As a first time mom, I wasn’t very comfortable with the idea of nursing in public. Don’t get me wrong; I’m not against it and totally applaud women who are perfectly comfortable doing this with or without a nursing cover. I just get a little shy. I went out and bought myself a Bebe au Lait nursing cover a few months ago, and it’s been so great! It helps me feel comfortable, and it’s also been wonderful at keeping Pooky focused on the task at hand. She’s been very easily distracted lately, but with the Bebe au Lait over her, she focuses on nursing and not on everything else around her.
It works kind of like an apron that you wear around your neck. It’s lightweight and has boning at the neck which holds the neck open enough so that you and your baby can still see each other while nursing. It packs up very small; I just roll it up and stick it in my bag. Plus, it comes in lots of beautiful fabrics. It’s also sold under the original brand name Hooter Hiders.
on Nov 15th, 2006 at 9:12 am
[...] Breastfeeding in public is a whole other can of worms. A lot of women, from what I understand, are not terribly comfortable with the idea. I don’t blame them. I’m not terribly comfortable with the idea of my nipples being exposed in public, and I’m a guy. May solved this problem with a wonderful drapelike contraption. Other women have other methods. Whatever works is great. The point is, the baby needs to get fed, and if a woman feels comfortable enough to do it in public, more power to her. If a woman feels she has no choice but to feed the baby in public, regardless of whatever issues she may have, she should certainly not have to worry about being judged or hassled for it. Which is what makes this story about a woman being kicked off of a plane for breastfeeding so infuriating: [Emily] Gillette said she was being discreet. She was seated by the window in the second-to-last row, her husband was seated between her and the aisle and no part of her breast was showing, she said. [...]