Breastfeeding
Gathering information, making the decision & preparing for breastfeeding
During pregnancy, the women we spoke to gathered information about breastfeeding from a wide variety of sources and had a lot to say about the quality and practical use of that information. They spoke to family and friends about birth and breastfeeding, they read leaflets and books and watched videos about the subject and some of them searched the internet for suitable websites. The women found a lot of these sources very helpful. However, some women felt that too much information could be a “bad thing”. One woman read so much that she felt confused by all the different advice while another thought that written information made breastfeeding sound “incredibly complicated”.
The internet was particularly important for information and contact with other women via a forum but she had to be especially careful about the reliability of the websites.
The internet was particularly important for information and contact with other women via a forum but she had to be especially careful about the reliability of the websites.
I was very lucky when I was first pregnant I stumbled upon a parenting website with an enormous forum, and there's some fantastic advice on that for breastfeeding and I was reading that maybe the last four or six weeks before the baby was due, and that gave me a good idea of some of the things that could go wrong and some of the things that might happen during the early days.
So you just happened to put something in Google and come up with that site?
It was when I was first pregnant, so I started posting on the, the forum they have a thread for each month that the babies are due in and I, I started posting on that, I think I was like ten weeks pregnant, so everybody all followed each other through the, through the processes but there's a whole wealth of other information on that site as well.
And you could share your experiences with other women'
[Mm-hm].
'and vice versa?
Yeah.
Was there any technical expertise or help on that?
Well that's one thing that I felt that I really needed to be careful of because it was just people posting, you know, everyday people, some who thought they knew it but didn't, but there are, now that I've increased my knowledge about breastfeeding I know that there are some people on there who talk brilliant advice, really good sense, and very sensible stuff, but, there's some rubbish on it as well, so it's knowing how to sift through it and take, take what you want from it.
So how do you do that?
Well I just did it by reading and reading as much as I could, mostly on the internet but reading websites from breastfeeding support groups who, you know, are, know what they're talking about, like La Leche League and there's another website called KellyMom.com, I don't know if you.
Is that a Scottish website?
No I think it's American.
Called?
KellyMom.com, and once you start looking at these websites you see these recurring themes coming up and coming up and coming up, you go well if all these breastfeeding experts are saying that this must be how it is, so from that I could then sift through the, the posts on the forum and, and work out what was what.
Okay so that was one criteria for reputability?
[Mm-hm].
Anything else that you look at in a website?
I just had to bear in mind that if people were posting what they said they had experienced that's what they've experienced you can't, you can't argue with that at all, but it's when people are stating facts, just to me if something didn't sound right I would go off myself, and would read up on one of these other websites, that I knew was giving the correct information.
Most women went to antenatal classes and specific breastfeeding sessions offered by a variety of providers, such as the government or NHS (local hospital, maternity service, midwives, GP or health centre, or Sure Start), voluntary groups (National Childbirth Trust, La Leche League) and private providers (independent midwives, obstetrics/gynaecology and lactation consultants, breast pump manufacturers). Opinions of the classes covered the whole range from “very, very good” to “limited”.
Many described the information that they gained from antenatal classes as theoretical rather than practical. Many said that they were too focused on the forthcoming birth to think about breastfeeding. Some pregnant women valued informal opportunities to chat and learn about breastfeeding from breastfeeding mothers whom they met at groups. Some women believed that there was no substitute for experience in learning how to breastfeed. Some said that they needed the breastfeeding information more after the baby was born.
She saw a video of someone breastfeeding at her antenatal class but she was too focused on the birth to really understand the talk.
She saw a video of someone breastfeeding at her antenatal class but she was too focused on the birth to really understand the talk.
While I was pregnant, there was a little bit of help from the antenatal classes it was really a series of, I just did four classes, so they did a little section on breastfeeding and I think they put, I think they showed us a video clip of someone. Again I think I just, seeing the video clip I think I just assumed that it would come very, very naturally and didn't really, as they wouldn't, they wouldn't, they didn't really highlight the fact that a lot of people get soreness and that it's to do with the position and, again until you've actually experienced it you don't really sort of fully comprehend what they're talking about. And also I think in the ante-natal classes they were so focused towards the actual birth and I think my mind is probably more thinking about labour and the hospital and that side of things that, yeah I, I didn't really, probably give enough thought to breastfeeding.
