Solent Parenting

23/09/2025

Posted • In light of recent news, we would like to highlight that the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency () has confirmed that taking paracetamol during pregnancy remains safe and there is no evidence that it causes autism in children. (link to news story in comments)

You can also take the usual recommended doses of paracetamol if you are breastfeeding. Find more information in our Pain Relief (Analgesics) factsheet
(link in bio)

If you need information on taking any medication while breastfeeding, please contact our Drugs in Breastmilk Service team on Facebook or via email: druginformation@breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk

If you are unsure about taking any medication when you are pregnant or breastfeeding, you can also talk to your GP, health visitor, or midwife.

[ID: MHRA confirms taking paracetamol during pregnancy remains safe and there is no evidence it causes autism in children. You can also take paracetamol at the normal adult dose if you are breastfeeding. Source: Pain Relief (Analgesics) and Breastfeeding Factsheet.]

23/09/2025

Posted • 8 Reasons Why Visibility of Black Maternal Mental Health Matters ✨
1. To confront hidden disparities
2. To break stigma and silence
3. To humanise the statistics
4. To shape services that work
5. To amplify community solutions
6. To embed anti-racist care & cultural competency
7. To rebuild trust
8. To highlight links to maternal mortality

Bonus two:
9. To show intergenerational impact
10. To elevate Black women’s leadership

Every statistic represents a mother, a baby, and a family. Visibility makes Black mothers impossible to ignore.

Like. Share. Repost. Help make Black mothers visible.

22/09/2025

The next will be Monday 29th September 2025, from 11am - 1pm at , Stubbington Scout Hall.

You are able to book a 15min, 1-2-1 appointment with me, costing £6 OR 30mins for £12 (payable in advance to confirm your booking).
BOOKINGS ARE FILLING UP FAST, so message me now to get booked in! 🤩

Please direct message or email - sally@solentparenting.co.uk to book ☺️

So, whether you are coming to hire a sling from the library, for general support or for a fit-check/help with a you already own - you will need to book & prepay for your appointment, before hand.

If you are looking for support/to hire or a fit-check with 2 slings, then please book 2x consecutive time slots. If you are looking for more support than this, I recommend contacting me about booking a private 1-2-1 consultation in the comfort of your own home 🏡

Sally ☺️

NB: Hire fee's for sling hires are payable in addition (as usual) at £10 per week or £30 for a month (per sling).

Looking forward to seeing you there, Sally ☺️

24/07/2025

The next will be Monday 28th July 2025, from 11am - 1pm at , Stubbington Scout Hall.

You are able to book a 15min, 1-2-1 appointment with me, costing £6 OR 30mins for £12 (payable in advance to confirm your booking).
BOOKINGS ARE FILLING UP FAST, so message me now to get booked in! 🤩

Please direct message or email - sally@solentparenting.co.uk to book ☺️

So, whether you are coming to hire a sling from the library, for general support or for a fit-check/help with a you already own - you will need to book & prepay for your appointment, before hand.

If you are looking for support/to hire or a fit-check with 2 slings, then please book 2x consecutive time slots. If you are looking for more support than this, I recommend contacting me about booking a private 1-2-1 consultation in the comfort of your own home 🏡

Sally ☺️

NB: Hire fee's for sling hires are payable in addition (as usual) at £10 per week or £30 for a month (per sling).

There will NOT be a slingmeet in August - but I am available for private, home consultations ☺️

25/06/2025

The next will be Monday 30th June 2025, from 11am - 1pm at , Stubbington Scout Hall.

You are able to book a 15min, 1-2-1 appointment with me, costing £6 OR 30mins for £12 (payable in advance to confirm your booking).
BOOKINGS ARE FILLING UP FAST, so message me now to get booked in! 🤩

Please direct message or email - sally@solentparenting.co.uk to book ☺️

So, whether you are coming to hire a sling from the library, for general support or for a fit-check/help with a you already own - you will need to book & prepay for your appointment, before hand.

If you are looking for support/to hire or a fit-check with 2 slings, then please book 2x consecutive time slots. If you are looking for more support than this, I recommend contacting me about booking a private 1-2-1 consultation in the comfort of your own home 🏡

Sally ☺️

NB: Hire fee's for sling hires are payable in addition (as usual) at £10 per week or £30 for a month (per sling).

03/03/2025

The next will be Monday 10th March 2025, from 11am - 1pm at , Stubbington Scout Hall.

You are able to book a 15min, 1-2-1 appointment with me, costing £6 (payable in advance to confirm your booking). There are 8x appointments available in all.
BOOKINGS ARE FILLING UP FAST! 🤩

Please direct message or email - sally@solentparenting.co.uk to book ☺️

So, whether you are coming to hire a sling from the library, for general support or for a fit-check/help with a you already own - you will need to book & prepay for your appointment, before hand.

If you are looking for support/to hire or a fit-check with 2 slings, then please book 2x consecutive time slots. If you are looking for more support than this, I recommend contacting me about booking a private 1-2-1 consultation in the comfort of your own home 🏡

I'm hoping this will make for a more efficient & productive service. With thanks, Sally ☺️

NB: Hire fee's for sling hires are payable in addition (as usual) at £10 per week or £30 for a month (per sling).

