Lactation Station- Offensive? - Page 2

[Youngfrankenstein]

Originally Posted by Adaline'sMama

So, OP here. Just wanted to share my experience with another Lactation Station.

OK, So 2 state fairs in one week. At they KY state fair there was a "Rock n Relax", hosted by a hospital- a place to go and nurse and also to change baby. There was a poster inside the area that had a bunch of illustrations on it, titled "Surprises while Nursing". It was pretty old but a couple of them were pretty offensive. There was a scene where a little girl sees her mommy nursing and says "my baby is hungry too!", and the mother looks disgruntled at the little girl.

In general this one was nothing like the other one. There were signs in all the bathrooms right above the changing stations that said "ATTN: Rock N Relax is located at aisle......"

I was changing my baby in the bathroom and a lady said to me, "You know we've set up a place for that..." and began to give me directions as though I wasnt welcome to change her in the bathroom.

I also NIP when I was a good hike away and I got several dirty looks and heard two people say (not to me, but about me) "You know, there is a place for that"

I felt like in this situation, the signs in the bathroom alerted everyone to an alternative place for mothers. This made people feel like it was a place we were supposed to go instead of a great place they were offering us

Please hear this respectfully, but it kind of sounds like you were "looking for a fight". And if you were changing a diaper on a bathroom counter or something, I'd have told you how to get to the changing room also.

And it sounds like you're assuming people were wanting you to go to the "nursing place" when no one said that to you.

Maybe I am completely wrong, I wasn't there, but I think we could all just agree to be grateful and happy about these huge improvements to make breastfeeding normal, expected, and celebrated.

I can't think of a great analogy, but what if there were a "diabetes station" where you could have a clean room with a/c to test your sugars, get a drink or snack, give an injection, etc. Is that shooing the problem away from the public or just a helping hand?

[Mrs.Music]

Originally Posted by Adaline'sMama

Yesterday DH, DD, and I went to the Indiana State Fair. After walking around for about an hour, we saw a sign in front of an RV called that said "Lactation Station, for nursing moms." Sponsered by March of Dimes.

I was stoked. It was super hot and I was totally ready to get DD out of the sun and soak up some AC. So I told DH we'd meet him at the next building in about 20 minutes.

The place was totally air conditioned, had a changing pad, had nice cushy seats to nurse on, and they even gave you free cold bottles of water. No one was in there from MOD, and it was an awesome experience.

So...when I told my husband about how much I liked it, he says to me, "Really, that seems like something you would be totally against. Do you not feel like they are trying to herd you all into 1 spot so that no one else has to feel uncomfortable about you NIP?"

I hadn't thought of it that way at all until he said something about it. And I still really appreciate it being available for me.


What are your thoughs/opinions on Lactation Stations?

This seems FANTASTIC. It's not about hiding. It's about providing someplace comfortable in a place that is otherwise crowded, loud, hot and probably just lacking in places to sit for you to nurse your baby.

[JessicaS]

I love the lactation stations. During our fair it is always boiling hot, it is nice to have an alternative place to nurse

[mandivola]

Not Offensive at all....

I was a volunteer this year at the Indiana State Fair and I wanted to clear something up. First, I'm glad you had a positive experience! Yah! The purpose of the Lactation is to give nursing moms a cooled spot to breastfeed to get a break from the extreme heat. They are sponsored and organized by the Indiana Mother's Milk Bank, which serves the entire Midwest Region. I'm a donor mom for the milk bank so I gladly took a day off of work to volunteer. The purpose is NOT to keep moms from nursing in public, just to give them a choice. The March of Dimes is a sponsor, not organizer.

The Milk Bank recruited donor moms, local LLL leaders, nurses, and lactation consultants for staffing. They stocked freebies and supplies to give moms that best experience. And even better, they're raising awareness for breastfeeding in general as well as the fact that human milk is available for hospital and private use. MANY people don't know that you can request human milk for their premature or sick infants and we all know that these babies (in fact all babies) benefit from the rich nutrients in mother's milk.

There are people at the Fair that have turned up at the Lactation Station saying that there are moms nursing outside of the Lactation Stations and the staff is really good about saying, "great, moms can nurse where ever they want." The Stations are a nice comfort for many moms.

