Quoted: I have my first children (twins) on the way. I plan to breast-feed, but I can't imagine doing so in public... I think I'd take it along in a bottle. Personally, I see breastfeeding as a time to bond with my children, and I don't think I'd very well accomplish that with all kinds of prudes and creeps staring at me. |
A few comments that I hope might help you... First I'm a guy, so these ideas are actually my wifes ideas and expiriences.
When switching between the real nipple and the rubber nipple some babies will not not eat from one or the other. IIRC it's called "nipple confussion". Since my wife was dead set on breast feeding for the health benefits to the baby and the great weight loss program for the mother she didn't take a chance and give our children bottles until she was ready to quit breastfeeding. Turns out they didn't like bottles and we moved right to sippy cups.
If you pump your milk to put it in a bottle we decided you actually ended up spending twice as long to feed the child. One feeding time to pump and another feeding time to actually feed. Time is too valuable with a new baby in the house to spend any time you don't need too feeding the baby.
As for feeding in public... My wife found if she wore a breastfeeding bra, a tank top and a button-up shirt over that that she typically just tied at the waist rather than actually buttoning it. She could very discretely tuck our sons head under her overshirt, lift the tank top and never expose a thing to the public during the entire process since the overshirt blocked any direct view.
To the folks complaining about women flopping a boob out at feeding time... I've never seen a woman actually flop a boob out in public in a way that exposed it to the view of the general public. I don't know if you folks that have are just associating with a different class of people than I've been exposed to or if you are suffering from Victorian era levels of sexual repression.