Church is one of those really hard places to breastfeed for me (church sort of screams modesty to me).  I generally sit in the crying room with my daughter (throughout) because I find it hard to manipulate her (and all her things!) out of the "main" area quickly.  But you do make an excellent point - why not feed her there (esp. if I use a wrap, so I'm not exposing anything)? 

Good for you!

My Baby Sweetness

www.mybabysweetness.blogspot.com

As a former breastfeeding mother and HUGE supporter of breastfeeding I applaud your response to the young woman. I think as nursing mothers all of us at one time or another will be drawn into the debate, especially here in the States, where there is still such a stigma against public nursing. Before I began breastfeeding my son I was convinced that I would not want to nurse in public, but that idea went completely out the window when I realized how often I would be forced to nurse in the car (during the summer, and really? Should I have to nurse in the car? I think not) if I chose not to nurse in public. It was just such a natural act to me. I fell into it easily (I know some of us don't) and didn't see the problem. But of course there were the times I had to defend my choice. Who doesn't, right? Anyway, I loved your response.

http://mami2alittlebalkan.wordpress.com/

Thank you both for your comments... There are so few people I know that will jump into that type of a conversation on the pro-breastfeeding in public side that when someone comments and says they feel the same way I do, it is extremely validating.

I find it so hard to believe that people are so uncomfortable with the subjects of not only breastfeeding in public, but also breastfeeding period. Considering that this is how I feed my child it tends to be a big part of my daily conversation and I sometimes forget that some people aren't comfortable with it. Not that I would censor myself, but I am often surprised by the way the look on their face changes from that of comfort to that of disgust or shame or embarrassment.

In terms of support, particularly early support when we're still trying to figure this all out, I didn't have much. I asked my husband if he was okay with my decision to breastfeed and he shrugged and told me, "Whatever you wanna do. Sure." That was the extent of support I received from him.

When we had to stay in the hospital for almost 2 weeks because of jaundice that just would not go away, each time we were readmitted her pediatrician would suspend breastfeeding for 12 hours to see if it was being caused by breast milk, or if it was a deeper issue with Kairi's liver that we would have to deal with. He determined that it was in fact breastfeeding jaundice and kept her for observation but asked that I continue to breastfeed because he agreed that breast is best. My mother on the other hand told me that I was making my daughter sick by forcing her to eat something that she was clearly allergic to.

Several people asked me to quit breastfeeding right out of the gate. Rather than become discouraged (or rather, discouraged enough to quit) I turned their lack of faith into a sort of self support. "I'll show them," I told myself. And I've since proved them all wrong.

But unfortunately some women who are making attempts at breastfeeding could easily become discouraged by the kinds of comments I've received, including those by the girl in my post. If it's something that is so "dirty" or "shameful" that we should be shunned from doing it in the house of God, then could it really be the best thing to do for our children?

While the answer is obvious to me and to you, it often times isn't to a lot of women just starting out. I don't see these types of comments being hushed or silenced any time soon, but I would like to do my part to educate those around me of the joys of breastfeeding as well as the health benefits for both mother and child. Thanks for reading.

(And I've basically written another post in my comments. Go me. HAHA)