“Breastfeeding hasn’t held me back from exploring the outdoors”

Breastfeeding was something I wanted to try and do, and I thought I had my plan in place. That is, until my little girl came along. There seems to be lots of advice and guidance whilst pregnant but once you have your baby in the world, the advice and guidance seems to just vanish.

My little girl was born with a tongue tie which, before she came along, I had never even heard of. I was told I couldn’t leave hospital until she had established feeding but she couldn’t establish feeding because of her tongue tie. I was put on a wait list for the procedure which I was told could be 2 weeks.

How was I going to feed her? Nobody knew the answer, the support just wasn’t there. So I researched, and booked in the procedure privately, one less stress to worry about. I was discharged once they knew this, and went straight from hospital to the doctor who was doing it. And ever since that day, feeding has been a dream.

The outdoors is my escape

The outdoors has been my escape for a while, and something me and my fiancé have always enjoyed as a couple. When I was pregnant I wondered how I would fit our passion into our new life and teach our little girl to love it too, especially as a breastfeeding mum. The answer? When she needs to be fed, feed.

My little girl has been fed up the high test mountain in South Wales, inside caves that we were exploring in the Lake District, on the Northumberland coastal path and everywhere in between.

To begin with I wasn’t confident breastfeeding outdoors but then something clicked. My maternal instinct kicked in and I fed her whenever she needed to be fed. My little girl has been fed up the high test mountain in South Wales, inside caves that we were exploring in the Lake District, on the Northumberland coastal path and everywhere in between.

There’s something special about breastfeeding outdoors and being in nature, doing the most natural thing that a mother can do. Even when I have been hiking without her, I have taken my pump and expressed. We know how magical that milk can be, I wasn’t wasting any of it.  Our feeding journey developed into this strong bond that we continue to share 18 months on.

Embrace every second of your journey

For anyone who is thinking about breastfeeding I would say, find good support networks. Whether this be online or in real life. And don’t feel pressured to stop, you stop feeding when you and your baby want to. This is your journey to look back on, and embrace every second.

Whether your baby needs feeding in a cafe, at a park or up a mountain 900m high, feel empowered enough to do with pride.

Whether your baby needs feeding in a cafe, at a park or up a mountain 900m high, feel empowered enough to do with pride. Because this magical journey won’t last forever, so enjoy every feed whilst you can.