Breast Feeding In Public

Babies that are breast fed are very portable and
easy to comfort no matter where your schedule has
you going.  Many women however, worry about 
breast feeding in public.  The worry of nursing
in a public place is normally worse than the
actual experience and often times the only people
who notice you feeding are the other mothers who
are doing the same thing.

Many women find ways to breast feed discreetly.  
You can ask your partner or even a friend to 
stand in front of you while you lift your shirt
from the waist.  When you breast feed, the baby's
body will cover most of your upper body and you
can pull your shirt down to her face to cover
the tops of your breast.  Some mothers prefer to
put a light blanket over their shoulders as a
type of cover.

When you are visiting someone else's home, you
may feel more comfortable either leaving the
room or turning away from people when you first
put the baby to your breast.  If you would like
more privacy, breast feed in an empty room, car,
or public restroom.

A lot of restrooms are becoming more baby 
friendly and they even have a seperate are with
a changing table and a chair.  Several shopping
malls now offer special mother's rooms where 
the mom can breast feed her baby in privacy,
which will help sensitive babies who are too
distracted by feeding to nurse well in public.
It won't take long at all though, before your
baby will learn to breast feed without any fuss
at all.

An alternative way is expressing or pumping 
your milk at home and then offer it in a bottle
while in public.  Keep in mind, offering
bottles with artificial nipples in the first
few weeks can and probably will interfere with
breast feeding.

When breast feeding in public, you should always
use what works best for you.  During the first
few weeks, it will take some getting used to,
as it will be as new for you as it is for the
baby.  With some time, you'll have no problems
at all.

If you don't feel comfortable breast feeding in
a certain location, then you shouldn't.  You 
should feel a certain level of comfort when you
feed, as the baby can tell when you aren't 
comfortable doing something.  If you show your
baby that you aren't nervous - you and your 
baby will be just fine.

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