How Many Really Cover with a Blanket/nursing Cover to Nurse in Public?

I always used a light blanket. Were mine the only babies that would stop for a moment, look around and bare my nipple to the world?? How is that discreet? at no age could my babies be counted on to keep their heads between my boob and the world.

I covered with a blanket , because I didn't want my child to pull up my shirt higher and show my boobs to the world. They are mine , the world does not need to see them.
And I don't need to see other women's boobs.

Why do you have to understand? I think it's less about understanding and more about respecting other people's comfort level for their own bodies, no matter if they choose to cover while breastfeeding or are able to breastfeed discretely with no cover. As I said in my post to the other thread, I was less worried about my breast showing and more worried about my tummy hanging out. There is no "right" way, only different ways. As long as babies are being fed, who cares?

I use a small lightweight nursing blanket and nurse publicly. Even if your shirt is pulled way down, we can still see your back, side, stomach, side boob and a lot of times your nipple itself when baby pulls off or you switch sides. Not every discreet, nursing mother realizes how much others see.

I have one friend who nurses in public without a cover, she is not even trying to be discreet. She will bare her full breasts for long periods of time while she is burping the baby, adjusting, digging through her diaper bag, while her baby pulls off and she is trying to reestablish a latch... I realize that is an extreme example, but things like that do happen to everyone. Some babies are more 'active' nursers than others as well, causing more exposure to mom, so it also depends on the baby. Also, if I'm sitting in a booth in a restaurant, or even in a dark movie theater, I don't need the blanket since people can't see what I'm doing anyways, but I always had a cover there just in case, but usually, I had the cover on.

Breastfeeding may be the most natural thing in the world, but so is peeing...

ALWAYS. Yes it is natural and not to be ashamed of and I am not ashamed but it is also personal and private. and should be done discreetly. And that was how I did it discreetly. Just because everyone knows what we are doing doen't mean we need to share it with the world. Just like sex is natural and not to be ashamed of but it is persoanl and private as well and not to be showcased in the world.

I used a receiving blanket to cover up with all four. I dont mind bf in public as long as it is covered. I dont want to see your boob and you should not want to see mine :)

I always did. It was a must for me. I felt more comfortable that way and thought it more modest.

Nope - I never cover up anymore. I might have at first, but I've been nursing for more than 2 years (2 babies in a row). I'm more embaressed to have someone see my stomach than a little boob at this point! Of course, I try to be discreet, but if someone sees something . . . oh well.

I think that whipping it out in public and sitting there with an exposed breast is indecent exposure no matter what is "going to" happen. I think that discretely feeding a child is a non issue though. I have almost always seen women in malls and other places that are open to the public use some sort of cover or used their clothing to cover the breast from public view.

One person I saw had her nipples and full breast exposed for several minutes though. She bared her bodice area by unbuttoning her shirt and peeling it back. The people in the restaurant were all staring. That was inappropriate to me.

If she had not had a baby in her lap she would have had the police called on her and if charged would have been a sex offenders crime with children being present. Think about that for a minute. She would have been a sex offender, on a permanent link somewhere for public viewing. She would have never been able to volunteer at her kids school, never worked in child care is she wanted to, might even had her child removed from the home, etc...all because she bared her breast openly. There cannot be a double standard no matter how much women feel they have the right to feed their child anywhere. Any other woman doing the same thing would be arrested and charged.

So, in my mind it is discretion that is key here. I don't care if you feed your baby in public, I do care if I see any hint of breast or nipple during your meal time though. So cover it up. Whether that is by using your clothing or by flipping a weighted cover over your shoulder so you can actually see the baby's face and engage them in conversation while they eat.

I always covered up. I have modesty issues. And a very large chest.....I was up in the H I J cup areas and felt better with a cover over it.

Yes I did...but not to make others comfortable...but for myself and my son is/was a lover of blankets, loved to be swaddled...

I am very modest and used a cover or would actually try to get to the most private area of a room/place to nurse.

My little one preferred that be our private quiet time. When there was too much going on she would stop nursing, pop her head up, and open her little eyes to see what was going on.

I used Bebe Au Lait covers and would do so again. In public, it made me confident enough to nurse out and about and that was a big benefit to my DD. I never had much of a problem with her pulling it off. It made nursing much more comfortable for me, a private person, and it allowed me to have a successful nursing relationship with my child.

