You are home from the hospital and breastfeeding is going well.  You are tired of being stuck at home and want to get out and about.  But wait – you might have to breastfeed in public!  How are you going to nurse without exposing yourself???

There are a variety of articles on the internet about how to nurse in public.  Several are listed in the Resource section below. There are ways to dress and use scarves, shawls, and nursing slings that allow you to nurse discreetly.  Pinterest gives an infinite variety of ways to do this – links are included in the Resource section below.

Many times, you don’t need to buy a thing – just look around your house.  Do you have a tank top and a t-shirt?  Put the tank top on first and the t-shirt over it.  When it is time to nurse, just pull up the t-shirt and pull down the tank top far enough to allow your baby to access your breast. Latch.  Voila – you are nursing discreetly – the t-shirt covers the top of your breast, the baby covers the breast, and the tank top covers your midriff.

A baby sling can be used to cover yourself while you nurse.  You just need a tank top.  When it is time to nurse, position baby, pull down top of tank top to expose breast, latch baby on.  The sling can cover you and baby while you are latching on.  The long end of the sling can drape across your chest if you want more coverage. Baby slings are easy to make.  See Resource section for instructions.

Do you have a long cotton scarf and a tank top?  Tie the ends of scarf together and make an infinity scarf.  Double it and put it around your neck.  When it is time to nurse, undo one of the circles, drape one side under your arm – like a sling. Baby goes inside. Pull tank top down to expose breast, latch baby on, tuck scarf around you and baby – you are covered!

If you want to spend money, there are a variety of nursing tops and dresses available for purchase, plus nursing scarves, shawls, etc.  See Resource section.

Resources:

Nursing in public (Breastfeeding Basics)

Can you give me some tips for discreet breastfeeding? (La Leche League International)

10 Steps to Breastfeeding in Public Without Fear (HuffPost)

Breastfeeding in Public (Kellymom)

Nursing scarves (Pinterest)

Nursing clothes (Pinterest)

How to make a baby sling (Wikihow)

How to make, tie, wear a baby sling (Pinterest)