I have never ever had any incidents with NIP, ever. I am nursing my 4th baby so there has been over seven years worth of opportunity for me to get harassed, but until today nothing has ever been said.
Today I had to bring my 3 week old to the WIC office to add Ethan to the case. Those of you on WIC will know the drill - you go in, get weighed, baby gets weighed, you wait forever in a crowded waiting room, and then they issue your benefits.
So they weighed my son (3 pounds gained in 3 weeks!) and he was fussing about being naked. I held him as the nurse finished paperwork, and was talking to him. I said, "Its okay baby, you'll get some milkies in a minute" or something to that effect.
She looked up and asked if I was going to nurse him in the waiting room, and I said yes. She said, "no no no no no, we can't have you doing that," and led me down the hall to a small room. It had a desk and a hard plastic chair in it, along with stacks of boxes, and before I knew what was going on the nurse set down my diaper bag (she had helped me carry my things), and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her. She said, "You just come on out when you're done."
I was too dumbfounded to speak, and by this time Ethan was screaming his head off, so I just nursed him. I didn't want to come out of the room because I was so embarrassed. The door to the room is in the main waiting room, and the waiting room was full of people. (not just WIC clients, but other people getting immunizations and check ups and things.)
I've never once been made to feel ashamed of breastfeeding, never once felt the need to hide, and today all of that changed. I don't know what, if anything, I should do about this. I think the nurse's intentions were good - it was as though she wanted to spare me embarrassment, not the other people. But still. It really made me feel awkward and like I stood out in the crowd. If I had just nursed him in the regular waiting room I wouldn't have felt weird or different at all. It felt like when the teacher called you up in front of class in school.
Today I had to bring my 3 week old to the WIC office to add Ethan to the case. Those of you on WIC will know the drill - you go in, get weighed, baby gets weighed, you wait forever in a crowded waiting room, and then they issue your benefits.
So they weighed my son (3 pounds gained in 3 weeks!) and he was fussing about being naked. I held him as the nurse finished paperwork, and was talking to him. I said, "Its okay baby, you'll get some milkies in a minute" or something to that effect.
She looked up and asked if I was going to nurse him in the waiting room, and I said yes. She said, "no no no no no, we can't have you doing that," and led me down the hall to a small room. It had a desk and a hard plastic chair in it, along with stacks of boxes, and before I knew what was going on the nurse set down my diaper bag (she had helped me carry my things), and walked out of the room, shutting the door behind her. She said, "You just come on out when you're done."
I was too dumbfounded to speak, and by this time Ethan was screaming his head off, so I just nursed him. I didn't want to come out of the room because I was so embarrassed. The door to the room is in the main waiting room, and the waiting room was full of people. (not just WIC clients, but other people getting immunizations and check ups and things.)
I've never once been made to feel ashamed of breastfeeding, never once felt the need to hide, and today all of that changed. I don't know what, if anything, I should do about this. I think the nurse's intentions were good - it was as though she wanted to spare me embarrassment, not the other people. But still. It really made me feel awkward and like I stood out in the crowd. If I had just nursed him in the regular waiting room I wouldn't have felt weird or different at all. It felt like when the teacher called you up in front of class in school.
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