Her antenatal class, run by the hospital, included the use of dolls and balloons to imitate breastfeeding. She also heard from enthusiastic women who had experienced breastfeeding.
Her antenatal class, run by the hospital, included the use of dolls and balloons to imitate breastfeeding. She also heard from enthusiastic women who had experienced breastfeeding.
What did you know about breastfeeding at that stage?
It was just a, a theory in a book to be quite honest, I hadn't really given it much thought we were encouraged when I went to the antenatal classes to breastfeed. Oh I went to one of the workshops on breastfeeding as well where, we had a doll and we mimicked the doll breastfeeding and it was nothing like I expected it to be because I mean a doll and a natural baby are very different. But it was quite good because they did things, tried to give examples like, the sucking motion by using balloons and things like that and also told us about breast pumps. So it was a lot more real than the theory but I was probably still only around five months pregnant with [daughter] so it didn't seem, it's, it, thank you, it still didn't seem as if it still didn't seem as if, it was that real to me until she was born.
Who ran those antenatal classes?
I think they were run by midwives'
Right, right.
'but I can't remember their names.
You don't know whether it was an NHS Trust or the hospital or?
It was the hospital.
The hospital.
It was the hospital yeah, and they also, they also had specialist midwives who came in to do the breastfeeding classes.
Right, right.
In fact one woman she said that, I mean her daughter was nine, and she said if she could she would've continued to breastfeed because she loved it so much, she was, they were basically people who were very, very enthusiastic about breastfeeding and that enthusiasm carries through to all of the people there, it was a really big class as well they were around, it must have been seventy or eighty of us, it was a big class.
Several women found the advice and information they got from antenatal and other classes not that useful when faced with breastfeeding difficulties. Lizzie said that the class she attended didn’t discuss what to do if you have very low milk supply. Jessy found that the courses she attended provided no information about medical conditions or medications that could affect breastfeeding. (See ‘When breastfeeding doesn’t work out’ and ‘Medical conditions that could affect breastfeeding’).
Lizzie says that, at her breastfeeding class, breast milk was talked about only in terms of being plentiful. She didn’t expect to have any problems regarding milk supply.
Lizzie says that, at her breastfeeding class, breast milk was talked about only in terms of being plentiful. She didn’t expect to have any problems regarding milk supply.
Some women did not attend antenatal classes because they either didn't get around to it, hadn't planned to breastfeed specifically or the baby arrived before they had begun or completed the classes. Others talked about barriers to attendance such as language difficulties, the lack of classes in their locality or their husband's/partner's refusal to attend.
Newly arrived from Pakistan, she was not confident enough to attend antenatal classes, so she read leaflets and books in English and watched videos to improve her language skills.
Newly arrived from Pakistan, she was not confident enough to attend antenatal classes, so she read leaflets and books in English and watched videos to improve her language skills.
So we were talking about when you were pregnant and how much you knew, did you go to ante-natal classes?
I came from Pakistan when I was pregnant I was very new here, and I couldn't go, I had got a leaflet and I couldn't understand, I couldn't see the street the names and I was very like I can see the I hadn't confidence to go outside, that's why I didn't go.
Did you speak English at that stage?
Yeah I learned from Pakistan but here accent is very different from Pakistan, very different and I've taken two years to learn here the accent, talking with people, my husband, my in-laws, brothers and sisters.
Right, so you didn't attend antenatal classes did you do any reading?
Yeah reading, yeah, books my health visitor gave me a lot of books, leaflets, I been reading all every week, like after two or three days when I was pregnant.
Right and what language were those in?
English.
In English? You were reading in English?
Yeah.
Did you get any material in your own languages?
Materials? No, I had a no need of it.
You didn't need it?
No.
Do you know if there are breastfeeding information leaflets and things available in Urdu for example?
Yeah.
or Parsi?
I know, I know but, I wanted to read in English yeah, 'cause I.
Good practice?
