In Japan, every single public place I have been to that has a restroom also has a separate room entirely for nursing - this ranges from small airports to shopping malls to the 100 Yen Store (the Dollar Store). In general I think women here are much more shy & conservative and having the nursing/diapering rooms I think is a direct reflection of that. So I say, if the public is really that uncomfortable, public places should have nursing rooms just like they have handicapped entrances and handicapped accessible tables. I breastfed my first child, and I plan to with this child as well. I'll always take the private area first (anyone notice that most public toilets don't have a lid you can fold down to sit on anyway?!) - be it a dressing room or the corner of a table. We have "smoking areas" and that is dangerous to my health, and I can smell it all the way across the room. My policy is if I walk in and it smells, I just don't go there. For those who are offended, ask for another table or go somewhere else.
In Sweden in my junior class the question wasn't who has had sex, it's who HASN'T had sex (two of 28). And there wasn't even a question as to whether condoms were used or not, it was automatically expected. To the extent of my knowledge they did not pass out condoms by the time kids entered high school - they passed them out in junior high. By high school it's expected that you can go out and get your own. My host mother once told me if I wanted to invite a guy-friend overnight I could (I was 16), and I nearly had a heart attack. But I know if I wanted to have sex I could have gone to her to talk about it, ask about protection, or anything. My sister got pregnant at 14 back in the States - she was too scared to ask my mother about condoms or sex because she was afraid she'd get in trouble. How many babies end up aborted or dumped because the child is too scared of the parents?? It's gonna happen, it's not like you can honestly believe that having condoms available is going to give a teenager a "new" idea - YEAH RIGHT, in our dreams. I personally would rather my child come to me for a condom or birth control than have my child come to me four or five months pregnant and ask me what to do about it now.
There's a major gap between parents and kids right now, with a lot of parents in denial or putting their head in the sand and hoping for the best - totally forgetting how they and their friends were at their children's age. Too many kids looking for some human contact, some understanding, in the wrong places. Too many kids totally unaware of the likelyhood of contracting an STD, or having the relationship end whether they put out or not. Too many kids thinking their self-worth equals how many people like them. Wouldn't it be nice if we as parents could push our fears to the side and meet our child where their needs and concerns actually are, as opposed to where we THINK they should be?
I thought it was a little ironic how in the first and last issues, the people who were against breastfeeding in public and had a problem with parents not properly taking care of their children were people who didn't have children! Everyone's got opinions, but it's like my husband telling me how to deal with my period or mood swings during pregnancy. You simply don't have much credit among parents in these topics unless you've "been there"!
PS...MILITARY WIVES LOVE DR. PHIL!!!
Dr. Phil and his guests strike up heated conversations as they debate the latest hot topics. Should women give up their right to breastfeed their babies in public so other people don't feel uncomfortable? Will passing out condoms in schools prevent unwanted pregnancies or just send the message to kids that it's OK to have sex? And, is it acceptable for others to discipline your kids if they see them acting out in public, or should they just mind their own business? Dr. Phil weighs in on these controversial subjects. Share your thoughts, join the discussion.
