Some of my most wonderful experiences have been: Of having doctors prepared to change their routines to have a baby calm in immediate skin to skin contact on mothers chest with delayed cord clamping in the operating room during a caesarean , and being so surprised at how calm the baby is! Of four sets.. read more →
What a wonderful privilege also to share the hardest times with parents which are also very beautiful and a real part of our human experience when things did not go as planned when the mum is exhausted after a LONG day and a half of slowly building labour The disappointments of a caesarean being needed.. read more →
I marvel at the capability of the newborn who is anything but helpless! The baby has to cope with change from a dark, warm, tightly held, gentle and quiet environment out into the wide world of bright lights and strange antiseptic smells, and loud noises of a hospital ward(a home birth is a much more.. read more →
I am so grateful for all that “my fathers” have taught me: Of the strength and love between couples and how gentle, encouraging and supportive the dads are Of how they too can slow down for the labour, walking around outside through the long , long hours of labour And watching a new dad MELT.. read more →
When I look back over the last few years and the over 70 births I have supported, I am hugely grateful to the amazing couples who have given me the privilege of sharing their wonderful birth journeys. I felt inspired to share what I have learnt! I am so grateful for all that “my mothers”.. read more →
UNICEF UK arranged a first ever breastfeeding conference focused on “Parents’ Experiences of Neonatal Units”. I was invited to speak along with Dr Shoo Lee, the originator of “Family Intergrated Care Model” for NICU care in Canada; and Dr Paula Meier, world expert and researcher on human milk feeding in the NICU. It was a.. read more →
MYTH “Preterm babies must be stable before they can start skin-to-skin contact” FACT – It is the absence of skin-to-skin contact that makes the baby unstable. This statement of fact is to me the most pressing and urgent issue in newborn care in this time. It applies of course to every newborn baby: it is.. read more →
Last week Jill was doula at a birth of a baby born too soon, 29 weeks gestation (should be 40). Sadly, the awareness of Kangaroo Care was totally absent in that hospital. The parents were not allowed even to touch their baby, and they were actively discouraged from being present. The resulting hours and days.. read more →
MYTH “Bed sharing and co-sleeping is dangerous” Last week I was forwarded an alert with the news that “Dr Bergman says Bed-Sharing is not dangerous” “Interesting, did I really” I thought … but the actual website reads “Original SIDS Researcher says Baby Bed-Sharing is Not Dangerous”. This is Dr Abraham Bergman, and this Dr Bergman.. read more →
From Spain we flew to Sweden, where sadly three of our engagements were cancelled. This did mean we could spend more time with Nils family, which was a bonus. It was special to have time with Nils’ family in Uppsala. At the end of the week he took the fast train to.. read more →