"Exceptional visiting midwife"

After birthing in KEMH, I was laying there with baby on my chest thinking 'another baby I won't be able to breastfeed'. I had attachment issues with my 2 previous and I felt useless not being able to feed my babies from the breast. Sure enough, in the ward, I had lots of trouble attaching bub and positioning them correctly. I had support from the midwives on duty but I felt this was minimal as they seemed to be run off their feet! I kept trying and took their advice as it came but nothing seemed to be working. I thought, 'I would just keep trying at home and see if I can make an appointment for the breastfeeding centre to assist'. In my mind, I was already prepared for bottle and formula feeding.

The day after discharge, I received a message from the visiting midwife. 'Hi, it's Ben, your visiting midwife'. I was unsure how I felt about a male midwife. It turns out, I had nothing to worry about. He immediately started building a rapport with my whole family, and he made me feel at ease and comfortable from the word go. He acknowledged how physically and emotionally taxing breastfeeding can be and validated the hard work I was putting in. I found his techniques were easy to understand and made sense for my breast and body shape. He was calm, took his time and explained everything with his fun analogies. His visit was a breath of fresh air and it came just at the right time. Baby and I made the best progress that day and I felt I could do this for the first time since having him.

Ben returned the next day and was just as helpful with analysing and troubleshooting my overnight journey. He remembered all my family members names and engaged with all of us while still doing the job he was there to do. My child thought we had a new friend in the family and was asking for days afterwards, 'When is Ben coming Mumma?'

I am now back home and Ben is still checking in to track our progress. He has helped organise child health nurse visits and breastfeeding telehealth appointments. I never in a million years thought I would receive postnatal care like I have from Ben. I am the closest I have ever been with any of my children, to breastfeeding and it means so much to me to have come this far. None of which would have been possible without the nurturing support I have received from a single person, caring and passionate about what they do and the difference they can make.

Midwife Ben - I can never explain how much my family values the service you have provided us. Thank you for being passionate about your work, for showing up (even after exhausting days) to care for us on this journey and mostly, for being real! We can never express how grateful we are. I hope you know the difference you have made!