Breastfeeding mothers have it much better today than they have in past years. The overt support of organizations like UNICEF and the World Health Organization has led to a public that is at least somewhat educated about the benefits of breastfeeding. While there still remains some negative stigma to breastfeeding in public, people tend to be more understanding about it that they were a few years ago.

Still, breastfeeding mothers often find that they face an uphill battle doing something which should be considered one of the most natural things on earth. It can be very tempting to switch to bottle feeding, at least in public. However, we all know that breastfeeding is best for our babies, offering them nutrients which simply can’t be duplicated in any infant formula. To stay encouraged and focused with breastfeeding, many new mothers find it helpful to be able to network with other breastfeeding moms for support.

If you make the healthy choice to breastfeed your baby, you should connect with other mothers who have breastfed or are breastfeeding their babies. This can be done informally if you have enough friends or relatives who have breastfed their babies, or through more formal breastfeeding support groups. Organizations such as La Leche League International have support groups and breastfeeding educational groups in just about every town large enough to have a hospital.

You should never feel ashamed to breastfeed your baby, either privately or in public. Until quite recently in the overall scheme of things, all babies were breastfed. And if you’ve ever dealt with a hungry baby, you know that when baby needs to eat, baby needs to eat, whether you are in a private place or not.

Unfortunately, some people have not been educated on the importance of breastfeeding, and may feel uncomfortable with moms breastfeeding in public. While we all want to be as sensitive as we can to others’ feelings, our babies’ need to eat trumps any embarrassment they may be feeling.

These days, it is becoming much more common to see mothers breastfeeding in public. Perhaps through continued public education and support organizations, more and more mothers will feel comfortable with feeding their babies naturally.

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