Mother to Mother breastfeeding support in New Zealand
Connect with a Leader near you
Questions or worries about breastfeeding? Our accredited La Leche League Leaders are experienced mothers who have been trained to provide information and support for breastfeeding. We can help over the phone, you can come along to our informal meetings, or ask a questions via email and on social media. All of this is free and confidential.
Find your local group
You can find details of our accredited breastfeeding helpers and group meetings across Aotearoa here.
Our mission is to help mothers to breastfeed through mother-to-mother support, education, information, and encouragement and to promote a better understanding of breastfeeding as an important element in the healthy development of the baby and mother.
Online Facebook Meetings
Meetings are held the last Tuesday of every month from 7:30pm
You can join us for breastfeeding support and information from the comfort of your own home – pyjamas and beverage of your choice optional.
No technical ability required, just join the meeting group and be online that evening.
We’d love to see you there.
Here's a snippet from one of the stories in Mamas in Lockdown... to read all the stories, pre-order your copy of Mamas in Lockdown here: ow.ly/8DWs50BLBBO...."that's when I heard her (NZ Prime Minister, Jacinda Ardern) say that today we will move to alert level 3, and on Thursday 26 March, New Zealand will be going into level 4 lockdown. We all needed to stay at home for an initial four weeks. I started to panic. I was 39 weeks pregnant. My baby boy due 2 April - seven days into lockdown. I immediately called my mum and messaged my friend, tears streaming down my face by this point, reality starting to sink in - I was having a baby in the middle of a worldwide pandemic. I was terrified"...... - Meagan's story
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🎉 October 17, 1956 🎉
🎉 The first La Leche League meeting! 🎉
🎉 HAPPY 64th BIRTHDAY 🎉
💚💚💚It is not uncommon for women struggling with milk production to describe feeling inadequate as mothers. This is where messages such as “breast is best” can be really unhelpful. We all want to do what is “best” for our babies. So when we aren’t able to breastfeed, we can feel like we are letting our baby down, and that they deserve better. Breastmilk is the biologically normal food for a baby, and is pretty darn amazing. But it is milk, not self-worth. Breastfeeding doesn't make you the "best" mother, and nor does not breastfeeding mean that you're the "worst".
If you view breastfeeding as a central part of your identity as a mother, not being able to breastfeed (or exclusively breastfeed) your baby can lead to feeling like you aren’t being the mother you want to be. And this might lead to you feeling like you are "failing".
Where there is a low milk supply, or difficulty triggering a letdown, a baby can often be very unsettled at the breast, or even refuse the breast all together. When you have been working so hard to breastfed, it can be heartbreaking if your baby refuses to feed or seems more satisfied by the supplement than by breastmilk. Feeling rejected by your baby can have a profound effect on the way you feel about yourself as a mother and undermine your maternal confidence.
Remember that your value to your baby is about far more than milk.
If you are feeling rejected by your baby, it is important to realise these feelings are your interpretation of your baby’s feeding behaviour, not the reality of how your baby feels about you. You know your baby better than anyone else. Your baby’s love and need for you are deep. You are your baby’s mother, no matter what. Whether your baby is fully breastfed, mix-fed or formula fed, you and your baby will always share a unique and special bond.
Which businesses do you know that would like to be part of the Mamas in Lockdown story? Send them the link: www.mamasinlockdown.nz/pledgemeWow! You guys are just amazing! We're close to $4.5k today, can we make it $5k? We've had three business sponsors so far... seven spots left... who do you know who'd like to snap up one of those? Send them the link to get their business reward, pre-order a book, or just Pledge $'s: www.mamasinlockdown.nz/pledgeme
I'm excited and feeling positive about this, so I've started to buy the post bags ready to send out your books!