Megan Stephenson Breastfeeding Counsellor

19/05/2026

Offering free specialist infant feeding support, and home made bread pudding, at Ely Baby Bank today 11-12.

06/05/2026

https://www.menti.com/pxkncqgtwj If you've listened to any episodes of The Breastfeeding Show https://pod.co/the-breastfeeding-show, please let us know what you thought. It really helps us.

20/04/2026

"How to deal with the pain" is one of the questions I get frequently at antenatal classes about feeding babies. There's an assumption in that question: that breastfeeding is inevitably painful. But is it?

Pain is subjective - in that different people can experience the same stimulus as either painful or not, so it's hard to be absolutely confident about this. However, we know that effective attachment of the baby on the breast involves the ni**le (the most sensitive part of the breast) being in a place in the mouth where it is neither squashed nor rubbed during the feed.

It will be easier for the ni**le to easily get to that place in the mouth, if the baby has their neck extended, and their head tilted back. If you look at a baby's face on the breast when they are doing this, you are likely to see a gap between their nose and the breast, and their chin is likely to be deeply buried into the breast.

This NCT website article shows what I mean.

https://www.nct.org.uk/information/baby-toddler/feeding-your-baby-or-toddler/ breastfeeding-cues-attachment-and-positions

If this is not how your baby's face is at the breast, try moving their body in the direction that makes then have to stretch their neck more to stay on the breast.

If this is not enough, get skilled breastfeeding support. I am available at https://www.facebook.com/elybabybank every Tuesday morning or at https://www.facebook.com/cottenhambreastfeeding every Friday lunch time.

If neither of those is possible, check pbcinfantfeeding.org for other options.

31/03/2026

Setting up for an evening talking with expectant parents about what feeding their baby could be like is so much nicer after the clocks change.

26/03/2026

25/03/2026

It's important that parents are given accurate information so that they can make informed decisions. Misleading marketing should be illegal.

Formula milk marketing exploits parental anxieties about common infant behaviours such as fussiness or poor sleep.

Premium branding is paraded as having “premium benefits”, when in fact the only difference is the price.

Claims made by the formula milk industry about their products are often misleading, scientifically unsubstantiated & violate the International Code of Marketing of Breast-milk Substitutes.

WHO is calling on governments to end exploitative marketing and protect babies’ health.

23/03/2026

Recently I've been having a few conversations with mothers who are in the process of, or thinking about, introducing solid foods to their babies.

The guidance on this is the same regardless of what milk your baby is currently having - whether that's breastmilk, first infant formula or a mixture of both: wait until your baby is around six months (26 weeks) old, is able to sit unaided, can reach out and grab things and take them to put in their mouth and, more subtle this one, has lost their tongue thrust reflex.

The tongue thrust reflex is one that babies are born with - when they feel an object near the front of their mouth, they will push their tongue forward. By six months this reflex is starting to fade away. Babies who still have this reflex will be unlikely to swallow much solid food, this means that, as long as the other signs are there that your baby is ready, and you don't try to force your baby to swallow the solids, you can safely start offering solids without needing to check that final element.

Between six and twelve months the aim is to give your baby opportunities to experience different tastes and textures. They will still need to get the vast majority of their nutrients from milk. The chances are that the amount of milk feeding stays pretty much the same as it was before and that's healthy and normal.

If you're starting to think about this stage for your baby and you're feeling worried about it, NCT offers more detailed information here

Introducing your baby to solid food for the first time can be exciting – but may also be daunting. Read our guide to how and when to start your baby on solids.

17/03/2026

Lovely sunny day at Ely Baby Bank this morning . I'm here every Tuesday morning 11-12 for anyone to pop in if they have feeding related questions or concerns.

16/03/2026

I've been busy baking these winter spiced fudge crinkle cookies to bring along to my infant feeding support group tomorrow at Ely Baby Bank 11-12. Looking forward to supporting parents with any feeding related concerns. Last week I talked to two families about their worries and question around introducing solids to their babies. I wonder what people will bring this week.

15/03/2026

Happy Mothering Sunday.

If you are, or care about, a mother of a baby or young child, then how to feed that infant might be something you worry about.

The landscape of infant feeding support is not always straight forward to navigate so here’s some guidance to help youhttps://lcgb.org/wp-content/uploads/2025/06/Whos-Who-in-Breastfeeding-LCGB-June-2025-with-links.pdf

Note – whilst this might appear to suggest that going straight to an IBCLC is the best idea, do be aware that if you are supported by any of the other roles it is more likely to be offered for free and, if they are unable to support you they would be required by their own training to support you to find the appropriate person for your issue.

In the Cambridgeshire area there is the very useful website: pbcinfantfeeding.org which will help you to find your local, free, specialist infant feeding support options.