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Parenting

22nd Sep 2017

Bride criticised for telling mums to breastfeed in the bathroom

'We don't eat in bathrooms and neither should babies.'

Anna O'Rourke

A couple of newlyweds have ruffled a few feathers with their wedding day breastfeeding policy.

A note from the bride, shared on a US-based breastfeeding page on Facebook, has gone viral for appearing to shame new mums.

The note was circulated with a wedding invitation and reads

“To all our mommies who are breastfeeding, we are thinking of you.

“We are sensitive to the fact you may have to breastfeed during our event, therefore we have designated an appropriate place for you to feed your baby so you do not have to do so in public in front of our Family and Friends.

“For your convenience we are accommodating you with a comfortable and private area with chairs and baby blankets in the ladies room. We request that you use this area when you are breastfeeding. Thank you.”

The woman who shared the note is the wife of the best man at the wedding.

She explained that the couple tying the knot have expressed an issue with the woman’s breastfeeding before.

“We have had several arguments over ‘my’ breastfeeding ways and they have multiple times voiced that I need to go elsewhere to do that in ‘private!’,” she wrote.

The mother went on to say that she had offered to leave her baby with a friend who is also breastfeeding and have her nurse the child for the night “but apparently that wasn’t okay either.”

“No way in hell I will leave and nurse her in the bathroom (no matter how “nice” they make it!),” she went on.

“I don’t eat in the bathroom – I’m not feeding my child in there! I want to be ‘nice’ as possible but what should I do!?”

The photo shared on the breastfeeding page.

 

Members of the page were quick to share their suggestions of what the woman should do.

“I would leave your nursling with your friend and have your date night as intended. And then I would get super petty and while at the wedding “relocate” the chairs and ridiculous set up somewhere more public for my own amusement!”

“I’d leave kids with your friend and peace out after the cake. And the only reason I’d stay that long is because it’s cake.”

“Like honestly if I couldn’t bring my kids and breastfeed, my husband wouldn’t be a part of the wedding. It’s okay for people to get drunk and act dumb, but it’s not okay to breastfeed?”

“I wouldn’t attend. Why would I want to be around people who don’t respect me or my family. If someone doesn’t want breastfeeding at a wedding, it should be made an adult only event. If my child is with me and wants to breastfeed, she will do so freely and without restriction.”

“What kind of ‘friend’ expects you to feed your baby literally within 5 feet of others who are defecating?!?”

 

Where do you stand? Have you ever been asked to cover up or go somewhere else to breastfeed? Let us know in the Facebook comments or join the conversation on Twitter.