I recently wrote a post about some of the things that are said to parents to cajole, manipulate or threaten them into accepting interventions. This is a widespread problem but the last thing I would want is for my readers to think that I have an unrelentingly negative view and experience of the way Continue Reading
Inducements For Induction: is it really a choice when push comes to shove?
INDUCE: verb gerund or present participle: inducing succeed in persuading or leading (someone) to do something. "the pickets induced many workers to stay away" Of course, the definition we usually use in maternity care is: bring about or give rise to. "none of Continue Reading
When We Let the Ad Men Decide the Health Of Our Children…
Cow & Gate, one of the UK's biggest baby and toddler brands, has shifted its entire consumer PR work to Frank PR and launched a major campaign promoting toddler nutrition. So said the press release back in 2016 on PR Week And so the PR machine cranked into action; millions spent on 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
Women’s Voices
Where to, Love? said the taxi driver. Up with the lark, ain't yer? Station, please. Tickets please, next stop, Kings Cross. 30p for a wee, then mind the gap, tube to Baker Street. Past tourists gathering outside 221b Leafy streets and round the bend, the Royal College. The rarefied air and Continue Reading
Interview with Paula Cleary, Mother-of-five, Doula and founder of Birthplace Matters
This latest offering in my irregular series of guest posts is this interview with the inspiring Paula Cleary. Doula, Birth Activist and Founder of Birthplace Matters, Paula manages to find time in between home educating five children to support birthing mothers and raise awareness of the disparities Continue Reading
Emma’s positive birth story: Hands off my baby!
This is a guest post, kindly donated by Emma, who decided to decline the kind offer of induction and await spontaneous labour. She does not offer this story to persuade you to do the same, should your pregnancy proceed past your 'due date', but to counter-balance some of the pressure society can put Continue Reading
Yo No Soy Una Bruja: or Nobody Expects The Spanish Inquisition
Yes, you heard right; I am not a witch, nor any kind of cannibal. Or part of a sect. Neither am I a fraudulent con-artist out to sting you out of your hard-earned cash or break up your family by undermining your relationship. I haven't got a 3rd nipple. Or warts. The only love potion I could mix Continue Reading
Hypernatraemia in newborns: A study
"Neonatal hypernatraemia at this level, in this population, is strongly associated with weight loss. It occurs almost exclusively after attempts to initiate breast feeding, occurs uncommonly and does not appear to be associated with serious short term morbidities, beyond admission to Continue Reading
Books, Links and Resources
Reading, researching, learning and sharing.... I'll be adding in titles of books that may be useful here and links to their websites, if possible. The Food of Love' and 'Bump', by Kate Evans http://www.thefoodoflove.org/ Weblinks Breastfeeding Links Coping with Continue Reading