Mary O'Donnell, IBCLC

05/09/2026

While many lactation helpers have good intentions, a hands-on approach is often not well received by either the parent or the newborn. In the early postpartum period, when both body and emotions are especially tender, this kind of contact can feel intrusive and overwhelming. It may also interrupt a baby’s natural instincts to find the breast and latch.

It’s important that your wishes are clearly communicated and respected. Consent should always come first, and you have every right to ask for guidance that prioritizes verbal coaching, positioning suggestions, and small environmental adjustments rather than hands-on contact with your body or your baby. Support that empowers you to follow your own instincts can be more comfortable and even more effective.

If hands-on assistance does occur and seems to unsettle your baby, spending time in uninterrupted skin-to-skin contact can help restore calm and support a more natural reset.

[Image Description] Photo: An infant nursing at the breast. Hands of parent and a helper rest on baby and breast. Text: Hands-on assistance causes latching difficulties for some babies.

04/22/2026

Happy Earth Day! 🌏

We believe that every mum and family deserves accessible support and evidence-based information to empower them to make their own decisions about how to feed their children.

We’re here for you, before your baby arrives and for as long as you need us afterwards.

Thank you to the mum who sent us this beautiful image during World Breastfeeding in Public Day 2024💜

Image quote from Breastfeeding - Breastfeeding - WBTi UK's World Breastfeeding Trends Initiative UK Report 2024.

[ID: Image of a mum breastfeeding sitting under a tree. "Breastfeeding itself has a low impact on the environment, requiring modest additional amounts of food and water for the breastfeeding mother, with no packaging or transportation costs." ]

03/27/2026

Has somebody told you that your baby doesn’t need to breastfeed at night past a certain age? This age often varies by advisor. However, science tells us that in many cases, this simply isn’t true. Why? Babies and mothers are different and these differences affect baby’s need for night feedings...

03/27/2026

If breast milk and formula were identical
we wouldn’t see differences in infection rates, immunity, and outcomes

Breast milk isn’t just better
it functions differently 💗

03/27/2026

One study suggests women who have their last baby after 33 are more likely to live to 95 or older.

Not because having babies later makes you live longer, but because your body being able to conceive later might be a sign it’s ageing more slowly overall.

Some research even links this to longer telomeres (a marker of how your cells age), which is pretty wild when you think about it.

Honestly, the female body never stops amazing me.

What do you think about this? 🩷 How old were you when you had your last baby?

03/25/2026

The struggle is real 😬

03/25/2026

03/25/2026

Human milk is more than food. It's a living starter culture.

A new study in Nature Communications (2025) confirms what lactation supporters have long suspected: human milk is the primary seeding event for a baby's lifelong gut health.

Researchers tracked the exact path of bacteria from parent to baby. Here are the key findings:

Direct Strain Transfer: The exact same bacterial strains were present in both the parent's milk and the infant's gut. This is a direct hand-off of beneficial bacteria like Bifidobacterium longum.

The Retrograde Secret: Oral bacteria were found in milk samples, supporting the theory that breastfeeding is a two-way street. When a baby suckles, their saliva flows back into the breast, potentially signaling what antibodies the baby needs.

The Founder Effect: Microbes passed through milk in the first weeks are metabolic pioneers. They build a stable gut environment from scratch, creating a foundation that protects the baby for months.

Every drop of milk is a biological software update for your baby's immune system. It's not just about calories. It's about colonizing their world with the tools they need to thrive.

We aren't just supporting feeding. We are supporting the assembly of a human being's internal ecosystem.

If you're looking for a speaker on lactation science and evidence-based perinatal care, send me a message or visit the link in my bio.

Ferretti, P., Allert, M., Johnson, K.E. et al. Assembly of the infant gut microbiome and resistome are linked to bacterial strains in mother’s milk. Nat Commun 16, 11536 (2025). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-025-66497-y

03/25/2026

Some lives are felt long before they are seen.

Today, we remember the little ones who never got to take their first breath, the tiny hearts that were already deeply loved and longed for.

Their time with us may have been brief…
but the love they left behind is forever.

We carry them in our hearts gently and always 🤍

Share this to honour a baby who is never forgotten 🕊️