I hope you can come next year and if you're interested possibly volunteer or sign up as a donor mom! Here's my post from that day. http://amandasquickbite.blogspot.com...-fair-for.html

[kittywitty]

Originally Posted by annettemarie

I think they're awesome, as long as no one is trying to force mothers to use them. Being a Lactivist is about promoting breastfeeding. The best way to promote breastfeeding is to find ways to make it happen in whatever manner the mother is comfortable. If a mom is more comfortable nursing inside, in the air, with someone bringing her a nice bottled water, more power to her. And the mom who is OK nursing outside on a bench should be welcomed too. I would say, kindly, that your husband is missing the point.

I agree. Though I do admit to never seeing one of these at a fair and ignoring "nursing rooms" at malls and such and just doing my own thing. Mostly because sitting down to nurse with 3 other kids running around isn't gonna happen.

[slowgoing]

Living in the heat of the southwest I would welcome a cold water and some shade. I would not feel as if I HAD to nurse in there but might want to sometimes... Just a few thoughts

[Adaline'sMama]

Originally Posted by Youngfrankenstein

Please hear this respectfully, but it kind of sounds like you were "looking for a fight". And if you were changing a diaper on a bathroom counter or something, I'd have told you how to get to the changing room also.

And it sounds like you're assuming people were wanting you to go to the "nursing place" when no one said that to you..

I was changing her at the Baby Koala Chamging station that is ALWAYS in the bathroom. I didnt want to walk that far to change a diaper.

I wasnt looking for a fight, I said from the beginning that the Lactation Station was awesome. I just though I would update my post to include an experience that wasnt as awesome as the previous one I had. I dont feel like its "looking for a fight" to compare the two different experiences. I def. felt like the one in Indiana was much more inviting and enjoyable than the one in Kentucky, where I felt obligated to use it.

The Kentucky state fair is HUGE. I didnt want to keep walking back to the same place over and over again to nurse/ change my 5 month old that was in need of pretty constant attention. In Indiana, they had 2 stations, and it was a much smaller area. I still appreciate the one in Kentucky being there, but I do think that they shouldnt put the signs right at the changing stations in the bathrooms, leading people to believe that women arent supposed to use the regular changing stations. And, I didnt like their comic, I felt like it was a little insulting.

Im glad to know that the stations in Indiana were actually run by then Milk Bank. I would like to voluenteer next year. That sounds really cool.

[Youngfrankenstein]

Originally Posted by Adaline'sMama

I was changing her at the Baby Koala Chamging station that is ALWAYS in the bathroom. I didnt want to walk that far to change a diaper.

I still appreciate the one in Kentucky being there, but I do think that they shouldnt put the signs right at the changing stations in the bathrooms, leading people to believe that women arent supposed to use the regular changing stations.

That is really irritating then. If you were using a changing table, I can't imagine why anyone would be so rude to you.

[scottishmommy]

I don't find nursing stations offensive per se, but I think it's weird that our society thinks we need a special place to nurse. I feel like nursing moms should neither be pampered nor hindered. They should just *be*. But is nice to be pampered.....

[PGTlatte]

I think they are nice as long as it's clear the location is offered as a convenience, with no expectation that mothers should nurse only there and not in other locations.

I also feel that mothers who are bottle feeding should be clearly welcomed. Someone who is bottle feeding a young infant or who chooses to hold her baby while bottle feeding may really appreciate a place where it is easy to sit down and hold the baby. Someone who is bottle feeding a baby who is easily distracted may appreciate a quiet and more private place to do it.

I am all for supporting breastfeeding in a very positive way that does not lead to anyone feeling excluded or looked down on for not breastfeeding. I think these areas would be better called "infant feeding stations" where all mothers who could use a quiet, cool place to feed their baby are clearly welcome, regardless of how they feed their infant.

[BlueLeaf]

This is a little different, as it wasn't a fair. But our mall has a "nursing area" marked on the mall map. We went there and it was a couch and two chairs directly in front of the bathrooms - absolutely no privacy, and there was a security camera pointed directly at the seats! We kept looking, thinking "that can't be the nursing area." I expected something somewhat private. But no, that was it. I was new to nursing and very hesitant about NIP, but I nursed there. After I finished, a teenage boy sat down with his mom and sisters and told them how when he hangs out at the mall, this is where he sits!

I was so flummoxed - I couldn't imagine nursing my child with a strange 14 year old boy sitting two feet away from me. Not that they can really keep anyone who wishes to from sitting there, nor should they - I just thought it was a dumb way to pay lip service to being nursing friendly, when really I would have had more privacy and been more comfortable sitting somewhere else in the mall.

[SubliminalDarkness]

Originally Posted by scottishmommy

I don't find nursing stations offensive per se, but I think it's weird that our society thinks we need a special place to nurse. I feel like nursing moms should neither be pampered nor hindered. They should just *be*. But is nice to be pampered.....