I have friends who never used covers and that was fine, too. I respect both sides. Going without just wasn't something *I* could do. I had 3 covers (they do a sale periodically) and kept one tucked into our diaper bag and one in the wash. Wasn't much of an issue to take it along. It folded up into a pocket.

It boils down to some women are more private than others. The covers allow them to successfully nurse their children. I'm glad that there are nice covers so that women like me have the confidence to nurse their children anywhere and anytime. You don't have to understand it to respect it.

I've done both.
Depends on what I'm wearing/which bra I have on.
W/ my first, I was young and shy and usually went to the car if I needed to nurse. What a silly girl I was.
W/ my 2nd, I got a cover and used it all the time and everywhere. It made my DH more comfortable. It made me more comfortable. I would only nurse in public w/o my cover if I was wearing a nursing tank...but even still I didn't like my flabby tummy so exposed.

Can't say it bothers me one way or the other what other women prefer to do. :)

I used a nursing cover with all 3 of my boys, most of the time. If I forgot it, I could still manage, but I just preferred to have it. Can't really articulate why, just because.

Whether I did depended on what I was wearing. If it was something like you described they I wouldn't but sometimes I had on a top that just wouldn't cooperate so I used a very light blanket.

I think the thing that gets on people's nerves are the ones that whip it out to make sure everyone around you knows! you are nursing.

I nursed all three of mine. Currently nursing my 9 month old. I have always used a nursing cover I did not want anybody to see my boob or my flabby post baby belly. I could never get the hang out of just doing it discreetly I basically have to let 'em hang out and then latch my baby on so I use a cover. I can and have nursed almost anywhere but I am only confortable doing so with a cover. My baby won't nurse in public or with anything else going on anymore and a cover doesn't help she cries like I am torturing her if I try to feed her while there is anything else going on:( I nurse her in the car now while we go about our day at least every 4 hrs.

I always did cover with something light weight in public, but it had more to do with other peoples comfort levels than my own. I see nothing about seeing a baby nursing that should cause discomfort, but I also know that everybody feels that way. I would never want to intentionally cause anyone to be uncomfortable, so I did it out of courtesy.

I did not read the other responses, but I always covered up in public. When my oldest was 11 months I was out and did not have a blanket - not sure why, so I used my coat in place of a blanket.

it's been 8 years since I breast fed. but when I did in public - I was discreet and covered. I didn't pull my breast out for the world to see.

I used a lightweight blanket if I didn't have on a larger top that their heads could be under. I used it because I didn't think and still don't think that I need to make my point about nursing and breast feeding like that. I also made sure that the blanket was more like a tent so my kids didn't feel the need to pull it down...I also had a nursing poncho for the winter. Just because I breast fed and feel it's "natural" doesn't mean the whole world needs to see it.

I rarely nursed in public-public (my mum's house, for example, I don't consider "public"). Not out of any __________, but just because schedule wise, it rarely happened.

I had VERY little money when my son was an infant, so we weren't out and about a ton. I was typically at school (my son with my mum, or wherever), at my mum's house, or home. Most of my dear friends were overseas or in a different state, so I was rarely at other people's houses.

When we WERE out and about... I usually nursed in my car if he was hungry.... but that rarely happened, either. I'd time 'leaving home' to get the most done. Which meant feed & change before leaving, and home in less than 2 hours so he could eat and sleep. If I decided to squeak somehting extra in, I'd just feed him in my car.

One has to keep in mind... my son ate 20oz on average PER feeding, over the course of an hour. Then he had to be burped for 30-60 minutes. So nursing took a LONG time. I would just rather be at home with a good book than in some random place cooling my heels for 1.5-2 hours being bored out of my wits

On the very few occasions when I DID nurse in public... I always had burp cloths with me... which just flung over my shoulder. With my breasts the size they were (bigger than my head) there was NO SUCH THING as discretely nursing. It was 9 inches of bare breast over the top of his head.

Ditto... no such thing as nursing shirts or anything else made for shorter (I'm over 6 feet tall... most nursing clothes wouldn't even cover up my navel!), smaller breasted women. I had some super stretch tops that could pull down on either side, and the gi-huge-o nursing bra. But I'd have had to wear a men's XXXL shirt on TOP of all that to 'cover up'. Nope. I was both too hot, and too fat, to make myself hotter and fatter looking.

