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Inspired by our experiences of Irish Maternity units, this is a campaign led by four mothers to improve Irish breastfeeding support services.

24/06/2026

Yesterday we attended the Feeding the Future: 2026 Update event in Leinster House, hosted by the Baby Feeding Law Group.

It was an important opportunity to hear the latest developments in infant feeding policy and to continue advocating for evidence-based breastfeeding support for families across Ireland.

28/05/2026

Cathy, Dublin

I had a wonderful time feeding my two when they were babies. I put a lot of effort into educating myself in advance of my first birth, and was lucky not to have much difficulty with establishing feeding. I had lots of support from my husband at the start, and encouragement from my aunties as my mum passed away when I was 19.

The challenges came when I went back to work. I developed bad separation anxiety, and I was quite unwell for about 9 months. Pumping and breastfeeding helped me feel connected to my daughter through this time and helped me survive. However, my husband found looking after her when I was working (especially at night) very distressing and blamed breastfeeding.

When it came to back to work with my son I asked for shift accommodations which were not given easily. It caused me a lot of stress and I felt very unsupported. I still managed to feed both my children until two and a half, which I am very proud of. I would love to see more support for natural term breastfeeding and normalising feeding older children.

13/05/2026

Kim, Wicklow

"The start of my breastfeeding journey was incredibly difficult and isolating. I felt lost and overwhelmed by the challenges. The support from fellow breastfeeding friends and volunteer breastfeeding groups changed everything for me. Their encouragement helped me finally establish feeding and successfully reach my breastfeeding goals."

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We’re starting a new storytelling series at Bainne Beatha, inspired by Humans of Ireland (remember 2014?!), sharing real stories of infant feeding support.

We’re looking for:
• A photo that represents your feeding journey
• A short reflection in 50 words or less about the support you received while feeding your baby

For some families, support made all the difference.
For others, support was missing, inconsistent, or difficult to access. We want to hear both.

By sharing real experiences, we hope to build a fuller picture of what feeding support looks like for parents, and why better support matters.

Support can come from a midwife, partner, friend, lactation consultant, peer supporter, family member, or from someone who simply showed up when you needed them most.

If you’d like to take part, send us your photo and short piece by DM or email [email protected].

Selected stories will be shared on our page over the coming weeks.

08/05/2026

Deborah - Wicklow

"I had an incredibly difficult start to breastfeeding and didn't get the support I needed. I left the hospital triple feeding: breastfeeding, pumping and formula feeding. Lots of tears and money later, I hired an IBCLC and my breastfeeding journey was saved at 7 weeks. Then I met other mums and found out that many of us had similar experiences. This led me to start Bainne Beatha with other mums to advocate for others to get better support than I did.

On my second baby, it was a quiet weekend on the wards and some very kind and attentive midwives gave me the support I needed to latch. I left the hospital exclusively breastfeeding. I wish everyone had the same experience."

07/05/2026

We’re starting a new storytelling series at Bainne Beatha, inspired by Humans of Ireland (remember 2014?!), sharing real stories of infant feeding support.

We’re looking for:
• A photo that represents your feeding journey
• A short reflection in 50 words or less about the support you received while feeding your baby

For some families, support made all the difference. For others, support was missing, inconsistent, or difficult to access. We want to hear both.

By sharing real experiences, we hope to build a fuller picture of what feeding support looks like for parents, and why better support matters.

Support can come from a midwife, partner, friend, lactation consultant, peer supporter, family member, or from someone who simply showed up when you needed them most.

If you’d like to take part, send us your photo and short piece by DM or email [email protected].

Selected stories will be shared on our page over the coming weeks.

05/05/2026

Today is International Day of the Midwife.

At Bainne Beatha, we asked mothers about their early feeding experiences.
60% told us they received breastfeeding support from a midwife.

Early, skilled support can shape a mother’s confidence, her feeding journey, and her experience of the first days with her baby.

Midwives are present at a critical time, offering guidance, protection, and care when it is needed most. This work deserves recognition and proper support.

Today, we want to acknowledge the midwives who show up for mothers and babies every day.

Please help us recognise them
• Tag a midwife who supported you
• Share a moment that made a difference
• Or simply say thank you

If you are a midwife in this community, we would really like to hear from you.

04/03/2026

We are seeking new volunteers to join our team.

Bainne Beatha is an established grassroots movement working to improve postnatal and community breastfeeding supports through advocacy and research. Our report led to the Minister for Health committing €1.58m to recruit lactation consultants for every maternity unit in the country, and we were instrumental in establishing the first Oireachtas committee focused on breastfeeding. As the work continues to grow, we’re expanding our team.

We’d love to hear from mothers who might like to contribute skills (primarily in social media, organising and admin) but advocacy, communications, lived experience and energy are also valued.

If you’re interested in getting involved, please complete the short survey in our bio so we can understand your interests and availability.

There’s no heavy commitment at this stage, just an expression of interest.

Please feel free to share with anyone who might resonate.

Thank you!

Address

Dublin

Website

http://tinyurl.com/bainnebeathapadlet

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