West Herts Breastfeeders

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Starting today the *Infant Feeding Team* at
West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust
invite you to their new *Milky Natters* group!! Details below, for pregnant and new mums (up to 28 days).

New Breastfeeding Drop-in for newborns at Hemel Hempstead Hospital antenatal clinic for babies still under Community Midwifery care up to 28 days of age. https://x.com/whhtmaternity/status/1710638860240052429?s=46&t=mLGS84-K824pdKNB_qZajg

Hello all, I hope you are having a nice Easter Break.
The Hemel meet ups are currently on hold whilst a venue is being confirmed (The Youth Booth has sadly closed the cafe). I am also on leave this week so will update when possible with new meet up details.

Important information from local Maternity Voices!

It has come to our attention that the news is incorrectly citing that we are not using entonox at Watford- this is not the case. We have introduced measures to ensure we are monitoring levels for safety and we are absolutely still enabling all women to use entonox.

This message came from the Head of Midwifery today.

If you have any concerns please feel free to get in touch or contact the hospital.

Happy birthing! 😊

Our next coffee morning is coming on Saturday 11th February Watford. Save the date!!

We are also thinking of holding some coffee mornings during the week at the hospital, would you attend?? If not please let us know what would suit you better.

Written by a long time friend of our group! Available to pre order in new year :-) Kathryn Stagg IBCLC - lactation consultant

Look what arrived in the post!

Very excited and slightly scared!

It will be available to preorder in the new year. I'll put the link up as soon as I have it. Watch this space!

Hello wonderful breastfeeders,
It's Katie here - Peer Supporter in Hemel re the Hemel Meet up for 14th Dec.
Due to the somewhat icy conditions on the paths surrounding the cafe we are postponing face to face the drop-in to next Tuesday 20th December - location TBC.
** I can however be available for Zoom Drop-ins on the 14th Dec so**:
from 10.30-11.10 please use - https://us04web.zoom.us/j/79018788332...

Meeting ID: 790 1878 8332
Passcode: LjL7vw
From 11.10-11.50 please use -
https://us04web.zoom.us/j/71850416850...
Meeting ID: 718 5041 6850
Passcode: 5WusFs
PLEASE do let me know if you intend to join these calls thank you 🙂

I will try to sort out the actual event pages - Facebook it seems is my actual nemesis as it deleted my update and backdated it to November which is pretty epic time-travel right there!

photo credit to: https://tittycitydesign.com/blogs/lets-talk-titties/3-ways-to-prepare-your-baby-for-daylight-saving-time

**Looking for participants** We're currently working behind the scenes on a very special campaign to help raise vital funds and awareness of our work in supplying donor milk to hospitals. Through this piece we hope to highlight the wonderful people who make this happen and what it means to the families we support. If you live in Hertfordshire/surrounding areas, received donor milk for your baby in hospital and would be interested in talking about your experience in a short video, we'd love to hear from you. Please drop us a message us through Facebook/Instagram for a chat and to find out more. Thank you!

Next meet up is this Wednesday 10.30-12 at The Youth Booth in The Queens Square, Adeyfield, Hemel.
Come along for Peer Supporter led drop in at the cafe, older children welcome as the cafe has a great soft play area, and amazing drinks and goodies for us too!
Stork and The Bees Slings and Nappies very own Crystal will also be there with some nappies for those interested in cloth nappies.

❤

It's World Breastfeeding Week again. This week was designed to protect and support breastfeeding. To highlight why we need to invest in mothers, families, babies and the future. Yet for many, this week sends a chill straight through their core. It makes them want to shout and throw things because breastfeeding certainly isn’t something to celebrate for them.

For far too many women, any mention of breastfeeding reminds them of pain, anxiety and a lack of support. It reminds them of their determination to do what had been promised to them as simple, enjoyable and the right way to feed their baby. Determination which slowly turned to desperation when it didn’t work for them.

It reminds mothers of the heartbreak they felt as they stopped breastfeeding before they were anywhere near ready – it wasn’t just about the promised health benefits but the feeling that their body wasn’t doing what it was meant to do, and the fact they just really wanted to do it.

But all this pain is actually the reason we continue. This week is not about telling everyone they should breastfeed... but more about insisting that those with power step up and actually do something about investing in making a better future for the next generation of women.

At the moment, rather than protecting breastfeeding, the government doesn’t invest properly in the services, support and expertise that would actually enable mothers to breastfeed – despite reports finding it could actually save the NHS money.

Instead, cuts to services take away essential volunteer groups and funding of breastfeeding specialists. What should be an easily fixable issue can turn turned into months of physical pain - and often a lifetime of continued emotional pain.

The simple truth is that we set women up to fail. Most breastfeeding problems are created by a society that is not breastfeeding friendly: the actions of others are responsible for poor breastfeeding rates and the trauma of mothers.

This week is about recognising that hurt and calling for change. I really wish we didn't have to have it. I certainly wish that not so many women and families were hurt by it.

