World Breastfeeding Week 2022 1st August 2022
Having a baby in 2020 wasn't without its challenges at the best of times. In this blog post Sam shares her personal journey with breastfeeding and how it impacted upon her health and wellbeing, as well as sharing how treatment has helped her little ones!
"I have 2 young children and have breastfed them both. My eldest was a breeze and self weaned around 15 months - she is now a self-confident, funny, loving (& sassy!) 4-and-a-half-year old.
When breastfeeding my youngest (my little lockdown koala baby!) I found it incredibly difficult to maintain good posture - her latch was inconsistent and she suffered with reflux and projectile vomiting throughout her first year which limited the positions we could feed in. I tried to keep her as upright as possible as much as possible. We fed to sleep, we fed in bed - we found a rhythm where everyone could get something resembling rest but every morning I woke up in pain because putting my baby's needs before my own was more important to me than 'a few aches and pains'.
I suffered with chronic shoulder and neck pain, and my lower back and hips would get really tight because I also hip-carried a lot. Muscle tension caused a lot of headaches and I got a lot of migraines yet I was adamant we would continue breastfeeding as long as possible and tried to adapt as much I could. I cried often. I was physically and mentally exhausted. Some days I could barely stand up with my baby. Self care was running away from me and it took me a long time (too long) to realise that looking after myself meant helping my baby too.
When the government allowed, I was so grateful to be able to have regular massages again to go along with my much needed adjustments. I also started to attend Becky's fantastic Pilates classes at the centre to help build my core strength and found more energy for my kids and my family. The amazing team at Stoke Chiro helped me manage my pain, improve my mobility and reduce my symptoms while muddling through parenthood and breastfeeding the best I knew how - as a result, my mental health was back on track, too.
My now-toddler has been having regular treatment at the centre since she was 2 weeks old. Since she was born she would projectile vomit most days due to reflux and as a result she had a lot of muscle tightness in her tummy. Her neck movement would also become restricted as she had a preference for feeding in certain positions making getting comfortable while feeding even trickier than usual. Her regular sessions with Hannah and Tallulah helped calm everything down and even meant she could latch more easily - and I could relax a little. She eventually grew out of the reflux around the time she turned one and we still come to the centre for regular check ups to keep my little adventurer at her best!
My baby is now a fearless, determined and affectionate 20-month old. In a bittersweet plot-twist, a recent bout of thrush and mastitis (and a really tough couple of weeks to go with it), meant that our breastfeeding journey sadly came to an unexpected end - however, that doesn't mean that the self care will. I have a wonderful team to thank for keeping me going; I highly recommend Stoke Chiro to mums, parents, little ones and families alike who are looking for support and care."
