Dear NHS,

With regard to promoting breastfeeding, you’re all talk, but very little walk.

Why spend so much time and money promoting breastfeeding to pregnant women when such a large number of mummies are left floundering when their baby is actually here, when it actually comes to the physical act of breastfeeding? All bark, no bite.

Thank goodness for independent organisations (La Leche League, love ya), for all the mummies who struggle themselves and turn this struggle & experience into becoming a peer support worker to help guide & empower other mummies, for (dare I say it) the amazing Facebook support groups set up to fill in the huge chasm that exists between perinatal NHS breastfeeding support, and postnatal NHS breastfeeding support.

There is a glaring deficit taking new mothers by surprise; 9 months of confidently preparing to breastfeed, ruined within weeks or even days when the anticipated NHS guidance never materialises. Short staffing, busy staff, even midwives flippantly telling mums to ‘just formula feed’ as they themselves aren’t sure how to help your screaming baby latch properly.

Not that I mean to generalise – of course there are plenty of mums who’ve had adequate support, and of course there are many NHS angels who are gems. However, the statistics are telling, they speak for themselves.

NHS, if you’re going to continue promoting breastfeeding as ardently as you do, follow it through to the end. Stop leaving vulnerable new mums hanging, stop making formula feeding feel ‘inevitable’, invest in postnatal support more and you will see breastfeeding statistics drastically improve.

Love from a mummy you badly let down. Xx