Breastfeeding moms against NIP - Page 2

[Viola]

Originally Posted by lactivist02

People say that by covering up you are drawing attention to it, isn't that part of the purpose of NIP?

For me the purpose of NIP is to feed my baby. I don't use a cover because I want to do it in the easiest way possible, and I have had some really awkward times trying to nurse under a blanket. I've ended up feeling really embarrassed and stupid. I actually was too embarrassed to nurse in front of people after a blanket incident gone awry, so I had to leave the room.

I prefer to turn away or bend over the baby as I'm popping the nipple in, then I like to pull my shirt down or sling tail over the top of my breast area. I don't feel the need to cover my toddler's head, and she is old enough now to pull it off and be quite vocal about things.

But if you like covering with a blanket and it works for you, I have no problems with that.

[MA mommy]

I would think the majority of the time it would lead to premature weaning. How can you live like that? Babies nurse so often. How could you leave the house?

[maria423]

Now if someone does not like to NIP for thier own personal comfort level, whether it be not wanting to expose thier breasts to others or not being able to take rudeness, I respect that. But if one is comfortable doing it, thats great. THe more it is seen in public the more normal others will start to see it. America is so uptight compared to other countries.

I totally agree.

Kristin, I LOVE your location!

I guess I also get peeved when people talk about how it's okay "as long as you're discreet." First of all, what's discreet to one person isn't to another, so the term "discreet" doesn't mean much. Second, what if I plain out don't want to be discreet? I mean, I'm not going to sit around with my nipple hanging out of my shirt while I take my time getting the baby latched on. That's not fun for me. I don't WANT people to see my nips. But then again, I'm not going to cover up with a blanket to prevent people from seeing the back of my baby's head while he eats just because they have hang-ups the size of Texas.

And I nurse my 2+ year old in public too. And I'm not going to stop.

[girlndocs]

"hangups the size of Texas!" :

[Viola]

My hangups are more in the shape of Florida. :LOL

[SmilingChick]

Personally, I don't see why any of you care about where others nurse their children.
My dd is 5 1/2 months and has been exclusively breastfed, and I don't nurse in public. It's not the act of breastfeeding publicly that bothers me - it's mainly b/c I've always had huge, heavy breasts and I don't care to put them on display. Of course I'm not offended by those who do nurse in public, but I don't really care one way or the other.
If some women are embarrassed, then they have a right to their feelings. Not nursing in public beats formula in my book!!

[Gidget]

Originally Posted by SmilingChick

Personally, I don't see why any of you care about where others nurse their children.

If you read again, most of us are not worried whether other women do it or not. It is the fact the other bf'ing women, and even other people are againsts it and think we are bieng rude and disrespectful for doing so.

[maria423]

SmilingChick, the women I was talking about thought that NOBODY should nurse in public. It wasn't that they were embarrassed, just that they thought nursing in public is indecent. If a woman doesn't feel comfortable nursing anywhere but home, that's her business. I respect that (although I feel sad that our societal norms have created an environment in which a woman doesn't feel at ease feeding her baby anywhere).

[julie128]

I have a friend who wouldn't nurse in public, BUT she does not consider playgrounds to be public because it's just women and children and no men. She would expose quite a bit of her breast when she nursed, way more than I thought she needed to, especially considering her modesty level.

[JesiLynne]

OK I BFEED IN PUBLIC ALL THE TIME!!!!!!!!
I used to be a little nervous about it b/c I had creepy old men stare like they are hioping to see something and I wouldnt do it if I was around one certain family JUST B/C they are all teenage/ just coming into puberty boys who are embarresed at the drop of a hat and I didnt want to make them feel bad. But I stopped than when I realized they didnt care!
And this friday i actually *gasp* did it in a booth at a resturant in front of my mom :LOL

She didnt care, she CLW all us kids And no body else even looked twice
I wonder if Its a Midwest thing.
I always cover up unless I'm at home and no one but my dh and my sisters and my mom and my kids are around.
But I cover up for any one else.
I guess the only other thing is I dont bfeed in the sanctuary in our church
i go in the next room where I can see adn hear everything.
Hey when the babe's gotta eat YA KNOW!

[the_lissa]

Originally Posted by julie128

I have a friend who wouldn't nurse in public, BUT she does not consider playgrounds to be public because it's just women and children and no men. She would expose quite a bit of her breast when she nursed, way more than I thought she needed to, especially considering her modesty level.

It is very rare that I have been to a playground where there are no men.

[Pynki]

our youngest is now 21 months..

