Breastfeeding in swimming pool

Yes, I did have one of those and it wasn't for lack of feeding.
The reasons were not apparent at the time (not for years, in fact).
The others were fine

Some babies are cry-ey babies. Its bad luck not lack of routine if you get one. And good luck if you dont. Some are just high maintenance for all sorts of reasons.
Yes I had one very high maintenance baby. But I never took her swimming until she was about a year old.

I don't see the problem with going into a changing room to feed the baby.
Ours are large and roomy with a bench to sit on.
I suppose nobody should have to, though.

It's not a question of what we grans would do/would have done. It's a question of being tolerant when someone does something that's essentially harmless but of which you disapprove. I'm more shocked at the vehemence of disapproval than I would be by the subject of the thread.

What a pile of intolerance!

I don’t disapprove, just don’t understand why anyone would want to feed their baby in the water. It’s not as clean as you’d think. As a regular swimmer, and having done a lifeguard course, there are some bugs which are not touched by chlorine. I have no problem swimming in a mother’s milk, but wouldn’t want my baby under 3 months old, swimming around in poo deposits which are on people’s bodies.

Mothers do not feed babies for fun or to shock other people so wherever or whenever they need to is fine by me.

It took me till my 5th baby to have the guts to breastfeed in public. Mother didn't help, she made me leave the room in my own house! So I made a point of breastfeeding at a restaurant with her with my 5th. An older lady stared death at me the entire time. I just laughed because she ruined her own lunch, she didnt have to look. Also, no one saw anything, with my top up a bit and my bra unhooked there was only nipple out which was completely covered by a baby x

Not all babies can cope with routines. Some can, some just can't. Those who've been lucky seem to think it's because they have established 'good' routines.

Why are women so critical of other's parenting? There are a lot of different ways to do it. Feeding on demand is equally, if not more, suitable for babies than routines.

Baggs makes a brilliant point with her 'suckling lambs' comment. In a similar vein, I was scolded by an old dear for hanging my toddler girl in the kerb for a pee. (She had a dress on, no bits on show from above.)

I was told I should take her to the public loo, half a mile away. I pointed out that she'd wet herself before we got there.

Next, I asked why she felt the need to comment. If it was my dog peeing, that would be fine!

There is no medical reason why babies can't go swimming soon after birth if parents want to take them.
In fact babies have an ability to control their breathing in water until about 6 months of age, so it's an excellent time to get them used to water before they become afraid.
Am at a loss to understand why people should fuss about babies in pools, or breastfeeding there

I can honestly say I cant see any good reason why a baby has to be fed IN the pool!

If baby needs feeding , just get out and feed them in the changing room, in the café, in the lounge . Why on earth would it be essential to feed the baby in the water?

My babies swum from 6 weeks, I took all our grandchildren from the same age , not one demanded to be fed IN the water.

I'm all for flexibility but common-sense needs to reign in my opinion.

But......if you have another older child in the pool you can't just get out, that's when it might be necessary to feed in the pool

Is it the strangeness of anything we are unfamiliar with that takes us older grans aback?
I envy the young mums their ease with the world.
I bf all 4 DC but it wouldn't have occurred to me to combine it with swimming.

I always needed a quiet, calm place and it was a special time to bond with my baby. One DS was very easily distracted by noises.
Life was definitely a slower pace in those days.

recently there has been discussion about being allowed to breastfeed in pools

Much common sense on this thread, particularly your post Yennifer at 16.32. Spot on. But actually, how many of us have observed women needing to feed their babies in a pool??? Very few I imagine.

And don't even get me going with the phrase 'allowed to breastfeed'.......

Yes I had one very high maintenance baby. But I never took her swimming until she was about a year old.
Thats fine too
But its also fine to bring a baby with no underlying health issues swimming after the 8wk check & first jabs. When parents go back to full time work at 9 or 12 months, that may be their only chance to try "baby swim" which is usually on weekday mornings

Lots of babyswim classes are for under 1s. If it was such a health hazard nobody would be insured to teach them!

Actually NanaK54 , yes you can . It’s not that difficult is it, you get out, your other child gets out, you go and do what’s necessary and you get back in .

Nanaandgrampy

Have you ever dealt with a tamtrumy child who doesn't want to leave the pool and a screaming infant at the same time? It is a very common scenario.

No, it is not that easy.

It is way easier for you to leave the pool area if you are offended at the sight of using the breasts for what they were created for

For the posters who recommend the mother not to breastfeed in the pool, do you also agree there is a minimum amount of fabric that a swimmer has to wear?

I have seen more swimmers showing a high % of skin (that I am sure you would consider indecent) than mothers breastfeeding in the pool

I breastfed all 3 of mine (in the last decade), and took them swimming every Sunday. Our local baths has a 'beach pool' for younger kids, so I could watch the older ones in the water, whilst I fed the baby on the loungers (using a towel to cover my cozzie, partly to make sure nothing was on show, but to also stop me getting cold) or sitting on the edge with my feet in the water (which kept me warmer: the beach pool was more the temperature of bath water!).

The kids loved the water, and wanted to spend more than an hour at the pool - too long for the baby, so once she'd had enough, I fed her and then she slept in the car seat at the poolside whilst the older 1 (or later, 2) could splash for a little while longer. No-one ever complained, some mums even gave me a nod & smile, as I was the first to do it, but then it became more common among other mums.

Grammaretto re the quiet calm place to bond with your baby

Yes, it was a lovely time, sitting comfortably, feeding the baby (with the recommended glass of water to sip!) and the times when the baby needed to be fed when we were out were not so relaxed, something which has improved since then thank goodness.

Although I don't envy today's young mums.

That sounds lovely villanova

Unfortunately our local swimming pool was nothing like that.
It also had the last letter missing from the signage so it was always known as T****n Poo.

My two and a half year old grandson has been taken to a babyswim class, (at a local school for children with additional needs), practically from birth. Parents (usually mothers, but not exclusively) get into the pool with baby and during the times I was observing I think most of the babies at one time or another had a short breastfeed. To be honest I've never given it a second's thought since, as to me it was completely unremarkable.

Personally I can't think of much worse than taking a baby to a swimming pool

My poor offspring didn't see much of anything in the first 6 months of their lives

They had swimming lessons when they were about 3

I wasn't in the pool.

Can't stand public pools

As for breastfeeding, as I said earlier I can't imagine it being the best of venues for your food but if that's what Mums want to do then so be it.

My youngest was taken swimming far earlier than the others and, funnily enough, she was older than the others to learn to swim. The others were all compettitive swimmers but she never was, although she was sporty.

I breastfed anywhere and everywhere - this is a couple of decades ago! - it was always better than the alternative, which was a screaming baby. And then you'd get disapproving glares for that. You can't win!
I absolutely support a woman feeding in a public area if she needs to. Most of us get so practiced we can do it without anyone even noticing. Or I certainly could.
However, I wouldn't have done it in a pool. Firsty for hygiene reasons - public pools are yucjy, hence the facilities to shower when you get out! and also because of the risk of the baby spitting up, or worse, doing its business after the feed, which often happens.
Had I been in this situation, I would've clambered out with bub and fed wrapped in my towel I think.

I don’t think, care or consider anyone when I’m breastfeeding. What can they do to me? I’m covered by all the laws. Luckily on baby number 3 I don’t give a damn what anyone says they’re not going to stop me.
Might squirt them in the face if I’m feeling brave.

Also I don’t have a feeding routine. That’s ridiculous.
The minute they have a cold, teething, stomach ache, growth spurt it’s all out the window.

As an almost 30 year old woman I don’t have a food schedule. Why would I impose that on an infant.