Jessie May IBCLC

07/08/2025

It wouldn’t be World Breastfeeding Week without looking at breastfeeding support across the world. The final post for this week is all about GINA: Gaza Infant Nutrition Alliance.
By now, we are all aware of the genocide happening in Gaza and the huge amounts of people who are dying from malnutrition - children and babies included. There is very little infant formula entering Gaza, and what does come through cannot be made up safely due to water contamination and lack of sterilisation. Breastfeeding in war zones and humanitarian crises is vital. GINA are doing amazing work, selflessly training people to deliver lactation support and interventions which is keeping babies alive. They’re working hard to dispel the myth that mothers need to be well nourished to be able to breastfeed and instead providing them with evidence based information to support as much milk production as possible.
Please do support them 🙂

06/08/2025

Hear me out on this one…
The first rule of Fight Club: don’t talk about Fight Club. The first rule* of pumping: don’t think about pumping when you’re doing it.
Having lots of the lovely oxytocin hormone can really help with your pumping output. Oxytocin is also known as the love hormone - you produce it when you have feelings of love or happiness. It’s also the key hormone for releasing breast milk. If you’re feeling worried or stressed about how much milk you get when you pump it can lower your oxytocin and you may not get as much milk out during pumping sessions.
If you can, try to distract yourself while pumping - chat to a partner or friend, look at your baby, watch something funny on TV, eat some of your favourite food. Using socks to cover up the bottles can be helpful too!
What are your favourite pumping tips? *of course there are no particular rules for this, some people find watching their milk collect in the bottle boosts their oxytocin!

04/08/2025

The National Breastfeeding Helpline is a brilliant way to get support 24/7 over the phone and it’s completely free to use! Don’t struggle alone during those 2am cluster feeds :) They also offer support via social media and web chat 12 hours a day

03/08/2025

Sundays are different for every family - for some it’s a day of relaxation, others may go to their place of worship or perhaps cook a traditional Sunday lunch. For many it’s a day to catch up on housework and entertain multiple children. However your Sunday looks, try and spend a little time as just you and your baby to have some uninterrupted bonding together. The dishes can wait :)

02/08/2025

Silver ni**le cups seem to be everywhere at the moment - but are they really needed?
They can be lovely and soothing on tired ni**les (think cluster feeding!) especially if they’ve been kept in the fridge, however there’s no evidence that these have any magical healing properties as they often claim. Despite their hefty price tag, they don’t contain enough medical silver to do anything useful.
There are also things to be cautious of with these - they keep your ni**le very wet with leaked milk which can macerate the skin, cause broken skin, pain and infections. We’ve all sat in the bath too long and had wrinkly white fingers afterwards - this does the same on your ni**les. They can be used in moderation though - I recommend 30 mins max with a break of a few hours before using them again to protect the skins integrity. A cool wet flannel and a little expressed milk/vaseline/coconut oil/ni**le cream is typically all that’s needed to soothe ni**les if feeding is otherwise going well. If you really want to buy some silver, treat yourself to some beautiful jewellery you can show off!

01/08/2025

It’s the start of World Breastfeeding Week! This years theme is about creating sustainable support systems - making sure that the support you need continues. Sometimes this is from healthcare workers, breastfeeding groups, family hubs, partners, friends, family, even pets 🐾 Often it’s a mix of many things! Who’s been your biggest support?

31/07/2025

Are you under 30 years old and had a baby between May 2021 and June 2025?

Mother’s experiences of access to International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) support in the UK

We are conducting research to understand who accesses IBCLC support in the UK and what facilitates this access. You do not need to have breastfed, and you do not need to have received support from an IBCLC to take part.

As a thank you we would like to offer participants the opportunity to be placed in a prize draw to win one of 10 x £20 Love2Shop vouchers.

This is a Swansea University research project led by Emily Lunny as part of a PhD study, supervised by Dr Catrin Griffiths and Professor Amy Brown from the Faculty of Medicine, Health and Life Sciences. You can contact Emily, Catrin or Amy for further details of the research.
Email Emily: 2457218@swansea.ac.uk
Email Catrin: c.r.griffiths@swansea.ac.uk
Email Amy: a.e.brown@swansea.ac.uk

The research has been approved by the Health and Social Care Research Ethics Committee (approval number 2 2025 13501 13457).

Our research aims to understand mothers’ experiences of accessing IBCLC support in the UK, whether they chose to or were able to access IBCLC support or not.

