Breastfeeding my baby on Aldeburgh Beach on a chilly New Year's Day was a stand-out moment for me. Me and my daughter, Bluebelle, who was nearly four months at the time, were both wrapped up in so many layers, which made feeding a little challenging! It's such a fond memory. I fed her at the seaside many more times, and now I'm doing it all again with my son, Drew, who is 5 months old. I first fed him on the same seafront when he was less than two weeks old!

I pushed myself to try breastfeeding in public for the first time when my daughter was around a week old - I thought the earlier I got used to it, the more confident I'd be! It certainly has been the case as I've fed here, there and everywhere: on the train, bus, park bench, while walking around town, in cafes, restaurants, in the bath, at forest school, by the swimming pool.

I thought I'd feel more self-conscious, but I never did! It just feels so normal and natural. And I always smile at any other mama I see breastfeeding their baby, because they are doing amazingly.

Jazmine (@jazzabellediary), mum of two. 

It was the end of a long day in London and my husband, my 6-week-old baby Celine and I were on our way back home – we live about two hours away. We got on the Tube at the evening rush hour. It was busy and we had to stand up. Then, Celine started getting really upset. I knew she wanted a feed and I was trying to avoid doing it because it's hard enough keeping your own balance, never mind trying to do it while breastfeeding! But I was getting stressed and felt a lot of pressure to calm my baby. So I started to feed her. People just stared. Nobody said Do you want to sit down? I just had to kind of crack on with it. But it did shock me. Internally, I was so mad.

If Celine had been a little bit older, I probably wouldn't have got myself so flustered, but it wasn't easy to get the latch right while standing up in a moving Tube carriage. I breastfed my son for 18 months, and I'm still feeding Celine at a year. Other than that one time in London, I've only ever had positive experiences of breastfeeding in public. 

Samantha, mum of two.

I once needed to breastfeed my daughter during a photoshoot. The familiar apprehension that usually comes with nursing my daughter in public completely dissipated when the photographer made me feel safe and welcome to do so. But I think the strangest place I've breastfed in public is standing up, amongst the Christmas jumpers and festive jumpsuits in the back of my local Asda. My little one was screaming her head off and there was nowhere to sit or that offered any privacy, so I stood amongst some rather fetching velvet jumpsuits and fed her. No one disturbed us, expect someone who politely asked if they could grab one of the jumpsuits. But I was annoyed that no thought had been put into where someone could feed their baby in comfort.

Honestly, I don't always feel comfortable breastfeeding in public. I try to make sure my outfits are breastfeeding friendly, so I don't feel too exposed, but I often find myself breastfeeding in busy places, so I feel pressure to "get on with it", rather than cuddling and snuggling my little one as I would do at home.

I've found other parents and breastfeeding mothers to be so encouraging. I was tempted to breastfeed my little one in a bathroom at a focus group I attended (6-8 people around a table, very intimate although we were all strangers). But when I mentioned it, everyone at the table assured me I was fine to feed my baby at the table, because there was no way I'd be expected to eat my lunch in the loo!

Alicia Burnett, mum of three, midwife and founder of Black Baby Loss Awareness Week.  @midwife_alicia 

I'm currently breastfeeding our second child who is 11 months, after feeding our eldest son for 19 months. I've breastfed in so many random places, from the side of a ski piste to Miss Rabbits helicopter ride at Peppa Pig World! 

One of the most memorable was on our honeymoon when we drove with our 14 month old to the Dolomites. He really went off solid food , and had just started saying some words so would point at my boobs and say 'diss'. I fed him in so many stunning places looking over the mountains, it made me sit still for a few minutes and really take everything in. I equally enjoy breastfeeding on the sofa with a cup of tea!

I very quickly felt comfortable breastfeeding in public, and quickly gave up on the 'breastfeeding tops' as found them too much of a faff. I was most surprised about how nearly everyone I've met has been very supportive of me breastfeeding in public, I feel very lucky to have never had an experience of anyone making me feel uncomfortable.

Tori, mum of two. 

