Infant Nurture

In Australia, roughly 250,000 women return to work each year after giving birth, and around half of these have babies less than 12 months old.

Research shows that return to work is associated with weaning 3-4 months sooner than the mother had wanted to.

Breastfeeding after return to work is important for both mother and baby; the antibodies in breastmilk provide protection against infections, and breastfeeding offers a way to reconnect and ease feelings of separation anxiety in mother and/or baby.

For these reasons and more, it is important that the employer plays an active part in supporting women who return to work and wish to continue breastfeeding.

Want to know more? Contact [email protected] to book your breastfeeding return to work seminar today!

Meet the face behind the name!

My name is Kerry, and I love supporting breastfeeding parents to reach their breastfeeding goals.

My career as a breastfeeding supporter started when I was 2 years old and wearing my ‘breastfed is best fed’ t-shirt, took pride in handing out brochures at the breastfeeding classes my mum used to run for midwives. I grew up listening to mum help solve all sorts of breastfeeding challenges, and later, when I breastfed my own babies and started helping other parents myself, I realised that most of the challenges over the decades were exactly the same.

Do I have enough milk?
How do I prevent sore ni***es?
Why is my baby crying?
Can I return to work and still breastfeed?

I loved helping parents find solutions to their challenges, and in doing so empowering them to breastfeed with confidence.

I helped support parents with breastfeeding alongside a high-pressure role in the corporate world for about 10 years but when I was affected by layoffs in late 2020 it gave me a rare opportunity to take stock, connect with my purpose and passion, and consciously decide, “What next?”

I always loved the science behind breastmilk. The fact that breastmilk cells can “eat” cancer cells; that specific antibodies are produced when either mother or baby are exposed to germs; that fewer babies die of SIDS when they are breastfed; that breastmilk has stem cells.. and so it goes on. It truly amazed me.

I got stuck though on how to turn this passion into viable business. One day, I was listening to a podcast by Simon Griffiths, founder of Who Gives a Crap, a social enterprise business who sells toilet paper in developed nations and donates 50% of profits to building dunnies in developing nations. Light bulb moment! I knew what I could do.

Knowing that 820,000 children’s lives could be saved every year if all children were optimally breastfed (source: WHO), I decided I could deliver Breastfeeding & Return to Work seminars in developed nations and donate 50% of profits to breastfeeding support organisations in developing nations. Supporting businesses to support breastfeeding parents helps maintain workplace diversity, improves morale, supports employee retention and improves health outcomes for babies. Donating to breastfeeding support organisations in developing nations improves survival rates in vulnerable children. It’s a win-win-win!

I can’t wait to continue with breastfeeding support and make the world a better place at the same time.

If you’d like a Breastfeeding & Return to Work seminar at your workplace, contact me on [email protected]. I’d love to help you out.

If you have returned to the paid workforce, study or other commitments, you may be pumping at your workplace to provide milk for your baby.

It can be harder to trigger the letdown reflex or milk flow when expressing, especially if you are in a cold, sterile environment.

Try warming yourself up with a wheat bag or some extra clothing, look at a photo of your baby or smell an article of their clothing, and take a few moments to relax with some deep breathing before you start.

Did you know...

Of the under-5 deaths that could be prevented in the 42 countries with 90% of worldwide child deaths, exclusive breastfeeding is the leading intervention.

Although over 90% of women initiate breastfeeding in these developing nations, exclusive breastfeeding rates remain low.

Infant Nurture is a social enterprise business with 50% of profits donated to breastfeeding support organisations in developing nations.

Help us to help them; book your breastfeeding and return to work seminar today!

email [email protected]

Did you know...

Employees who are breastfeeding may experience discrimination at work if employers do not provide reasonable measures to assist or support breastfeeding. By not providing breastfeeding and expressing facilities and flexible lactation breaks an organisation may be discriminating against breastfeeding women and may be breaking the law.

Do you know how to support breastfeeding parents in their return to work? We can help.

contact: [email protected]