Is breast always best? Can mastitis always be treated with cold cabbage leaves? And if we talk about the uptake of breastfeeding being too low, what does that even mean?  

In this episode of Bits of Me, I talk to podcaster and mother of one (very soon two) Laetitia Gordon-Furse, who went through hell pumping relentlessly for weeks when her first son ended up spending five weeks in NICU. She explains what it's like to spend days on end in 'the dairy' with industrial-style pumps, how the narratives surrounding breastfeeding impacted on her mentally, how long it took for her to make sense of it all and the post-natal depression that followed, and how she learnt to read her son's cues and bond with him while bottle feeding at home.

We also talk about the politics of it all: the lie that breastfeeding is free, the lacking supports post-natally and in society in general, and the damage the shaming of mothers does. You'll find the Nutshell article we talk about here, and the Emily Oster book Laetitia mentions is this one.

Also check out Laetitia's own podcast, New Leaf, which aims to support new mothers when they're going back to work, and check out the hashtag #mymotherhoodmychoice. You can also follow Laetitia and her podcast on Instagram.

Bits of Me is on Instagram here and on Twitter here. Any sharing, tagging, rating and reviewing is much appreciated. 

Music: Ice and Snow by Icreage, licensed by Soundstripe.

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