A café culture for nursing mothers continues to grow from strength-to-strength and the organisers of the project are calling on more companies to offer facilities to host the gatherings for new parents.
Breastfeeding cafés are being regularly held in coffee shops, hospitals and workplaces and offer a vital networking and advice facility, as well as a way to make new friends.
“The cafés are free for breastfeeding mums to attend and it is a great support for them to meet other women,” said Penny White, birth and post-partum doula and breastfeeding counsellor.
“We discuss many things, not just breastfeeding, and it never fails to surprise us that you can have a room full of women from all over the world, from such different backgrounds, but we all connect and support each other.
“I don’t think we have been surprised by the success as it is such a wonderful, inclusive environment - we just wish more people could be a part of it!”
The British mother-of-three, who came to Bahrain 10 years ago, helps organise the Breastfeeding in Bahrain café concept with fellow experts Rasha Kurmastaji, breastfeeding counsellor and educator, newborn care specialist and Dr Zainab Al-Moshen – a family doctor and a member of the International Board of Lactation Consultant Examiners (IBCLC).
“It’s really a great way for new mothers to share their experiences and receive expert advice in a safe and friendly environment,” added Mrs White.
“I cannot tell you how many times someone has mentioned something and someone they never met before agrees with them, or has advice to give them from personal experience.
“The BF cafés are used by locals and expats for support. We have expats who are thousands of miles away from family and friends who just need to connect with people and we have locals who may not be having a supportive home environment, or just want to meet other mums.
“Sometimes people come with very specific questions such as how to carry on feeding when they go back to work, or how to stop feeding, and other times they come because it is a nice morning out!
“The cafes are hosted by two members of the Breastfeeding in Bahrain team, always with at least one Bahraini in attendance to make sure that as many people as possible can attend.
“We usually meet once a fortnight at different venues throughout Bahrain. Company owners are very supportive - providing us with refreshments and space. We try and make sure that our cafe locations are private so that everyone feels comfortable feeding. If it is the first time feeding in public, then it can be very daunting, so that is a big consideration.
‘We actually have more mums tells us of problems back in their own country with feeding in public then here in Bahrain. As long as mums are respectful of local customs and feed with modesty then there really are no issues here.
“That’s another reason why mums come to the cafes and why we take them out to different venues.
“It gives them confidence to feed in public and companies get a real benefit from being supportive of mums and baby feeding. In fact, in response to feeling more comfortable one of our mums has made a breastfeeding abaya which gives complete modesty - we are a clever, talented bunch of women!
‘All of the administrators are trained in supporting women and we feel passionately that there is so much more that can be done.
“We would love to work with more businesses to show them how supporting mothers has a real positive impact on their success as a company.
‘We would love to host more breastfeeding cafes in different environments, in a corporate setting or more hospitals - if companies are seen to be promoting women then think how powerful that makes them - the message that they as an employer is sending to their staff - and other companies that they work with - would be a pretty amazing one.”
A Breastfeeding Café was recently staged at Royal Bahrain Hospital and another will be held in Seef shortly and the organisers are ‘always open’ to new locations.
Anything between four to 20 mums attend the gatherings. “I hope they feel really positive about it,” said Mrs White. “We quite often run over as we are talking so much. We have a lot of mums who come again and again as they feel it’s a really good resource.”
There is strong research support that breast milk is the most appropriate nourishment for most infants. Those who are breastfed have lower rates of hospital admissions, ear infections, diarrhea and rashes, for example.
Tips for new mothers include how to anticipate baby's desires, get comfortable while nursing, relax, take care of their skin and help the help the infant find the right position and, importantly, not to worry.
However, the group is not crusading against or stigmatising mums who cannot breastfeed or decide not to.“
It is completely a matter of choice as to how you feed your baby,” said Mrs White, who formula fed her first child as she was premature and because it was ‘the quickest way to get her home’. She breastfed her other two daughters for 11 months and 19 months respectively.
“Two of us at Breastfeeding in Bahrain have formula-fed so we are not in any position to tell mums that they are doing the wrong thing by choosing that method,” she added. “As we all know, we are designed to feed our children breast milk, it is better for their stomachs and gives both mother and child long-term health benefits.
“It’s cheap. It’s readily available – no need to heat up a bottle or make sure you have enough supplies when you go out – breast milk is just there. But for some it is hard, they are not told the right information, supported when the baby is born, or they contact us for help when it is too late and there is an infection or soreness.
“Breastfeeding can take time to get used which some people find difficult to believe … but they need to remember that both mother and baby are learning. That is why Breastfeeding in Bahrain is so important – we give advice, support, we understand how difficult things can be – we are trained to support women when they really are their most fragile, when they are mums.”
New mum Emma Whinnery-Alshaikh said: “I’ve only been to one café so far but I'll definitely go again. There was a friendly and relaxed atmosphere with great company and two very knowledgeable ladies running it who answered all the questions.”
Former resident and supporter Kayla Alexander added: “I went to my first café when I was pregnant and it inspired me so much to breastfeed. I knew I had a great resource and a supportive group of mums to talk with for encouragement and advice. It was also a great way to meet friends on the island.”
As reported in the Gulf Daily News and on GDNonline, Bahrain has already adopted the Global Strategy for Infant and Young Child Feeding and implemented the International Code of Marketing of breast milk substitutes.
· If you wish to host a Breastfeeding Café or attend an event, email pitstopwhite@yahoo.co.uk
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