So when our local SureStart recently offered the chance for local mums to train as breastfeeding peer supporters, I jumped at the chance.
The eight week course is being run via the Open College Network by Healthy Babies.
We started last week with most of the session being taken up by a discussion of our own experiences. Some of the other mothers' journeys were very emotional and I was humbled and enlightened by their journeys.
I have been very luck not to have experienced many problems with breastfeeding and it astounds me how much some women go through to achieve their dream of breastfeeding their baby. It was also easy to see why so many women give up.
 |
| Little B's first feed less than an hour after birth. |
Our homework from the session was to outline our reasons for wanting to be a peer supporter and what we hoped to achieve by the end of the training.
In short, my reasons were to dispel so much of the misinformation about breastfeeding that's out there and to provide the correct information and support for women to make feeding choices that are right for them, their babies and their circumstances, whether at newborn or extended feeding stage. I also hope to gain the skills to deal sensitively with a variety of issues and to offer support without appearing too judgemental (many breastfeeding advocates are already labelled as the breastfeeding police and worse).
I'm really looking forward to completing the rest of the course and I will no doubt be sharing some of the information I learn and my personal insights through the coming weeks.
I've not actually posted on this blog for a while as I have been studying hard for my CIM Professional Diploma in Marketing. I am pleased to say that I have now completed the course and I will find out in May whether or not I passed my final assignment. This course should be a little easier (it's GCSE level rather than post-degree) so I anticipate having more time to spend blogging and sharing my experiences.
No comments:
Post a Comment