Yeah good practice I wanted to read in English and 'cause for knowledge or for my child or for, what d'you call it? For in, living in England, 'cause here's everywhere English.
You can read the books, a lot of books they are very helpful, very helpful, every experience I had I read before doing my experience, I read in books and leaflets and I been watching videos.
Oh yeah, yeah?
Yeah I've got by my health visitor about breastfeeding and that was, that's why I was very excited, I couldn't wait to give my breastfeed to my son.
So you were looking forward to it you were very excited about it?
Yeah, very much, yeah very excited, I was very excited.
Yeah and it's lived up to expectations?
Yeah.
You've enjoyed it?
Yeah.
The decision to breastfeed was made by different women at different points' before pregnancy, during pregnancy or after the birth. Several women said that it seemed like the “natural” way to feed a baby but some felt uncomfortable about the idea at first. Most women were asked by their health professionals how they planned to feed their babies and that was recorded in their medical notes. Several of the women decided to breastfeed because their religion recommended it.
She followed Islamic literature and the Koran that recommended breastfeeding for two years.
She followed Islamic literature and the Koran that recommended breastfeeding for two years.
Mm-hm.
Which is very, very important, because in our religion we for, we're so, not we're supposed to it's, it's a guidance of what to do in life, how to go about it and it does say that to breastfeed, to suckle your, suckle your baby for two years. If you can't do that that's absolutely fine, but we recommend you do, it's very, very highly recommended. And obviously when I was pregnant I had so many books, I borrowed so many books from my colleagues, from the library, I got on the internet, breastfeeding networking to do a lot of research.
What language were those books and things in?
Oh English, English and I read Bengali literature also but which I've read them to also myself but I think.
Was there much available in Bengali?
There is, there is especially if you look at it in Islamic, Islamically because Is-Islam says to breastfeed your child that's why he has got be, there, I've got a this book it's called the 'Ideal Muslim Woman' and it says there like step by step ante-natally, post-natally, breastfeeding, make sure you have a good diet, step by step everything and it says how important it is benefit for the baby and for the mother.
As well as ensuring that they were well informed in preparation for breastfeeding some women purchased bras, breast pads, nipple creams and breast pumps while others said that there was no need to purchase anything except perhaps for bras and breast pads (see 'Advice for pregnant women and new mothers'). Some women attempted to express colostrum prior to the birth, usually as reassurance that they would have milk afterwards. One woman spoke of moisturising and stretching her nipples prior to birth in an attempt to strengthen them and prevent sore nipples*. Others ensured that their partners knew of their desire to breastfeed in case there were complications during the birth. One woman used pregnancy yoga and swimming to help her withdraw from using drugs by the time that her baby was born.
She received so much advice about breastfeeding that she began dreaming about it and woke to find that her bedding was wet.
She received so much advice about breastfeeding that she began dreaming about it and woke to find that her bedding was wet.
I don't know because he was quite a, because I got quite a lot of help actually in my antenatal class from, and not just from the, the lady that run it but from the mothers who was breastfeeding at, you know, for their other children that they'd breastfed, so I was quite fortunate in that respect, the fact that I'd got quite lot of advice beforehand and also I've read a lot of the breastfeeding leaflets that you get given. In fact to a point where before he was born I was dreaming I was breastfeeding, and only on the last sort of few dreams of me breastfeeding I would actually leak in, in the bed, and I would, my breasts would leak whilst I was dreaming [laughs] so I found that really quite odd, but it was like my brain was, obviously taking in all the leaflets that I'd read and all the information I'd been given and was processing into like a training programme in my mind, it was really quite special [laughs]. So I was quite fortunate in that respect, because I would literally wake up thinking 'have I had my baby? No, no it's still inside me' and my pillow, my bed would be all wet where my boobs were been [laughs], so they would just leak just to reinforce the fact that it could happen [laughs] I think [laughs], quite strange.
Footnote' For discussion about leaking see 'Talking about' Getting started with breastfeeding' Early experiences' Sensation of breastfeeding'.
* Footnote: Nipple preparation used to be recommended but recent research has shown it to be unnecessary and ineffective.
Last updated November 2018.
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