Support for breastfeeding is essential and can come from the health service, community and workplace. There is an urgent need for education to improve and increase the capacity of those who support breastfeeding.

We invite you to share your experiences of support you've received with breastfeeding and your thoughts on how improve the support available. Add your comments below...

kicks off tomorrow!

The theme this year is 'Educate and Support'.

Make sure you are following these hashtags and our SM accounts to keep up to date throughout the week!

Very rewarding activity !

A rewarding opportunity has arisen to volunteer in the maternity and paediatric services West Hertfordshire Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

The role includes providing extra support to women and children during their hospital stay.

If you have a few hours to spare each week and would like to support families attending the maternity and paediatric services at Watford General, find out more here:

https://bit.ly/3zC4FjI

Hot weather and babies...

Skin to skin with a baby in this heat might feel a bit slippery, but your sweat helps to cool baby as well as you. I know, that's a bit gross...

You don't need to give an exclusively breastfed baby water - but please make sure YOU DRINK PLENTY.

Your breastfed baby will probably want to feed more often and you might see some green poo. This is because baby is taking lots of smaller feeds, which are made up of a higher water volume and a lower fat volume. As long as baby is happy and gaining weight well, it's not usually a concern.

If you are combination feeding you can offer extra breastfeeds if you'd like to.

The NHS does suggest small amounts of cooled boiled water for exclusively formula fed babies. However, remember that water will fill up a tummy, possibly reducing nutritional intake, and can cause electrolyte imbalance. Some sources recommend that you give extra feeds, rather than water.

If you're out and about, make sure baby is wearing a wide brimmed hat. Do NOT cover a pram / car seat etc, to keep the sun off, even with a thin cloth. This will raise the temperature inside the pram considerably. Instead, consider a parasol that clips on to the pram.

For nights - I remember being told that it's better to slightly underdress them than to overdress them because a cold baby or toddler will wake up - a hot one might keep sleeping. It's very likely that your little one needs nothing more than a nappy at the moment.

Remember that a flat sheet is about 0.2 - 0.5 togs, but it can be hard to find sleeping bags lighter than 1 tog! If you're using a sheet it should be tucked in though, and away from baby's face.

If you're using ice in front of a fan - keep it away from electrical devices because you don't really want to push water particles that way...

It's going to be a rubbish few nights. For all of us, whether we have tiny humans or not. Be kind and patient with yourself as well as your kiddos.

Wonderful meet up today, a space to chat and support in lovely cool surroundings The Youth Booth Community Hub and Coffee Shop
Looking forward to seeing you next time and remember you can always ask on the group any questions ☺️

It’s Breatfeeding Awareness Week!! Todays focus is Breastfeeding support and why it is so important. Have you had contact with one of our amazing volunteers?
We are up at Watford Maternity Unit as well as arranging drop in still catch ups in Rickmansworth and Hemel Hempstead. These are all free and support is provided by a trained Peer Supporter 🤱🏼.
Tell us if you’ve received support and how we can reach out to more in the future 😌😊

National Breastfeeding Week - Day 4

Today we're looking more at breastfeeding support.

Midwives, peer supporters, breastfeeding cafes, helplines, grandparents, friends - who helped when you were learning how to breastfeed?

Remember, we are here to support you with your breastfeeding journey - whatever that looks like for you. We can provide support via the National Breastfeeding Helpline UK, The Breastfeeding Network Drugs in Breastmilk information service or through local, peer support. Visit our website for more info!

When you are pregnant you will be asked what area/Trust you wish your maternity care to be under.
Here is more information about what Watford General Hospital (West Hertfordshire NHS Hospitals Trust) has to offer.

We are hiring!
A rewarding opportunity has arisen for a Volunteering Coordinator to look after our wonderful team of breastfeeding peer support volunteers and to introduce a team of neonatal parent peer support volunteers. The role will also include increasing volunteer support to the families attending across the maternity and paediatric services at Watford General hospital.

This is a fixed term 12 month post with the potential to extend. Find out more and apply here:
https://beta.jobs.nhs.uk/candidate/jobadvert/C9360-22-4850

West Herts Nhs Trust

Tea, cake and chat at our Hemel meet up 🥰

FUN FACT FRIDAY ABOUT MILK-MAKING. Did you know you grow more milk-making cells in your breasts with each pregnancy? So the more pregnancies you have, the more grapes (erhm.. I mean milk-making cells) you’ll have! 🍇
Were you a first time mom struggling with milk supply like me? I don’t think a day went by where I didn’t think about ways to at least keep up my supply.
Second time around? A BOUNTIFUL supply! Now there are many factors for this, but one is because the hormone changes that you go through in pregnancy help your body make more milk-making cells. So in addition to the ones you had from your last pregnancy, you’ll have some more!
Pretty neat huh? So if your breastfeeding journey didn’t work out the way you wanted to your first time, it likely won’t be the same the second time around (for many reasons, having more milk-making cells being one of them!) 🙌🏻
I’ll have way more information like this on my website, where the launch is coming in March. Be the first to know! Link in the bio or go to breastfeedingdietitian.com 🤱