About Me
I firmly believe that every mother has the right to nurse her child wherever she sees fit, be it a bench in the mall or at the coffee shop down the street. That said, sometimes you just want a quiet place to feed your baby. Maybe you’re newly postpartum and still working on the mechanics of nursing. Maybe you have a distractible six-month-old who pops off at the slightest noise. Maybe you just prefer to nurse in private. For times like these, a nursing room is a wonderful place.
This blog lists nursing rooms, their locations and descriptions. Are the chairs comfy? Is it air conditioned? Is there a changing table? You get the idea. Send your local nursing rooms to me at nursingmom@gmail.com and I will post them here. Let me know if you want to be credited by name, or by “a reader.” Feel free to link to this page or to send it to any moms you know who might need it.
Check the Categories sidebar for your state or province. Click it to find posts about your local rooms. If your state or province isn’t there, it’s because no one has submitted any rooms yet.
Thanks.
nursingmom@gmail.com
September 17, 2006 at 11:45 am |
it is as natural as breathing, I applaud you…
peace
November 19, 2006 at 12:23 am |
Why is nursing discreetly offensive to people? That is SO weird! I mean I understand keeping the boob covered but seeing a woman nurse w/o showing anything? Why do people have a problem with that? Get an edumacation people!
November 19, 2006 at 8:21 pm |
Brooke, I don’t know why people are offended by the sight of a nursing mother. As I say above, I believe that women should nurse their babies wherever they feel comfortable. Some women, though, prefer to nurse in private for various reasons, and I offer this blog as a resource for their comfort, not for the comfort of the general public.
February 21, 2007 at 3:34 pm |
I just discovered your blog via Baby Bargains. What an awesome service you are doing here, I wish I had known about it sooner. I’m with Brooke, being offended by the sight of breastfeeding is ridiculous. For me, I do prefer somewhere private because quite frankly I’m too shy to be suddenly exposed in public by my wriggling baby boy. To the moms that do it in public, truly I give you props!
March 23, 2007 at 10:31 am |
This is a great site! I would like to add that I totally understand if one is a bit modest/shy or just doesn’t want to show that post partum flabby belly by NIP (nursing in public), LOL!
I want to share what I found to be the best thing for NIP (for me) and no, I don’t work for them or anything- I just love to spread the word when I find something fabulous
the syle of nursing shirt where there’s an empress waist and all you do is lift the *top* section of the shirt so nothing shows- not the kind w/ an underlayer where you fiddle with the opening by going b/t the layers at the bottom of the shirt & then feeling your way up to the nursing opening, but all you do is lift one side just under your breast & no one is the wiser!
like this (I have 4 of these shirts! I just discovered them now w/ my second baby): http://www.beyondmaternity.com/ClassWrap.php
and, just to show you that I have nothing to do w/ this company, I’ll give another link to the same style shirt, LOL- these are called Boob shirts (no joke): http://www.milkface.com/SearchResult.aspx?CategoryID=4
I hope this helps some mamas out!!
~laura in miami~
April 26, 2007 at 4:04 pm |
I, too, want to emphasize that NIP is a mother’s and baby’s right, but the great thing about nursing rooms is that they often have doors. If you have a nursing baby and a toddler or preschooler tagging along, a door gives you a secure place to nurse while containing an energetic child. It’s kind of hard to nurse on a park bench while chasing a two-year old. Thanks for this service. I will be featuring blog as an item in my RSS feed today, Breastfeeding Daily Tip and News.. It will run for two weeks.
April 26, 2007 at 7:04 pm |
Thanks, Matia! The more we can spread the word, the more submissions I get, and the more useful the site becomes. You make an excellent point about the difficulties of toddler wrangling and NIP simultaneously.
September 14, 2007 at 11:10 am |
I loved this site, it was very helpful. One tip for mothers who are breastfeeding is to find a quiet store in the mall and use their dressing room. I just ask if I can use their room and I never had someone saying no to me. It is not as nice as a nursing station, but it works when nothing else can be found or the family room is busy.
September 25, 2007 at 10:13 am |
Just stopping by to say hi again! Hope all is well! Keep up the good work!
October 19, 2007 at 3:10 pm |
Personally, I don’t find it shocking, or even sexual, to see a woman feeding her baby. If it were me though, I wouldn’t be comfortable. So nursing rooms are a really nice idea.