20/02/2025

Check out this blog post I wrote for on my experience of supporting a 🤩 This was a TOTAL

Join one of our doulas, Sally Carter, over on the Nurturing Birth blog where she shares - A Doula’s Perspective on Supporting a Vaginal Twin Birth.

The decision to work with a doula is made for many different, often personal, reasons. However, ultimately, it is more often about ‘stacking the odds in your favor’ by ensuring that you can benefit from the type of person-centered, empathetic, independent, non-medical, continuity of care that only a doula can bring.

https://courses.nurturingbirth.co.uk/blog/empowered-birthing

07/02/2025

& I had the absolute pleasure of doing a final home visit with clients today & just look at this gorgeous bundle of joy! 🥰

We discussed , , , the itself, , , , & SO much more... Of course, we took food - homemade sweet treats & fruit, enjoyed with tea, whilst we all chatted.

This family really were such a delight to work with & they have been raving about the benefits of to all who will listen! 🤩

Want to find out more about ?
Reach out to book your free 30min video call to meet me & see if I might be the right doula for you 😉

03/02/2025

The next will be Monday 10th February 2025, from 12pm - 2pm at , Stubbington Scout Hall.

You are able to book a 15min, 1-2-1 appointment with me, costing £6 (payable in advance to confirm your booking). There are 8x appointments available in all.
BOOKINGS ARE FILLING UP FAST! 🤩

Please direct message or email - sally@solentparenting.co.uk to book ☺️

So, whether you are coming to hire a sling from the library, for general support or for a fit-check/help with a you already own - you will need to book & prepay for your appointment, before hand.

If you are looking for support/to hire or a fit-check with 2 slings, then please book 2x consecutive time slots. If you are looking for more support than this, I recommend contacting me about booking a private 1-2-1 consultation in the comfort of your own home 🏡

I'm hoping this will make for a more efficient & productive service. With thanks, Sally ☺️

NB: Hire fee's for sling hires are payable in addition (as usual) at £10 per week or £30 for a month (per sling).

19/01/2025

Check out this feedback (left as a Google review) from an who booked a call with me at the end of last year.

"Our experience with Sally was absolutely wonderful. We met with Sally to gain further information around birth options following a distressing NHS hospital appointment. I felt instantly at ease talking through my experience and concerns with Sally and felt that she really listened to and understood me. The information and guidance she provided has really helped us to make an informed decision and I feel very empowered and positive (which is exactly what I needed from our appointment). Thank you so much for helping me feel confident to take back control of my birth plan and pursue my dream birth."

As a & teacher, I have a lot of knowledge & experience of & the period, as well as how to navigate maternity services & build a team so that you can feel & confident in making your own - Why not get in touch & find out more about how I can help you!?

01/01/2025

The next will be Monday 13th January 2025, from 12pm - 2pm at , Stubbington Scout Hall. You are able to book a 15min, 1-2-1 appointment with me, costing £6 (payable in advance to confirm your booking). There are 8x appointments available in all.

Please direct message or email - sally@solentparenting.co.uk to book ☺️

So, whether you are coming to hire a sling from the library, for general support or for a fit-check/help with a you already own - you will need to book & prepay for your appointment, before hand.

If you are looking for support/to hire or a fit-check with 2 slings, then please book 2x consecutive time slots. If you are looking for more support than this, I recommend contacting me about booking a private 1-2-1 consultation in the comfort of your own home 🏡

I'm hoping this will make for a more efficient & productive service. With thanks, Sally ☺️

NB: Hire fee's for sling hires are payable in addition (as usual) at £10 per week or £30 for a month (per sling).

16/12/2024

I was SO angry when I saw this article from the BBC - thank you to Better Births & Sara for this response!

Posted • I can’t say it better than my friend has done, so she’s letting me repost 💜

I know that I’m not the only one who eye-rolled into oblivion when reading the Guardian app this morning... and then the BBC app after.
So, why is this reporting so bloody annoying?
Well, firstly, it’s inaccurate. One in four would be 25% and for 25% to be accurate then they would be counting only planned caesareans where the woman did not go into labour prior to the operative birth.
If we add in those births where the woman laboured prior to the casearean then the actual figure is 42%.
So really this is simply lazy journalism.

On top of this it punches down onto women for both their size and age... and really, haven’t we done with that yet? It simply isn’t evidence based and it is horribly misogynistic.

If these reports worried you because you feel that your wonderful body may be an issue for birth I highly recommend grabbing a copy of ‘s excellent book ‘Plus Size Pregnancy’, where she dismantles this kind of nonsense page after page. Getting the right info for birth is so important and clearly our press isn’t doing a great job!

And remember, there is absolutely nothing wrong with caesarean birth (my twins and I are very thankful for it) but we do need to be very honest that a 42% rate is pretty scary.

I assure you that we wonderful women are NOT the problem though.

Melanie x

P.S. I’ve added a few facts based on the actual evidence in the last slide. Sara x