I was out on a sunny afternoon with my little toddler, supportive friends and their kids. I'd just had my second baby, who at this point had undiagnosed silent reflux. Despite the fact that the sun was shining, I was painfully sleep deprived and felt incredibly low with postnatal depression. But being able to feed my unsettled newborn at any point felt so liberating.

I got tangled up trying to get the latch right while using a breastfeeding cover. I felt relief when I threw the cover aside. All my three kids had tongue ties so in the early days, I had to really focus on their position and latch. Any early concern about being judged took a firm back seat quite quickly!

Breastfeeding in public brought out the mama bear in me! Historically I've struggled with people pleasing and over concern about what people might be thinking about me, but when it came to breastfeeding, I was ready to advocate for myself should anyone challenge that! It really nurtured my confidence, not just in feeding publically, but as a person!

Anna Mathur, mum of three and bestselling author of Mind Over Mother: Every mum's guide to worry and anxiety in the first years.

I was with my partner and we brought my daughter to a local football match. I first tried to breastfeed her in the toilet (gross but no other private option) but people kept banging on the door so I went back out and asked staff where I could breastfeed. They were perplexed and had clearly never been asked this before! So they kindly got me a chair and found me a private space by the entrance, in between the turnstiles. My daughter had a lovely feed and I appreciated them finding me somewhere! I think it's always worth asking and putting the issue back onto the venue as it's not your problem, it's theirs.

I had my daughter in the middle of a lockdown so didn't breastfeed in an indoor public place for the first 5 months. I'm not sure how breastfeeding my newborn in public would have been as we struggled with breastfeeding for at least the first 3 months - I was happy to be at home whilst learning. Once things opened up again after the lockdown I was a bit more confident breastfeeding in general and felt very comfortable feeding my baby anywhere.

Lydia, mum of one and infant feeding specialist. @nurturewithlydia

When it comes to breastfeeding in public, it would probably be easier to list the places I haven’t done it! I honestly think that 90% of England have seen my boobs at some point in the last six years. I’ve fed my babies during business meetings with an all-male team, during a podcast recording for my podcast Bun In The Oven, at the finish line of my local park run, whilst on stage talking at a fitness festival and at the Active Pregnancy Foundation Awards, and much more. I’m one of those people that forgets that seeing my boob isn’t normal for everyone else and gets it out as and when it’s needed without much effort to hide it. 

When my daughter Freya was born, after a traumatic birth, I struggled with postnatal anxiety. I nearly gave up on breastfeeding until an incredible local lactation consultant came to my house, gave me the biggest hug, told me I was doing great and singlehandedly saved my breastfeeding journey. After that there was no way I was going to hide my breastfeeding success, no matter where I was! I was feeding my baby and helping her grow big and strong, and anyone who thought negatively could do one.

I have honestly never had a strange look or a negative comment. I have had so many wonderful women and men offer to get me a glass of water, congratulate me on breastfeeding, tell me stories of how much they miss breastfeeding their babies (some 40-50 years ago), and even offer to go to the bar and order me a pint. I have not felt looked down on or judged, and if I have been, I’ve totally missed it because I’ve been too busy sniffing my babies’ heads and enjoying five minutes of peace and quiet.

Hollie Grant, mum of two and founder of The Bump Plan. 

When I 'said yes' to my wedding dress, I never imagined I'd be breastfeeding in it. I was supposed to get married in July 2020, but then Covid and my first baby happened instead. We pushed our wedding back by exactly a year, naively assuming it would be easy to have a wedding with an 11-week-old baby. Looking back, I've no idea how we pulled it off – or how I managed to do up my wedding dress!

The dressmaker made some last minute alternations so I could kind of shuffle the strap of the dress off my shoulder to breastfeed my newborn throughout the day. I used a pretty muslin but because of the style of the dress there wasn't really a way to do it discretely. Rather than get flustered, I just embraced it.

Because of Covid lockdowns, my wedding day was the first time I'd been in a large group of people since having my baby – the 'rule of 6' had only lifted a few weeks before. It was strange being the centre of attention (and having a photographer documenting me!) freshly postpartum and breastfeeding in public, but it's quite nice to look back at the photos now. 

Ellie, mum of 2.