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Last week in my online breastfeeding class a mother-to-be asked “ What if the midwife in the hospital wants me to give the baby formula and I don’t want to? “ Other mothers in my antenatal class talk about stories they’ve heard about feeling pressured to give formula to their breastfeeding newborn. They worry if […]

Hi Nicola – just thought I’d send you this card Ciaran made me today. This is one of my proudest achievements .. today I’m breastfeeding my baby for 6 months.” I received the above message by text last Friday. I think women can be at their most amazing when they have a baby and things […]

Join Nicola with  Sinead oMoore of  @everymum_ie    Jen Hogan Journalist @mama_tude  Cathy Monaghan  of @weaning.ie and Neonatologist Dr Anne Doolan Coombe Womens Hospital at a very special event to raise money for PumpPal Jan Martins  @pumppaljan – support kits for breastfeeding mums feeding their hospitalised babies ?? PumpPal is a charity started by Jan Martin after her son had cardiac surgery. She […]

Back in 2008, after I had birthed my 4th baby, the midwives asked me what I would like to do with my placenta? To be completely honest, it was not something I had thought about. It had just disappeared after the other births and I didn’t pay much attention to it. That said, if I’m […]

This week, I am delighted to welcome Sonya Quinn onto the page for her guest blog on antenatal expressing. Sonya is a breastfeeding peer supporter and mum of 2. There is a lot of talk about antenatal expressing these days, so I asked Sonya if she could put together a simple guide for expectant mothers […]

What do you wish you’d known about breastfeeding before you started? This week, I want to explore some of the key learnings women have shared with me retrospectively about their breastfeeding experience. Often, with breastfeeding, before you start it is a case of not knowing what you don’t know. Luckily, other women can share their […]

Like most people, I am really worried that too many babies are having frenotomies (the procedure during which tongue ties are divided).   This niggling concern has  remained as I saw increasing numbers of babies having divisions without due process. By that I mean, not opting for division before introducing mother and baby to efficient […]

Maitiú having his first breastfeed in the recovery room . I frequently get emails from mothers who are floored when faced with a change of direction in relation to their baby’s birth. Sometimes, they attend for a routine hospital appointment and are told they will be admitted for a C-Section in the next week. This […]

Here we are at New Years Eve 2017. This past year has been remarkable, when I looked back, these are just some of the highlights… Health Care Professional of the Year 2017 So, if I’m picking my favourite, “OMG… I can’t believe it” moment, it has to be,  winning the  Friends of Breastfeeding  2017  Award […]

  As we settle into a very cold winter here in Ireland, I’m finding more and more clients are reporting nipple pain that is unrelated to latching problems. Generally, when I’m taking their history, I ask whether they have noticed any colour changes in the nipple. If the mother says yes, that prompts me to […]