Keep up the great work!
November 8, 2007 at 9:02 am |
I’m trying to “sell” the idea of a nursing room in a private health clinic in Vietnam. Do you have any information on the size of nursing rooms (e.g. dimension?). Thanks so much!
November 8, 2007 at 10:17 pm |
Michelle, I’ve been in rooms that were as small as large closets. I think most nursing rooms are afterthoughts cobbled out of any space available. Larger rooms tend to include family bathrooms and changing areas as well. I don’t really have any dimensions to offer you, but I wish you luck in establishing a nursing room.
February 7, 2008 at 2:32 am |
it’s great to find this site!my daughter is now 3 years old.my 2-year breastfeeding time wasn’t a smooth sailing for there’s no such thing called nursing room here in my city (Solo, Indonesia).you can find some in Jakarta, but not here.i’m eager to promote the need of nursing room in Indonesia, especially in my city, Solo.please share descriptive information and pictures of nursing rooms from all over the world so that i can share them here.only few public places in Indonesia provide nursing rooms – this has to be changed!
February 16, 2008 at 2:29 pm |
Does anyone know of highway rest stops with good places for breast feeding? Most bathrooms I’ve seen along major highways, such as I-95, don’t even have a chair for a nursing mother to sit in while nursing. Perhaps I’ve just missed the rest stops that are more breast feeding friendly.
February 16, 2008 at 9:03 pm |
Christine9, I wish I knew! I just nursed in the car on my last road trip. Maybe other moms have some suggestions!
July 5, 2008 at 3:16 pm |
I have one to add- could not figure out how to add a post. In Chattanooga, TN, at the Creative Discovery Museum, they have a nursing room just outside the gift shop. There is a bathroom, a changing table and at least one chair. I did not breastfeed here, just changed a diaper, but I suppose the facility is adequate. At least it’s quiet, so you don’t have to try to feed a curious little cat in public, with a bunch of noisy kids constantly stealing her attention (and exposing your boobs to the masses!)
Also- I have to say, when faced with the option of breastfeeding in a rest area bathroom, I will hands-down choose to nurse in the comfort of my car, thank you very much. At least the germs in there are our own, I can listen to music, adjust the temp, and with tinted windows it’s quite private.
September 4, 2008 at 10:59 am |
Christine9- I find it easier to stop at the ‘old fashioned’ rest areas… the ones with just bathrooms and picnic tables… rather than the newer service plazas. At the new plazas, every square inch is devoted to retail. The older ones were designed for kids to run around and families to barbeque… plenty of room. So I just sit myself down at an out-of-the-way picnic table and nurse my baby. Then I put down a big blanket under a tree and let her play for an hour or so before strapping the poor kid back in the car seat.
February 5, 2009 at 10:22 am |
Love this site. I was think of doing this myself until I found this. I prefer a semi-private place to breastfeed primarily because my daughter gets very distracted. This is wonderful. I hope you keep it up even after your children are done breastfeeding! It’s a great service.
March 11, 2009 at 9:44 pm |
I have a very long family history of strong independent women who have absolutely no issue NIP. I walk around with a blanket fully covering me and I wear tube tops under my shirts that way I can expose my breast and not have to worry about my tummy or back giving me more blanket to cover baby. Sadly, I CONSTANTLY get shot glances of anger and disapproval as if I am walking around nude. It may be he fact that I live in the bible belt and women may see it as sexual. Men are constantly trying to “sneak a peek”. It is shameful what people while do just because my child is eating. I STILL don’t understand why it is such an issue. It almost drives me to anger but I am proud to flaunt that I have absolutely no issue NIP. And I don’t feel anyone should be victimized because their infant is hungry.
June 15, 2009 at 10:04 am |
Hi, i loved the fact you are supporting mothers just like me that priorise their babies. where i came from ( Brazil ) it’s so natural nursing babies wherever they ask for.
September 21, 2009 at 10:05 pm |
I love to breastfeed and I hate when I get weird looks even when I am covered up. I am doing something natural and feeding my baby. The guys are the usual one to act weird. Its like right now in the store me showing my boob and breastfeeding is as weird as seeing a guy walk in in a bikini but later that night they are at the bar starring at them. My boobs are used for their job and I am proud to say that I am a lacivist. Say what you want my baby is eating for FREE and getting healthy at the same time.