Complaining to your hospital if you weren't supported to breastfeed

[hunkermunker]

Did you?

What was the outcome?

If not, why didn't you? What would have made it easier for you to complain?

(I do understand there are many and various reasons why women don't complain, btw - I'm not having a go at you if you didn't! Just want to know how to make it easier for women to talk about their experiences)

It is no good at all maternity units or the health service doing their own quality survey - they will not get an honest answer.

In addition, a tick-box questionnaire is useless.

In my experience, talking about people's breastfeeding help and support is a skilled task, involving sensitive and careful listening. I hear the most awful examples of so-called help and support every day, and in many instances, the mothers themselves do not realise just how crap the support was. They have a struggle to breastfeed - they blame themselves and/or their bodies.

In fact, I often hear something like 'the midwives were marvellous - they tried every way to get him latched, I must have had about a dozen trying to get him on' or 'the midwife was great - she took him away to give him a bottle' or 'the health visitor was very kind - she explained I was starving him and told me my breastmilk was poor quality, but I wasn't to blame myself,' and so on.