Peer supporters?

[Yorky]

Has anyone trained as, or used a breastfeeding peer supporter?

How did you get in touch with them, when and why? Did you find it helpful?
What did the course involve - time and content?

Having breastfed my2 children I would quite like to help other women but am not sure if this is a good way to do it as I have never had contact with a supporter.

Please share your experiences, many thanks

Wow, really strange just posted this elsewhere:

In my area the local NHS PCT trust fund courses for those who are interested. I trained as a volunteer supporter using this route. The course is extensive and covers, I am told, the same content as the NCT. It also includes a CRB check and registers you on the local PCT insurance etc. It might be a route worth pursuing?

The hours are awkward, the pay is zero but the reward of seeing mother and baby successfully bond and feed is amazing.

Good luck.

In terms of your original post:

I was supported by a peer support group when I had my DD. I was referred to them day 6 of leaving hospital. Without their help I would not have continued to feed. I was/am really grateful for the assistance they gave me. Which is why I signed up to be trained when the opportunity arose.

The first course I took was spread over 8 weeks consisting of 20 hours of knowledge. We had to create a project around a subject relating to breastfeeding and present to all other trained mums. Then it involved a CRB, Occupational health review and some contract signing. We have a regular monthly update meeting to discuss the latest findings and I have been lucky enough to start the UNICEF baby friendly programme since joining.

We meet twice a week and each new mum is assigned a peer supporter that is their primary point of contact.

Before you start it might be worth checking out some groups in your area and see which 'ethos' you prefer. I have been to a couple of similar groups since and they can have very unique dynamics.

Let me know if you need anymore.

Thank you princess, interesting that similar subjects pop up together after being quiet for ages!

I have contacted the breastfeding network and am trying to get in touch with their local rep.
When you say try local groups to check out the ethos do you mean La leche, NCT etc. Are there any others I should be googling?

I will be training as a peer supporter with my local surestart children's centre soon. They usually run BF support groups, and I'd say they need more promotion because their website system is not very good at the moment for finding information. If you can find your local children's centre and enquire as to whether they have a breastfeeding support group, please do put the time and venue up on Mumsnet local or Netmums etc.

Also I think that the children's centres are more involved with local HVs etc, which is what swayed me as I felt that misinformed HVs and midwives are the biggest problem for breastfeeding mums, so if they feel confident to defer to a breastfeeding supporter, because there are a few available, I think that would help. Also there is also very good NCT support in my local area, I know because I used it

Interesting what you say about ill informed health care professionals Bertie, my only experience of mws and bfing is being left to get on with it after hb which suited me fine. My long term aim is to qualify as a midwife, the breastfeeding peer supporting is to study something related so as to hopefully improve chances of acceptance onto course when DC are older, and do something useful and meet people in between.

I'm currently training as one, through sure start with BFN(breast feeding network). I've only done two weeks so can't tell you an awful lot except it's interesting, fun, informative and so far not too difficult/taxing on the brain.

The course is 12 weeks long and like allstarsprincess's course you come away with a CRB. You have to devote some of your time, once trained, to helping in a sure start centre at a breastfeeding clinic/workshop.

I would recommend looking in your local children's centre and see what they've got on or ask about others centres locally.

Local children's centre it is then! Will try and get DC to napa bit erlier on MOnda so we can goto stay and play.

Were there any particular criteria you had to fulfil to be accepted on the course Pineapple?

The only thing, as far as I remember, is commiting to give some of your time, once trained, in a beastfeeding clinic.

I don't even think you had to have breastfed your own children or even have had any children but I may be talking rubbish here because I can't remember exactly.

Hi Yorky, I nagged my local surestart (as did a few other breastfeeding mum's) and our breastfeeding co-ordinator managed to get one organised. We're about half way through it.
For us it is 2 hours a week, for 14 weeks.
We've been looking at topics such as

• how we produce milk
• postioning/latch
• cultural/physical/social/psychological impediments to breastfeeding
• weaning from the breast and how to support this It has been really interesting.

We've all got a CRB check to do, I am not exactly sure what happens once we complete the course, but we will be visiting different breastfeeding groups, and I think we will be visiting new mums as well.

Don't no about others, but for our course, you had to have breastfed at least one child.

There is quite a few extended breastfeeders amongst the class which is nice.

I trained as one when my little girl was about 1. I found the course useful as I had no experience of breastfeeding whatsoever before I'd had my little girl and generally the sort of knowledge you need isn't generally available except the 'breast is best' hour they do at ante-natal classes. I think that everyone needs a bit more basic knowledge than that.

However, I have to say that I helped at our local group for 2 years afterwards but I have never helped anyone to breastfeed. All the other people who came regularly did the course also and those who popped in for advice did so only because they wanted to stop and change onto artificial milk.

Shosha, how disappointing. Was the group not well-advertised? I know our local one isn't and hardly anybody ever comes to it, but I have been to another local one and saw quite a few more mums of newborns and young babies who came either for advice or just the supportive atmosphere.

I am trying to spread the word about the neglected group now

Soshana, one of the main aims of peer support is to create a culture of breastfeeding acceptance, to normalise it.

The one to one help you say you did not give is not really the primary objective, as I understand it.

Peer supporters are living proof that you don't have to be weird or different to bf. The existence of groups proves that bf is an option - even to women who never actually attend them.

By doing the course you are helping to change attitudes and outlook - so you should feel good about that, I think

marking place

have signed up for bf peer supporter course just recently

off out now but will be back

Made it to our local children's centre today and the lady is willing to run a course - she needs 6 people for it to be viable and I'm the 5th name on the list!
How disappointing and frustrating Shosha, I'm sure the groups need better advertising as I've fed 2 children for a combined total of 27months and have never been to a BF support group