Congratulations on your pregnancy or the arrival of your new baby! This is where you can learn all about me so that you can be sure that I have the right knowledge and skills to support you. If you are here browsing my website, it is likely that you are in the throes of overcoming some feeding or sleep challenges with your little one/s. I am here to be the gentle and nurturing support that you need to help you to navigate these hurdles. I have been where you are now with my three children, I know how overwhelming everything can feel and how disheartening and all consuming that it can feel when you are experiencing challenges with either feeding or sleep.
Experiencing painful breastfeeding? Baby having slow weight gain? Wanting to introduce a bottle but don’t know how?
Battling hourly night waking or poor daytime napping?
These are just a few of the things that I can support you with in the early years with your little one.
I am a Midwife, International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and holistic sleep coach, supporting families around the Berkshire, Hampshire and Surrey borders. I am also mum to three amazing children who have taught me so much about parenting and how individual each little person can be, even from before they are born.
Professional background
Professionally, I have been a Midwife since 2003, initially working as a rotational hospital based Midwife until 2012. It was following the birth of our 2 sons that I decided to specialise and join the infant feeding team. My own experiences with breastfeeding and the incredible support that I had received from the wonderful Midwife (who had been my mentor during my midwifery training), had made me realise my immense passion for providing timely and compassionate breastfeeding support. From September 2018 – October 2021, I worked as the infant feeding lead Midwife, this enabled me to further enhance my knowledge and skills in all areas of infant feeding and, with my amazing team, we were proud to be able to successfully lead the maternity unit on their Unicef Baby Friendly Initiative reassessment in 2019.
Becoming an IBCLC
I had begun studying for the International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) qualification in 2015. We then welcomed our daughter to our family in 2016 and there followed the trickiest of my 3 breastfeeding experiences. Despite the challenges we faced, including a long battle with sore nipples (at the time we thought it was thrush!), I continued to breastfeed until she was over 2 years old. Meanwhile, I continued studying towards my IBCLC qualification (often whilst breastfeeding my daughter!). I sat the examination in October 2018, proudly receiving my certification in December 2018.
See Feeding support to explore how I can help you.
Becoming an holistic sleep coach
I am always on the lookout to broaden my knowledge and skills in order to best support the families that I meet. Throughout 2022, I studied the Holistic Sleep Coaching Programme (HSCP) with BabyEm. The course is developed and led by the incredibly knowledgeable Lyndsey Hookway, with a truly holistic approach and a strong focus on family centred care, attachment and responsiveness. Studying this course felt like such a vital next step for me. The challenges with feeding and sleeping had been the two biggest struggles of my own early parenting experiences, something that I know I am not alone in feeling. For this reason, it means so much to me to be able to be the support that I so very much needed when my children were younger.
See my Sleep Coaching page to learn more.
My Qualifications and governing bodies
- BSc Hons Midwifery and Health Sciences – Registered Midwife with the NMC
- International Board Certified Lactation Consultant – IBCLE
- Infant Allergies, Reflux and Colic – OCN Level 4
- Holistic Sleep Coaching – OCN Level 6
- Insurance with Holistic Insurance Services
- DBS checked
- Member of LCGB
- Member of the ABM