During this pandemic it has been necessary to stop all of our twenty-four support groups which are held weekly across the trust, these groups are sadly missed however we are working in partnership with our Sure Starts to get regular virtual groups up and running in your local area.
Breastfeeding support groups aim to encourage and inspire you by other mums who are on the same journey, you realise you are not on our own, it’s a safe place to try out feeding in public among likeminded supportive people, you will make new friends and contacts and there are supportive, knowledgeable health professionals and peer volunteers who are available to answer questions.
In the midst of this pandemic, breastmilk remains the safest and most protective method to feed all infants. To help to encourage and support you to breast feed or provide breastmilk for your baby during this challenging time of social distancing please find some useful resources and links which may help.
- Thinking of Breastfeeding?
- Pregnancy Book
- The Birth to five book
- Off to a Good Start Booklet
- Getting to know your baby leaflet
- Building a relationship with your unborn baby
- Vitamin D and You
- Public Health agency Website
Other useful Breastfeeding resources are:
- Global media Breastfeeding videos attaching your baby at the breast
- Hand-expression – This video guides mothers through how to hand express, and talks about the times when hand expression might be useful.
- The ‘Baby Friendly’ website has lots of resources for parents as well as professionals
- Best Beginnings – From bump to Breastfeeding
- Nils Bergman –Skin contact video
- Biological Nurturing/ Laid back feeding:
- Information on medications and breastfeeding
- Twins and More
- Independent information relating to formula
- PHA NI Bottlefeeding booklet – how to safely prepare formula, responsive feeding and types of milks
Breastfeeding support groups in the Southern Trust have been suspended at present. For support please see below:
Breastfeeding Peer Support Volunteers in the Trust
Read about our Breastfeeding Peer Support Volunteers here.
World Breastfeeding Week
We celebrated World Breastfeeding Week in 2018 and met with lots of mums and babies in Rushmere Shopping Centre and The Quays Shopping Centre, Newry.