Breastfeeding in Public-The First Time

This is a short story from client who learned something very important from her baby: Breastfeeding can happen anywhere and any time without any special gadgets or preparation.

The first few weeks of breastfeeding Bernie were very draining for me. I was constantly worried that he wasn’t getting enough, taking any unsatisfied looks from him personally and feeling isolated due to the long nursing sessions. I started taking Bernie for daily walks in my neighborhood within days of getting home from the hospital so at three weeks, I thought we could make it three miles around Green Lake without having to stop.   Although I was occasionally pumping, I had not prepared a bottle for this walk and instead fed him before we left and figured I’d feed him again as soon as we got home.  Bernie lasted one mile around the lake before he decided to make me and everyone around us know that he was hungry.  My mother-in-law was along for the walk. Had I been alone, I would have hid behind a tree, but she encouraged me to nurse him on a bench along the trail.

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