How to Change a Diaper in Public

Last Updated: May 6, 2021

Going on outings with your baby can be difficult. You need to care for the baby's needs but in completely different and often awkward scenarios. Whether you are going to your local retail park or the beach, changing your baby's diaper can be especially troublesome.

Part 1

Part 1 of 4:

Find a Suitable Place

1
Look out for Koala Baby Changing Stations. Some public places have Koala Baby Changing Stations, which pull out from walls, to change your baby's diaper on in restrooms. If this is the case, change the diaper on this.
2
Always keep a lookout for even the tiniest notion of a restroom sign. Some may be hard to spot, but getting the diaper changed inside a secluded space is of utmost importance, if available.

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3
Use the baby stroller, if there is one around. Lay the child back and make sure they can keep their feet out of the holes in the straps where the feet go for a few moments while you change their diaper.
4
Find a secluded space (that should be far away from any onlookers) where you can change the baby's diaper in peace without either of you being disturbed.
5
Lay the baby on the ground and change it there. The ground is the safest place to change their diaper, since, even if the child rolls, it's a solid surface that won't allow the child to roll/slide around.
6
Lay the baby on a bench (while keeping a hand and eye on them at all times) and change their diaper there. If possible, try to find a secluded bench relatively out of sight from where people are congregating, or at least make an effort to change the diaper only on an unoccupied bench.
7
Use your lap to change the child's diaper, or, lay them in your arms as if in the style of trying to rock them back and forth to sleep. When it comes time to replacing the diaper with a fresh one, you'll still need to lay them down, but it gets you a bit closer to achieving the task.
8
Change the baby's diaper in your car, if you discover all the other methods as being unsuitable to use. It may be difficult to do this, especially in small cars, but try to rest the baby on the back seat and open the back seat door fully so you can access the baby. With the baby resting on the car's back seat, change him/her as you would normally.

Part 2

Part 2 of 4:

Prepare the area

1
Place the baby with another suitable person while you prepare the area.
2
Grab out a changing pad or another absorbent pad (if one is available) and lay it down on the changing surface. If you have decided to change your child on the ground, you don't necessarily need a changing pad, though it's nice to have one available for use.
3
Due to the fact that gravel and cement/pavement have problems, you'll tend to want and need to lay something down, so that if your baby does move their head, they won't get scratched in the neck. It's not very pleasant trying to remove small sediments from the back of your babies neck, and the changing pad could have prevented that from happening.

Part 3

Part 3 of 4:

Perform the change

1
Recognize that the overall process to changing the diaper is the same, but the environment and places you can do it are going to be reduced or limited to certain things.
2
Take into consideration the changing method of a disposable diaper as opposed to cloth. Disposables take less time to change in places that would make it seem to show off your baby's nude body better. Provide yourself some leeway and use disposable diapers, though cloth does make a statement for itself too at times.
3
Try to cover the baby's parts as best as you can. You never know whose around.
4
Use plastic gloves when in public in case you can't wash your hands properly.

Part 4

Part 4 of 4:

Cleanup

1
Remove Plastic Gloves and Wipe your hands with another baby wipe.
2
Clean up after the mess you've made with their diaper change. Put the dirty diaper (if disposable) inside the nearest garbage pail, or (if cloth) inside a plastic Ziploc back which you must take back with you in your diaper bag.
- For all disposable diapers, do not try to just place it down next to wherever the change had taken place. Other customers and employees of stores shouldn't have to interact with this diaper. Also, if you changed it at the car, don't try to place it outside of your car. Either way, chances are that there is a trash can someplace nearby, or you can just as easily walk it to the nearest trash can area inside.
3
Place all the trash from the diaper into a plastic bag.
4
Take the plastic bag and either place it in your diaper bag (if there is no trash can nearby), or place it in the trash can.
5
Be careful to make sure that the trash can is able to hold household rubbish as the bag would become rubbish.
6
Throw out the bag once you arrive at the private home or someplace where it is okay to throw out the trash.

Community Q&A

Question

What if I am on a bus?

Community Answer

You can wait for the next bus stop and try to find a bathroom so you can change his/her diaper. Or if your infant is in a stroller, you can change it while covering it as much as you can with a blanket. Adding on to the second suggestion, try to find an area of the bus/row of seats that is not crowded.
Question

Is it weird or embarrassing to change a diaper in public areas such as at a restaurant or in hallways? My friend does it and I think she may be embarrassed by the people who monitor security cameras.

Community Answer

Aboslutely not, babies need changing regularly, and any parent should put the needs of their baby above the opinions of others. Furthermore, most people, especially if they have children themselves, will be understanding about this, and non-judgemental.
Question

What if I'm on a plane?

Kammyisawesome

Community Answer

For safety reasons, the best option would be to wait until the plane lands, but if you really have to, you could use the plane toilet.

Warnings

Never change a baby on a restaurant table or where food is being prepared. Would you like to eat in a food establishment when you have to endure a dirty diaper stench?

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When changing a diaper openly in public, beware for passers-by to disapprove or even say something or ask you to stop. Some people are ignorant that babies can't hold their bodily functions like you can, and these same people don't realize that the baby needs to be clean too and that keeping the baby clean is the right thing to-do! Tell these people off and explain this to them.

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