$2 cloth thrown over my should did double duty. Cover while nursing, and clothing protector for when he invariably spit up during burping. (Never a lot, he ate a TON but only ever lost a teaspoon or two).

I never used one because I always thought they brought MORE attention to what I was doing, and some of them look like mini circus tents!
I was discreet though, I had a few nursing tops that were great, and I sometimes used a small receiving blanket if I felt I needed any extra coverage :)

I've always got a sling with me when I'm out and about, and that does double duty as a cover without screaming HEY THERES A BABY NURSING UNDER HERE like the a nursing cover or recieving blanket does.

I never did, but I had many friends that while very pro bf really felt the need for privacy. I am not the most modest person - clothing style, very modest - nudity, could care less.

I'm so glad to say I never had the disapproving glances I had heard friends talk about, but I also didn't pay much attention. Could be I just went about my/our business.

I think of it as different styles and appreciating personal comfort.

I had a black wrap that I used when nursing in a public place, primarily so my little guy could focus. He has ALWAYS been very alert but HIGHLY distractable. If we were someplace busy, he would pop off and look around (leaving my discreetly exposed breast flapping in the wind!)

If I was someplace quiet, or there were just a few people around, I was more like you, just pulled a tank below and shirt above and no one could see wht was between with his head there.

My daughter just pulls the blankets off and fights me, so in the end I end up flashing everyone. I am just discrete keep my shirt low and I just don't worry about it. I have gotten good at it since she is my second.
I had one lady say something to me when I was nursing my son in the car when he was infant. She said she was glad I was doing it there and not in front of everyone. We were at a farmers market and I was parked behind her stand, needless to say I do not buy anything from her. I wasn't asking for her opinion or what I thought was her close mindedness.

I never covered and never cared. People don't cover their babies to feed them a bottle. Breastfeeding is the most natural thing in the world and if people are offended by it they don't need to look. Having said that, I wasn't an exhibitionist about it either. I was discreet like you and I think half the time no one even noticed. The ONE time I tried to cover was when we were having dinner with my MIL, andI knew she was uncomfortable with it. My baby flailed around and made a bigger scene with trying to get the blanket off than if we would have discreetly nursed without it.

But I will say that it doesn't bother me when people cover up. Some people themselves aren't comfortable nursing in public. What I didn't like was other people telling me that I should cover or take my baby into another room to nurse.

I made "Hooter Hiders" for nursing in public. These have a wire in the top so it juts out allowing me a view of the baby and good air flow. The main reason I used a cover was so that my nursing baby could concentrate on nursing and then perhaps drift off to sleep. In most public environments, they would get so distracted by what was going on around they may not have gotten the feed they needed and would have a more difficult time getting to sleep if I couldn't push them around in the stroller. Used them a lot, but not for other people's shyness about breasts. That I think people need to just get over.

I never used a nursing cover. Sometimes I used a blanket when I was in a public place. I never saw the need to spend money on something when a blanket or the "right" clothing was more than adequate. After he was 4 months old I would have to go to a private place because he was too distracted to nurse. Plus, I was usually not out all day long so I would just nurse him before we went out and then when we came home. After he was a year old I only nursed to soothe him in emergencies, at night, and at home.

I never used a cover, and was almost always comfortable...there was one incident where a family friend made me uncomfortable nursing in my own home by staring, but I truly believe that was/is HIS problem. Many people seem to be under the impression that a woman baring her chest is against the law. In MOST states that is simply untrue, I could walk around topless in downtown Columbus and it WOULD NOT be illegal in any sense. The whole 'men can bare their chests and women can not thing' is a gross double standard and I am very glad to live in a state where that double standard is not enforced.

Maybe having spent much of my youth in Europe is to blame, but I really do not understand this discomfort involving breasts.

I found that the cover made him/her too hot.... and uncomfortable. So I tried to use a shirt or something light to cover most of everything, but covering the baby's face was tough. People didn't seem to mind as I wasn't totally "hanging out". I was covered 99%!

I would do whatever I could, to not nurse in public ( I'm not opposed, just super-shy). The few times , I have had to nurse in public, I didn't use a cover. Like someone else said, there is no way my middle son would've been covered.

I would've been more comfortable if I had been covered up, but my son would never have any part of it. He even insisted on lifting my shirt and showing my hooters to the world!

