Breastfeeding Awareness Week
Oh sorry, it’s not. I’ve blogged before about this but it’s worth re-iterating how sad it is that women feel they cannot feed in public (see our survey results below), yet at the same time the funding’s been pulled to help to normalise what’s essentially a perfectly normal and beneficial act. So this week, we ask you to give a moment’s thought to breastfeeding mums, help any friends who need help, and support the NCT and La Leche league in their efforts to support this sadly underfunded, undersupported area of new mothers’ lives. In the meantime, here’s a picture of Harry the youngest member of Peaks towers, having his own feed! 
Breastfeeding in Public: our survey speaks
So the NHS in its straitened times has decided to axe National Breastfeeding Week, scheduled for 19-25 June this year. This is particularly sad for us at Peaks towers as we know from our customers how tricky and challenging women still find breastfeeding in public (particularly in England we imagine given that the government has been forced to clarify the legal situation on the back of women being thrown out of pubs and buses for feeding in public – the irony of the excuse ‘because people are eating’ is not lost on us).
We commissioned a survey which many of you were good enough to take the time to fill out. The salient points were that over half of you felt just ok or not at all comfortable about feeding in public, with restaurants and pubs proving the most challenging. Fear of comments or looks from strangers was the number one obstacle, with fear of exposure second. Finally, and more encouragingly, almost 90% of you felt that you grew in confidence the more you did it (and luckily for Peaks, almost 90% of you felt you would definitely or probably be more confident if you were wearing discreet specially-designed clothing.
Keep nagging the government where you can and let’s put breastfeeding back on the agenda. Perhaps if Sam Cam had done it in public that might have helped! Please do comment on our Facebook page
