Is breastfeeding feeling a bit challenging? Help is here…

According to statistics, more babies are born in the second half of September and early October than at any other point of the year, suggesting more babies are likely to be conceived during the Christmas holidays. So lots of new mums will be breastfeeding for the first time this month. I’m delighted to be posting my first ‘guest blog’ on the subject of breastfeeding written by a lovely friend of mine. So sit yourself down, grab a cuppa and do keep reading. Here it is:

For every mother and baby, feeding is a unique time.  It can get tricky and can sometimes be challenging. Support in your own home is most likely to be effective because it offers a relaxed atmosphere – it is your space, and with no rush to make appointments.

The Breastfeeding Company is a new partnership between two friends who are passionate and professional about making feeding enjoyable. We formed The Breastfeeding Company in order to be able to offer support to you in the comfort of your own home with no time constraints, and to help you feel confident in your natural ability to care for your newborn. We provide a service combining best practice with real-life solutions in order to offer a truly personalised experience to you and your family.
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WHO WE ARE
Ruth is a mum of two and a midwife in her ‘spare’ time, along with running, and baking extraordinary delicacies. Nicola is a mum of three and a temporarily-not-practising midwife having 3 children under 4. She doesn’t run, or bake.

We have been friends since we met in 2006. After qualification, Ruth had her son, Logan, and then daughter, Martha, here in Edinburgh. Nicola went off to London shortly after Logan was born for a hospital job there, returning 5 years later with a husband and 2 children, Fergus and Ivy, who have recently been joined by baby Nora. We have both breastfed our children and like many, our journeys were at times difficult. We also formula-fed them during their lives too. Not only do we understand breastfeeding from a professional point of view we also understand the joy, frustrations and difficulties that breastfeeding a baby can bring as a mother.

We were both incredibly lucky that we had support from midwife friends who came on the days when the midwife wasn’t due to come, as even when you are an experienced midwife, it still helps to have external support to put things in a different perspective. Things look incredibly different when you haven’t been up all night trying to feed, wind, and change nappies in the dark!

WHAT WE DO
Problems with breastfeeding can unfortunately arise for many reasons, some simple to solve, some more complex. Research shows that breastfeeding is far more likely to be successful with support. Many new mums focus so much on the birth that feeding is slightly bypassed in preparation!

With The Breastfeeding Company, each session is tailored to you, in your own home with a cuppa! We are available from any time before your baby is born, through to weaning. We listen to your positives, challenges and concerns and offer practical research-based solutions. These sessions generally involve a chat and observation of your feeding journey so far. Whether you are exclusively breastfeeding, mixed feeding with formula, expressing, trying to increase milk supply, experiencing difficulty with any forms of feeding, we are there to support and encourage you along your journey, helping you make the best decisions for you and your baby.
We hear too many stories of how people have struggled with feeding, or felt overwhelmed, but would hate to think that people are battling through unnecessarily. Ultimately, it is your baby and your parenting journey – we do not judge you, we support you.
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Please do get in touch if you feel you would like some support.
More details can be found on our website www.thebreastfeedingcompany.co.uk
You can contact us on 0131 618 2900, or [email protected]
We are also on Facebook as The Breastfeeding Company. Twitter baffles us. We’re working on it!


If you would like to write a guest blog for me, please get in touch – email or call me on 07919 001491. I’m always interested in articles about fertility, pregnancy, complementary therapies, exercise, book reviews, product reviews, general health and well-being, local practitioners, groups, or classes, etc. My horizons are pretty broad so if you have something you’d like to write about, please do!

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