in the middle of the field surrounded by parents. Not one person realised and if they did they certainly didn't say anything.

i think you'll be unlucky to get any negative response tbh, though I know it sometimes happens
the first 6 weeks or so, altho I fed dd out and about, we were both a bit crap at it and I felt self conscious. now at 3 months, we're both experts and i can feed her and noone really notices. when they get up close and realise, some women even stroke her on the head and say how lucky she is - sweet

kitten,

i think that's a good idea to practise at home until you are confident because when you first start you do have to get your whole boob out and it takes forever trying to get a good latch (did for me anyway) but within a couple of weeks (and you're hardly going to be out galavanting before that!), it becomes 2nd nature and you will feel totally happy doing it anywhere. And then if you feel happy and confident doing it, IF someone makes a stupid comment you will be well-equipped to deal with it. Good luck!

Magnolia1, thats so funny, bet the poor bloke nearly had a heartattack!

The only time it gets difficult is when they really start moving around. A peaceful baby slurping is one thing. A 10 mth boy flicking your nipple and then crawling off your lap to play with the sugar is another!

hi girls
thanks for all the support and help xx

i went to mothercare this am brought two nursing bras and 2 nursing vests and some big pants lol and spent 75 quid
its horrible spending 75 on horrible underwear i wouldnt mind if i spent it one nice sexy stuff but this stuffs horrible
lol
i took some breast pads with me to put inside the bra they make you look like youve got alien boobs dont they
ah such glamour !! lol

so ive got 2 nursing bras 2 nursing vests breast pads nipple cream
is there anything else i need to get now
i know ill need more than 2 bras but thought perhaps it would be a good idea to wait and be measured again after baby xx

Agent Provocateur do lovely nursing bras; bit pricey but nice to have just one that makes you feel good

Just wanted to say I bf in cafe's etc. and various other public locations.

I had nothing but positive feedback from onlookers. e.g. 'well done love keep it up'. 'You're doing an amazing job'. Cafe owners fine. My dad, fine. Family v supportive.

Also never needed to expose much boob. Either used muslin cloth in early days when lactching on more difficult and need to use hands, or just cover boob/baby's head with your top when they are a bit older and latch on easily.

It was difficult at first for us both to get the hang of it but we did and I am so proud of myself for doing it. The only awkward part was doing it in front of my husbands friends. But just do it. Its up to others to deal with their issues on the bf topic.

Good luck. XXX

Can't think of anything else you need. NCT sales do a couple of nice bras:

www.nctsales.co.uk/prodlist.asp?cat=250&scat=253&parent=250

I bought mine of figleaves.com as I had got measured at M&S but they didn't stock my size. Thought figleaves were very good if you know your size, bras arrived in the post the next morning.

Also, never needed the nipple cream.

Think you'll be fine!

have never heard of a nursing vest, but i got quite a few normal vests from new look the other day for £3, also a nice short cardi/top thing with just one button at the top which i thought would be a great combo for bf in public. slide vest under boob (stops everyone seeing rolls of fat), cardi thing covers top of boob. off i went to cafe nero, fed ds, as i picked him up he grabbed the cardi and exposed my boob to the whole cafe. i didnt notice as i was busy chatting to my mate . i got a look from a middle aged woman, her husband looked like he wanted to crawl under the table, but no one said anything.