Pregnancy Info HOME

I started giving my son a bottle at 4 weeks and didn't have any problems with it. I've never b___stfed in public. If I need to feed him, I take him out to the car and use a b___stfeeding shawl. I don't want to make anybody uncomfortable by feeding him in public.

I wouldn't try to b___stfeed in public the first few weeks, when everything is still awkward, but I did it plenty in the year I bf my daughter, and no one even knew. You just get the baby latched on underneath your shirt and pull the shirt down to the baby's mouth. I didn't even use a blanket and no one could see anything. It's just a matter of getting the hang of it. As for the bottle, I gave my daughter an occasional bottle after about 4 weeks and she did fine, although the older she got she decided she would rather not have any bottles. But all babies are different and you just have to kind of see what happens with the one you have! Good luck!

I absolutely did b___stfeed in public -- why waste the fact that it's so convenient?! My husband and I took our baby on a 6 week trip to Turkey to visit relatives and I b___stfed in public everywhere we went with no problems at all (in fact, I think the people there were more comfortable with it than they are in North America). I think the key is getting comfortable yourself, getting a good position (not hunched over) and wearing the right clothing -- a good nursing bra and a loose-fitting top really helps. A top that you can pull up and slip the baby under is easier than a b___ton-down shirt, which ends up exposing more of your skin. If you hold the baby very close to you and cradle his head in the crook of your arm, people won't even notice anything. I saw a woman on the subway b___stfeeding her baby yesterday -- I thought, good for you!

nursing tank tops are great. they are like a regulat tank top but like a nursing bra. they also support the b___sts good and comfortable. kinda expensive thou. check it out at http://www.mimimaternity.com/Product.asp?Product_Id=28763015&MasterCategory_Id=6

Target.com has nursing tanks for about $17.

the target ones aren't very good quality... but that's just my 2 cents...

miranda is right about the first few weeks. If you're not comfortable with getting baby latched on and eating without pulling out your entire b___st, you might feel uncomfortable. Once you get the hang of it, it is no problem. I just turn a little away from other people to get the latch, then my shirt, arm and baby cover everything that I don't want everyone to see. The most trouble I have had is trying to get the b___st pad back in right without looking goofy. I'm not too concerned with others not feeling comfortable...they don't need to stare and if they don't, they probably won't even notice. I did take a bottle for baby yesterday, when we went to a college football game. It ended up working better because I didn't have a very comfortable place to sit to nurse and I ended up having two beers at the tailgate, so I felt better giving her a bottle anyway. As for bottles, we introduced it around 4 weeks and we're trying to give one to her each day to get her used to it. So far, not much luck. She'll suck a little, but mostly gum it. It gags her, too. My first daughter started regular bottle drinking when she started day care at 12 weeks and didn't have any problems with nipple confusion.