Meet Anne-Marie and her baby Conor
Anne-Marie from Nunthorpe was undecided about breastfeeding until a special moment made up her mind forever.
“I’d had a really horrible, traumatic birth and to be honest, it felt stressful when the nurse put Conor on top of me.
“But then there was this moment when he turned his head and was rooting for a feed. Something clicked in my head. I thought, here was this brand-new person, just minutes old, and the only thing he’s done is try to feed with me, his mother. It made me determined from that second on.”
Although determined, Anne-Marie’s breastfeeding journey was still full of challenges.
“Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong. He wouldn’t latch. It was very painful at times. We thought he had tongue-tie, and we had to get specialist support. Most seriously, I wasn’t producing enough milk. The truth is, I kept giving up and we did feed from bottles, especially the first week or two.
“I absolutely understand and support mothers who do give up altogether. But, for me, I kept thinking what a nurse had told me: ‘It’s a skill you and baby have to learn.’ My advice to other mothers is to just persevere. It will happen in the end.”
Breastfeeding takes practice. Visit the NHS website to get advice about feeding your baby.
Free breastfeeding support is also available at your local Family Hub.