I didn't use a cover to nurse in public. My daughter wouldn't have liked it. It is possible to nurse without showing anything with proper clothing and technique. I actually don't remember nursing that often in "public" because I stayed home a lot with my baby when little and later she was too distractable to nurse with people around.

I used a nursing cover when the babies were infants (under 2 months old) Mainly because I needed a nipple shield and latching could be difficult at times, babies head was smaller, etc. I couldn't always do all of that discreetly. Once the nipple shield went, so would the cover because the baby didn't tolerate it. Baby would spend more time batting at it than trying to nurse. i would still nurse as discreetly as possible and would face a wall or find a secluded corner - but I would never nurse in a bathroom or run out to a car or anything like that. I even learned to nurse discreetly in a carrier when we went to Disney world. i could stand in line and nurse and no one would know (My husband had even said - "I thought you needed to nurse the baby, why don't you go sit down and do it while we ride"...only I was already in the middle of nursing the baby and he didn't realize).

My SIL never covered her daughter while nursing and you honestly would never even think she was nursing a baby, the baby just laid there so calm and relaxed.

My babies were so fidgety while nursing that I simply could not nurse in public with out exposing myself and I just wasn't comfortable with that. So I pumped and bottle fed when I had to feed in public and nursed in private.

I never used one, but like you I was always discreet. If the public place had a lounge area in their ladies' room, I'd usually retreat there, moreso so I could be comfy on a couch!

I used a nursing cover for the first month or so, then just figured out how to keep my shirt over everything while the boob was out.

Did with my first when I first started, but didn't need to when I got better at it. I think modesty is important, but if you don't need to use a cover, that's cool.

I have done what you do with all three of my children...none of them liked the blanket and neither did I. And I have had several people surprised to find out I was nursing right in front of them too, though other times I have not been so modest. I assume other women are using a blanket to feel more comfortable with pulling their boob out b/c no matter how skilled you are occasionally a little more gets shown than you want even just for split second...I am sure not all babies mind the blanket, my neice used to sleep with a blanket covering her face.

I used a cover with my 1st when I was out and with my 2nd till he was about 7-8mo old then I stopped. I used it for my privacy and for others around me. Then I just got to the point that I didn't care. I nurse discreetly and usually nobody even knows I'm doing it. I'm like you, I where a nursing tank under another shirt and that shirt is usually pulled down to his face. We were at Universal Studios recently and I had a lady lean in close to him (while he was nursing) and say "don't tell me he actually fell asleep in there!". She had no idea :) When he does pop off from distraction, I get the shirt to cover me pretty quickly.

I cover up...not to cover my baby or my breast but to cover my belly fat. No one wants to see that! Usually I wear a skin tight tank top underneath that I can pull down and pop the baby on and have my regular shirt up so you can't really see much. I assume people are covering their bellies...but maybe that's just me. Lol
L.

Never used anything like that. A wide shirt usually was good enough. Half the time people didn't even realize I was nursing. At first I was a bit embarrassed about nursing in public, but it was so much more convenient than having to carry bottles around all the time. No-one ever said anything to me.

I did the cover up when I had babies and hated it but felt like society or those I was around demanded it. The baby hated it and so did I. I just don't understand why women are treated like they have to hide or cover when as soon as they wean the baby they want to show as much breast as they can. Not all of us, I don't mean that, I mean in society and on TV, etc. I think it's a shame as it keeps many from even breast feeding in the first place I think. Of course it should be done modestly wherever and however.

Never did with my first. Did most of the time early on with my second, just because I felt I was out with her earlier when neither of us quite had the hang of it. It was hard to latch her on quickly and discreetly when she was itty bitty, and I just didn't want to worry about it. Now that she is much older, I rarely cover because we can be more discreet. Also, I'm trying to gradually get her used to only nursing at home with the overall intention to wean her completely in the next few months, so it's less of an issue anyway.

Never covered, nursing shirts have those slilts, or else I would wear a button shirt with a nursing bra. The only thing that could possibly ever be seen for seconds and only if someone was staring would be my nipple. Later I bought a sling and my babies both nursed while I wore them, even at a party once or while taking a walk. I loved that sling, and as they got older they would sit up in it until they were too heavy to carry or wanted to walk. I am from the Netherlands where men and women will go topless on beaches or even strip down naked on the beach to put on bathingsuits.