This year I've officially been doulaing for 16 years. And just like my real 16th year, it was full of love, adventure, awkwardness and a looking forward with excitement to what the future brings. There has been joy and heartbreak, beginnings and endings, and most importantly, this year has been Continue Reading
Breastfeeding Support? What’s THAT?
What does support mean? When it comes to breastfeeding your baby, the dictionary definition may, or may not be too helpful: Support /səˈpɔːt/ verb 1. bear all or part of the weight of; hold up. 2. give assistance to, especially financially. noun 1. a thing that bears the weight of Continue Reading
6 Visions of Breastfeeding Support for Cinderella
As brand new breastfeeding mothers, we can sometimes feel like Cinderella, sitting lonely in the kitchen while everyone else is having fun, feeling like we have been tasked with the impossible. But just like Cinderella, you are not alone. Even without her mother to care for her, Cinders had others Continue Reading
My Doula Year 2018
I started the year with twins. Sitting in the quiet, dark hours with a mother as she feeds one, and then the other. I hold a baby, pat and settle them both. Whisper reassurance into the gloaming. Christmas lights still twinkle outside the window. I doze on the sofa til daybreak. Next Continue Reading
Breastfeeding Celebration? The Lights Go Out in Blackpool
Today's post is from Zoe Walsh, a doula and trainee Breastfeeding Counsellor in Blackpool who is joining us to speak out against the cuts to breastfeeding support during 'Breastfeeding Celebration Week'. If, like us, you feel there really isn't much to celebrate (other than the amazing families who Continue Reading
Breastfeeding Celebration Week? Kent Speaks Out
Today's post is from Anna Le Grange, an IBCLC in Kent who is joining us to speak out against the cuts to breastfeeding support during 'Breastfeeding Celebration Week'. If, like us, you feel there really isn't much to celebrate (other than the amazing families who breastfeed in spite of the lack of Continue Reading
Breastfeeding: How Society Makes a Difference
This is a guest post from my lovely friend and doula trainee, Rosie Spampinato. I have encouraged her to write this post to illustrate the power that society has on our breastfeeding journeys. We do not nurse in a vacuum, but are prey to all the influences, good and bad, that society can throw at Continue Reading
My Doula Year: banging the drum for justice
It's been quite a year. Not just for me, but for the wider birth world. This year heralded the beginnings of the implementation of the Better Births report. Continuity of Carer is really on the horizon - for those not in the know, that means the prospect of all women being able to get to know a Continue Reading
Myth Busting, Booby Traps and Breastfeeding Success
As a Breastfeeding Counsellor and Doula, I spend a lot of time talking to women (and men) about breastfeeding. I also hang out online rather a lot, reading forums and blogs about my favourite subject. Here are a few of the statements about infant feeding I hear most…and my thoughts in response. Continue Reading
Breathe, They Said
Breathe, they said, as I was born. Lungs inflating, first rush streaming in, stinging my insides. Cough, splutter, wail in fury, as I struggle to catch my first breath. Breathe, they said, as I am rubbed dry, every nerve ending screaming, eyes screwed shut, Fists tight, I am fighting. A familiar Continue Reading