Who can I turn to if I have problems with breastfeeding?

For many mothers breastfeeding is a natural activity, but for lots of other mums it can prove difficult. Initially you will have Midwives and Maternity Care Assistants on hand in the Hospital to assist you ¹.

Once you go home your community Midwife and Health Visitor can continue to advise you but obviously they will not be there 24 hours a day. There are many help lines and local support groups available and your Hospital, Doctors surgery, and Health centre should all have contact details of these for you.

Many Internet sites also have forums, which are useful to discuss problems and experiences. Two popular ones are www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk and www.abm.me.uk (association of breastfeeding mothers).

Some Midwives and Health Visitors run local drop-in breastfeeding sessions so enquire whether there are any local to you. This is also a great way to make friends with other mums in similar situations to you. The National Childbirth Trust also have a national network of trained breast feeding counsellors.

¹WHO (1998) Evidence for the ten steps to successful breastfeeding.