We understand that talking about infant feeding experiences can be upsetting if things didn’t go to plan. Please contact the Birth Trauma Association or any of the breastfeeding support associations in the UK if this is upsetting for you.
La Leche League: https://laleche.org.uk/
The Breastfeeding Network: https://www.breastfeedingnetwork.org.uk/
Association of Breastfeeding Mothers: https://abm.me.uk/
The Birth Trauma Association: https://www.birthtraumaassociation.org/

As part of this we are looking for mothers to complete a survey that will take between 20 – 30 minutes depending on how much you would like to say. Our survey will remain open for the next 4 weeks from 24th July to 21st August 2025.

We would like to hear from parents who:
• Are based in the UK
• Had a baby between May 2021 and June 2025
• Breastfed, formula fed, combination fed or anything in between
We would like to hear from mothers and parents no matter how they fed their baby, and whether they received IBCLC support or not.

If you’d like to take part please click the link for further information and the survey questions
https://swanseachhs.eu.qualtrics.com/jfe/form/SV_8uGyfv2Nl3ugWZ8

15/07/2025

https://breastfeeding-and-medication.co.uk/fact-sheet/norethisterone-and-breastfeeding

20/05/2025

Back where it all began! 10 years ago I wasn’t a mum, I wasn’t even pregnant. I was working a steady career as a private nanny where bottles were my bread and butter. My boss at the time was pregnant with her 3rd baby and she’d breastfed/combi fed them all. It was only through conversations with her that I understood what breastfeeding meant and the importance of it. I looked into it more and more and couldn’t keep my mind off this thing that previously I’d barely even considered! From there it snowballed - by feeding my son just over a year later, training as a breastfeeding Peer Supporter, then as a Breastfeeding Counsellor. Working for the NHS in an infant feeding team. And now being an IBCLC :)

30/03/2025

Happy Mothers Day to all celebrating today :)

26/03/2025

Absolutely lovely to be featured in some Mothers Day gift ideas 🌷
I offer antenatal information sessions as well as support once baby is here and you can buy a session with me as a gift for someone to use when it suits them :)

🌸 Swad Pod’s Mother’s Day Gift Guide! 🌸

This Mother’s Day, let’s support our local businesses and help mums feel loved and appreciated! Here’s a list of wonderful, small businesses from our community that are offering unique gifts and services perfect for mums:

💆‍♀️ Sally Nash Therapies – Offering holistic therapies like reflexology and reiki, Sally helps busy mums switch off and nurture themselves ❤️.
👶 Jessie May IBCLC – As a lactation consultant, Jessie provides expert support to mums navigating the journey of feeding their babies.
🎁 Noble Robin – A treasure trove of beautiful giftware, homewares, jewellery, and so much more!
💆‍♀️ Eunoia – A private beauty room in Measham, offering Mother’s Day facial packages, available for online booking or as vouchers from just £10.
🌸 Swadlincote Therapy Rooms – Offering gift vouchers for special occasions and treatments like Reiki, Indian Head Massage, Thai Foot Massage, and Crystal Therapy. They also host workshops and courses from Freedom Therapies and Foot Care.
🍽️ Blissful bites – Treat mum to a delicious breakfast-in-bed box or an afternoon tea, full of tasty delights
🌸 Lollipop’s Patch – Stunning, UK-produced, pesticide-free flowers that are sure to brighten up any day.
🕯️ Scent shells – Coastal-inspired wax melts and burners, made with love in Woodville.
🎁 House_of_Hutch_ – A Swadlincote-based shop offering a fantastic range of Mother’s Day gifts with free delivery in the local area 💖.
✨ Luff Designs – Personalised items and custom designs created to suit everyone’s needs – the perfect unique gift!
🌸 Jcs rustic gift co – A little Swadlincote business offering pretty dried florals, East of India, Wrendale and other home & giftware.

Let’s shop local and show some love to these incredible small businesses! 💖

24/03/2025

I get asked this question a lot! You don’t need to take formula to your birthing place if you intend to breastfeed. Your body starts to produce colostrum (early breastmilk) from around 16 weeks of pregnancy and this colostrum is replenished until well after your baby is born whether you leak in pregnancy or not. Your newborns tummy is very small and only needs a few ml of colostrum per feed to begin with which is why you may not feel any breast changes for a few days. Don’t worry - the milk is still there! Having lots of skin to skin cuddles and giving your baby unlimited access to your breast/chest teaches your body how much more it needs to produce - the more your baby is at your breast the more milk you’ll make :) Around 3 days after birth your breasts may feel fuller and firmer and that is what’s commonly called your milk ‘coming in’ - I prefer to say ‘your milk increasing’ because your milk has been in for a while already! If your baby is struggling to latch to the breast in the first few days, you should be encouraged to hand express your milk to give to your little one, this feeds your baby and protects your supply so that there is plenty there when they are ready to latch.