Talk about a hairy situation! Stylists at a salon got themselves in a pickle recently when they told breastfeeding moms they'd have to cover up ... or they wouldn't snip their hair. Cue angry mom protest, and presto, change-o, there's been a rule change. Haircuts for everyone! Even nursing moms!
Yeeeech! Now hold up, just a second. This is not an "OMG, boooobies, so grosssss" rant.
I'm fully supportive of breastfeeding in public. It's just a baby eating, after all! That said, I don't think women should breastfeed everywhere.
Sure, we have the right to do so, but as it is with many rights, this one comes with certain responsibilities. First, and foremost, we need to keep our babies safe and comfortable. And while one might argue that a hungry baby is an uncomfortable one, hunger pangs are far from the worst a baby can encounter.
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Just think about the last time you went in for a haircut. What happened? The stylist draped a cape over you to protect you from getting hair all over your clothes, right? Itchy, uncomfortable hair.
Now consider a mother who is nursing her baby -- uncovered -- in that chair while the stylist snips, snips, snips away. Where is all that hair going? That's right -- right on the uncovered baby. In her face. In her ears. In her mouth.
Itchy, uncomfortable hair.
Ewwww! Poor kid!
Oh, and it gets worse. Ever had a stylist drop her scissors on you? I have.
Imagine her dropping them ... in a baby's eye.
Breastfeeding uncovered while you're getting your hair done might be the ultimate in mommy multitasking, but it's bound to be rather unpleasant for the baby.
This is where we separate the right to breastfeed from the necessity to do so in all situations. Is it really necessary that you feed your baby while getting your hair done? Couldn't you do it before? Or after? We aren't talking about something that can't be rescheduled here. It's a haircut, not surgery.
Yes, protecting the right to nurse in public is important for moms and babies alike. But let's use a little common sense ...
Moms, you don't always need to multitask. Sometimes you need to just give in and give your babies your full attention.
Would you breastfeed in the hairdresser's chair?
Image via Marc Samson/Flickr