I agree. I wouldn't use one.

[Sharlla]

sounds wonderful, panda refuses to nurse if shes too hot
Posted via Mobile Device

[Youngfrankenstein]

Originally Posted by SubliminalDarkness

I agree. I wouldn't use one.

That's suprising to me. I haven't been to many state fairs, but I can't imagine finding a chair or bench to use at random. I suppose you could sit on the ground, but again, I think it's gravel and dirt where I've been.

It just seems bold to say you wouldn't use one. To each her own, I supposed.

Is it just that name that people are having a problem with? What if it were called the "Baby Comfort Zone" or something like a pp suggested?

[SilverFish]

i love lacation rooms/areas! i've never used one at a fair, but i use them at the mall all the time. i NIP everywhere too, not shy about it in the least, but if you're going to give the choice between hard, crowded mall bench/picnic table/tree/grubby food court table and a nice, cool, clean room with rocking chairs/sofas, i'm going to choose the sofa every time!

now, i have been in "mother's rooms" that are pretty grubby and uncomfortable, where the feeling really is more like they're just trying to get us out of the way, and i wouldn't go way way out of my way to find the lactation room when we just need a quick snack and change, but overall i think they're great.

[SubliminalDarkness]

Originally Posted by Youngfrankenstein

That's suprising to me. I haven't been to many state fairs, but I can't imagine finding a chair or bench to use at random. I suppose you could sit on the ground, but again, I think it's gravel and dirt where I've been.

It just seems bold to say you wouldn't use one. To each her own, I supposed.

Is it just that name that people are having a problem with? What if it were called the "Baby Comfort Zone" or something like a pp suggested?

I've never been one to make a point to sit and nurse. I nurse in a carrier and keep moving, or just nurse while holding baby and walking around. Obviously, the carrier became more necessary as the child got older.

I'm just of the belief that nursing should be a normal part of life, not something we go out of our way to make a point of accommodating or anything else.

And I suppose, if the concern is heat, then yes, making a baby area makes more sense to me overall.

[Adaline'sMama]

Originally Posted by Youngfrankenstein

That's suprising to me. I haven't been to many state fairs, but I can't imagine finding a chair or bench to use at random. I suppose you could sit on the ground, but again, I think it's gravel and dirt where I've been.

I will say that the Indiana fair was much less air conditioned, and a place to nurse was much more needed due to the heat and lack of seating. This may have contributed to my dislike for the one in Kentucky because it was just a sectioned off area where no one could see you in a huge exposition hall. (most of the ky fair is indoors and VERY airconditioned). There are tons of benches and seating there where you could sit to nurse anywhere, but the rocking chairs were pretty nice.

[nicky85]

Interesting. I have never gone off in a bathroom or mother's room to nurse, even when there was one available, like at church. But I would totally take a room like that at the state fair! Getting out of the heat and dust and having a nice place to sit down to nurse and change a baby would be awesome!!!! At church I simply don't feel a need to go anywhere else. I can sit on the couch in the foyer or on the padded pews and relax a bit. Frankly, I'd be kind of scared of changing my baby in some of the bathrooms I've seen at fairgrounds. A Lactation Station sounds like a great idea to me.

[lazzybee]

Originally Posted by SubliminalDarkness

I'm just of the belief that nursing should be a normal part of life, not something we go out of our way to make a point of accommodating or anything else.

It seems like providing a comfortable place to sit and nurse is regarding nursing as normal, as opposed to assuming a nursing mother ought to go use the bathroom? Idk, I can't walk and nurse, so I need a place to sit and relax.

[Irishmommy]

Originally Posted by laundrycrisis

I think they are nice as long as it's clear the location is offered as a convenience, with no expectation that mothers should nurse only there and not in other locations.

I also feel that mothers who are bottle feeding should be clearly welcomed. Someone who is bottle feeding a young infant or who chooses to hold her baby while bottle feeding may really appreciate a place where it is easy to sit down and hold the baby. Someone who is bottle feeding a baby who is easily distracted may appreciate a quiet and more private place to do it.

I am all for supporting breastfeeding in a very positive way that does not lead to anyone feeling excluded or looked down on for not breastfeeding. I think these areas would be better called "infant feeding stations" where all mothers who could use a quiet, cool place to feed their baby are clearly welcome, regardless of how they feed their infant.

What about the dad there alone with a bottlefed baby? Should he also be welcome somewhere like that where there are nursing mothers that may be there specifically because it's for MOTHERS?