Lynne Featherstone responds...
I received a quick reponse from Lynne Featherstone that was pretty impressive. She said she appreciated my concerns and attached a letter she'd written to Nick Clegg.In it, she mentioned mothers giving...
View Article"Like trying to put a sock on a snake": Not everyone finds latching easy.
I recently supported a mum who had some initial struggles with latching. This is what breastfeeding supporters see every day. It’s normal for us to work with mums taking a little while to get the hang...
View ArticleWe don’t want a legal right to bloody ‘rest’. We want a legal right to give...
So I wrote to Lynne Featherstone, my MP, previously the government’s equalities minister. I said I had been concerned that the recent conversations about flexible parental leave had made no mention...
View ArticleSend a Mother's Day card to the minister
This is a statement from the charity Maternity Action:Support rights for breastfeeding mums: Send Minister JoSwinson a Mothers’ Day cardThe new Shared Parental Leave reforms allow mothers to share...
View ArticleReturning to work as a breastfeeding mum?
This post was originally written for http://www.nurturingmumsuk.com/ The first few weeks are often a blur for new mums. The learning curve is steep and you survive day to day – remembering to shower...
View ArticleIn defence of nipple shields
Again this week, I read a comment by a leading breastfeeding expert tutting over the use of nipple shields. Of course, this person has decades of experience. Of course, there are plenty of times when...
View ArticleLow Milk Supply 101
Forgive me for asking but... Do you REALLY have low milk supply? This is a very important place to start. Please bear with me. I don’t mean to doubt your situation and be annoying patronising lactation...
View ArticleThe first time you breastfeed.
Let’s imagine baby is due in a few weeks. You’ve probably talked quite a lot about your birth. You have a birth plan. You have some ideas of what you are aiming for. Now let’s take a few moments to...
View ArticleWeaning toddler Bob and pre-schooler Billie: how do you stop breastfeeding an...
Bob is 18 months. He is breastfeeding on demand. This usually means breastfeeding at least 6 times in 24 hours. Billie is 3 years old. She breastfeeds in the morning, at bedtime and usually once...
View ArticleBreastfeeding friendly cafés: all cafés should be friendly all the time to...
It's World Breastfeeding Week. Another café is offering a free drink to breastfeeding mums. And another one. And another one. I'm meant to think this is great. Surely if anyone would, it would be me?...
View ArticleHow to train as a Breastfeeding Counsellor
Do you think you might want to train as a breastfeeding counsellor? Here’s a quick quiz… 1. Do you find a woman breastfeeding in public puts you off your coffee because… (a) It’s a bit awkward...
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Having dinner out in a restaurant is the WORST thing you can do: new...
People ask, “Why don’t more people in the UK breastfeed until six months or beyond?” Obviously the reasons are complex. It’s often about people not being able to access the breastfeeding support they...
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Positions for breastfeeding 101
You’ll hear two different messages about positioning and attachment that seem to contradict each other. On the one hand, baby is filled with natural reflexes and you are too and you are both created...
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Shared parental leave: the boobs don't come off.
The government has commissioned a nifty graphic to help us understand shared parental leave. Pink and blue to represent male and female? I suppose it’s an easy shorthand. Levitating blue milk defying...
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“You’ve got so much milk! You’re so lucky!” “No, I’m bloody not”: oversupply,...
When we’re so used to new mums worrying about low milk supply, it’s easy to forget what life is like for women at the other end of the spectrum. Imagine a baby with the natural urge to come to the...
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When baldy doesn’t want your tit: newborn breast refusal
When you were preparing for this breastfeeding thing, you were worried it might hurt. Your sister-in-law worried you that your baby might feed ‘all the time’. You were concerned how you were going to...
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Low Milk Supply 101
Forgive me for asking but... Do you REALLY have low milk supply? This is a very important place to start. Please bear with me. I don’t mean to doubt your situation and be annoying patronising lactation...
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Expect at least 50% to end up on the floor: starting your baby on solid food,
The Department of Health and the Department of Health of every other industrialised country in the world recommends the introduction of solid food at around six months. You may hear ‘rumours’ that...
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A message for GPs: when a breastfeeding mother walks through your door...
by Emma Pickett, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant Crocheted breasts used by lactation consultants and breastfeeding supporters in conversations with mums. These were made by...
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