A mother is questioning herself after her husband told her it was “weird” for her to breastfeed their baby in front of their older child.
In a post shared on Reddit, the original poster (OP) explained that she has been nursing her baby while her 8-year-old son is in the room. At first, she wrote, her son was curious and “started to stare,” so she answered his questions, explained what she was doing, and told him not to stare. After that, she said, he seemed satisfied and stopped paying attention to it.
Recently, though, OP said her husband has “taken issue” with their older son being present during feedings. He has started asking their son to leave the room when she nurses so she can “have privacy.”
OP said she told her husband that she’s comfortable breastfeeding with their son around and does it often, but her husband insists that, at 8 years old, their son is at an age where it feels “weird” to him. Now she’s unsure whether she’s crossing a line or doing something inappropriate.
In the comments, many people reassured her that she isn’t doing anything wrong — and that the discomfort seems to be coming from her husband, not the situation itself.
One commenter wrote that OP handled things exactly as she should have with her son:
“No, it’s not. You taught your son exactly how to behave. Your husband is the one making it weird.”
In the same thread, another person added that the problem is sexualizing something normal:
“Literally! Using breasts for what they’re made for is not inappropriate. Sexualizing it is inappropriate.”
Another responder said they were more concerned about the message the husband is sending to their son than about the breastfeeding itself.
They wrote that OP is simply caring for her baby in a completely natural way:
“No, it’s not weird. You are literally taking care of your baby the way nature/God/whatever designed you to do this. It’s entirely appropriate. It’s also a good chance to teach your son about what’s normal and appropriate behavior.”
They added that exposure to breastfeeding now could shape how he views it later in life:
“Chances are he’ll encounter breastfeeding at some point, whether in public or with a partner, and he will learn from the example you’re setting. Should he judge the woman (or his partner) for caring for her child? Or should he understand it’s a normal part of existence and not a big deal to encounter?”
A third commenter agreed, saying that as long as OP is open with her son and treats breastfeeding as ordinary, he will, too:
“It’s entirely appropriate. If you answer his questions, and treat it like it’s a normal, natural way to feed a baby, that’s how your son will view it. No reason to make it weird, because it’s not weird.”