I nurse him everywhere all the time.. I got my 1st dirty-ish look about a month ago.. I just laughed.. I mean really.. What's the big deall You can't see my boob.. The kids head is covering it..

I don't have a problem with people not NIP because they feel uncomfortable.. But I do have a problem with the fact that they feel the need to feel uncomfortable.. If nursing was the societal norm the way it is the biological norm there wouldn't be any issues.. Hell puritans nursed thier babies.. They didn't have bottle of EBM.. When it was inappropriate to see a ladies ankles you often saw her breast feeding a child..

It most assuredly IS a societal construct..

The more I breastfeed my children in public the more acceptable it will become.. Some kid in 20yrs will say.. Oh yeah.. Mercury's mom breastfed them.. And they turned out just fine.. LOL

Warm Squishy Feelings..
Dyan

[kavamamakava]

My favorite comeback now (that I learned from another thread) is

Is it rude for a baby to use his/her diaper in public? Sometimes they fart and make all sorts of grunts and noises too. And sometimes it can really smell. heh

[Gidget]

Originally Posted by Pynki

When it was inappropriate to see a ladies ankles you often saw her breast feeding a child..

Reminds me of a pic I saw. Perhaps it was in Milk, Money and Madness? But I saw a pic of a middle eastern woman. Covered from head to toe. She was sitting on a bench feeding her baby. Some breast skin was showing and I think the person commented that no one passing her on the bench seemed fazed at all by it.

[MA mommy]

Originally Posted by SmilingChick

Personally, I don't see why any of you care about where others nurse their children.
My dd is 5 1/2 months and has been exclusively breastfed, and I don't nurse in public. It's not the act of breastfeeding publicly that bothers me - it's mainly b/c I've always had huge, heavy breasts and I don't care to put them on display. Of course I'm not offended by those who do nurse in public, but I don't really care one way or the other.
If some women are embarrassed, then they have a right to their feelings. Not nursing in public beats formula in my book!!

I don't really care. I just don't understand how it can be done. Do you go into a bathroom or your car all the time? And what do you do if you have other kids? I never knew what time my kids wanted to nurse. So it would be hard to plan my life around that.

[SmilingChick]

I have a pump and luckily, two breasts that produce copious amounts of milk! It doesn't interfere with our life at all. I pump about 4-10 ounces per day based on how much i think I will need, in addition to her nursing on demand, so I always have a reserve in the fridge.

[Greaseball]

If anyone doesn't want to see a breast, they know what they can do...and no, they don't have to leave...they can simply avert their eyes! Most just choose not to, probably because they get something out of complaining to everyone else. Or because they secretly like to look at breasts.

I, for one, would be embarrassed to use a bottle in public and don't like it when my children are exposed to public bottlefeeders...I'm sure if I complained to a restaurant manager he would tell me to come out of my little ice cream castle in the sky and join the real world.

[SmilingChick]

Originally Posted by Greaseball

I, for one, would be embarrassed to use a bottle in public and don't like it when my children are exposed to public bottlefeeders

Yeah!!!!! I finally learned how to do a quote. Anyway, onto my reply:


Why? Breastmilk is so much lighter and thinner than formula, and should be obvious to anyone who is nosy enough to look, and my bottles all have "My Mommy's Milk" printed on them. But even if someone thinks I am formula feeding (although they'd have to be near blind), I know that I am not.

It almost seems on these boards like there is some hierarchy of breastfeeders. Those who occasionally pump and give a public bottle are on the bottom rung!?!

[Greaseball]

Well, as far as what my children see in public, I don't want them learning that bottlefeeding is the norm. I don't want them to think their bodies need to be hidden so that men and other ignorants can be comfortable. Or that some women have to take their babies to the doctor over and over again for ear infections and other health problems due to not breastfeeding. I don't like it when my children see newborn babies drinking Coke and Kool-Aid out of bottles. I don't like seeing my toddler bottlefeed her dolls. Babies are supposed to drink from breasts, not bottles, and that's what I am going to teach. Bottles are to be used only when mom is not home.

I wouldn't teach my children that "some women can't breastfeed" any more than I would teach them that some can't have a vaginal birth. They can figure that out when they are older.

And as far as pumping so you don't have to NIP...I don't expect that would cross most people's minds, since it sounds like too much trouble.

[MA mommy]

Well, I think of bottles for using when a baby is seperated from his/her mom or is unable to latch. If the mom feeds the baby a bottle of EBM what happens when the baby starts rooting to her breast instead? It seems confusing to me.