This is my first post on LACTNET. I have been subscribed for over a year, off and on -- mostly on. I hope I am posting in the correct way.

I also lead a support group. I often find myself sharing my experience with nursing in public. My daughters are now 20 and 26 y.o. My husband and I celebrated our 3rd anniversary when our daughter was only three months old. We took her with us out to eat. This was our first time nursing in public. I made sure and "tanked her up" before we left and she was asleep when we entered the restaurant. Of course, as soon as the waitress put my steak in front of me, she awakened and wanted to nurse. I had been practicing nursing discreetly at home (and knew I wouldn't be going into the bathroom to nurse) so I took a deep breath and proceeded to begin nursing her. I was soooo nervous! I looked around and no one seemed to notice what I was doing, but I still decided to go ahead and put a blanket over my shoulder -- just in case.

It wasn't until I did that that anyone noticed what I was doing. Then, we got the sideways glances and my husband even heard someone say, "I'll bet they're all hangy down and droopy."

I learned that day that covering up drew attention to what we were doing and it became a game to me to see how often when I nursed in public, I could do so without anyone knowing I was doing anything more than holding a sleeping baby. My husband even brought some buddies home one afternoon and one sat next to me on the couch while I was nursing and asked if he could hold my baby after she woke up. He was red-haired and I'll never forget seeing the red rise in his skin when he realized we were nursing. But, what an impression it made on those men that day. I've always hoped it influenced them positively when they had babies of their own.

Liane Varnes, WIC peer counselor, Cleveland, Ga. (who appreciates the collective wisdom available to me here and is eagerly soaking up each and every posting, hoping one day to be a wise one as well.)
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The miracle is this--the more we share, the more we have.
--Leonard Nimoy

May you live long, live strong, and live happy!




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