When I found out that I was expecting my second baby, I was determined to exclusively breastfeed. As an oncology researcher with a PhD in immunology, I don’t need to be persuaded on the many benefits of breastfeeding for baby and mother. One way or another I was going to do this!
After the experience with my first baby (Orla), I knew that I needed support from an expert and there was no doubt in my mind that Amanda was ‘it’! I’ll be honest, I got into a mess when it came to feeding Orla. I was breastfeeding from one breast (I had a mastectomy 5 years earlier) and bottle feeding with expressed milk (pumping excessively!) and formula. Things were all over the place.
I was bombarded with mixed messages and contradictory information from friends, family and healthcare professionals. I was also told that Orla was suffering from silent reflux and she was prescribed ranitidine at 3 months.
I didn’t know what to believe and got quite depressed and was left feeling that I was failing as a mother.
A couple of weeks before I was due to have my second baby (Rory) I had a 2 hour+ video call consultation with Amanda as part of the Platinum post-birth breastfeeding package. I should say that this was in April 2020 at the peak of the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic and the U.K. was in lockdown. I was anxious about bringing a baby into these uncertain times, but Amanda immediately put me at ease.
The pandemic and lockdown did not in any way negatively impact the experience and guidance I received from Amanda. As she explained what to expect in the days and weeks after birth, from wet/dirty nappies to latch to hand expression (this one was a new one for me!), including collecting colostrum in the lead-up to birth, I felt fully supported. Amanda gave me the confidence that I could do this – and I did!
Amanda was there on a daily basis for 2 weeks post-birth, continually checking in with boundless enthusiasm and positivity. I had a few wobbly moments and doubts, but Amanda was there to reassure me and guide every step of the way.
Amanda also set up a WhatsApp feeding support group for us and another for other new mums and I who had recently gone through the same experience and worked on her breastfeeding programme.
Rory regained his birth weight (a healthy 3.75 Kg) in approximately 2 weeks. Exclusively breastfed.
During these first couple of weeks I was met with the same messaging from midwives and other healthcare professionals: “you don’t need to feed any more frequently than every 3 hours”, “you only have one breast so you will need to top up with formula”, etc. When Rory regained his birth weight the midwife was surprised and asked if I had been topping up with formula! It felt great saying, ‘no – this is an exclusively breastfed baby, not a drop of formula in sight!! 🙂 thanks to Amanda Marks!’
At the end of our 2 weeks, I had a conclusion chat with Amanda, which covered what to expect in the coming weeks.
We covered growth spurts and expressing. Expressing from 4 weeks was something I was keen to do to allow Dad to get involved and to provide the flexibility for Dad or someone else to give a feed if I wanted to escape (!) and in later months return to work. Amanda provided clear guidance on best practices for milk storage and pumping (e.g., timing, duration). This has all been incredibly useful.
Rory is now 7 weeks old – exclusively breastfed with one breast, and I know this will continue for many more months to come.
I can’t thank Amanda enough and I can’t recommend her highly enough! She is passionate, incredibly dedicated, professional and a true expert. THANK YOU, Amanda.
