Local breastfeeding group to celebrate 1st birthday this weekend

Breastfeeding mums and mums-to-be from across the county are invited to join the Cuidiú Offaly Breastfeeding Support Group in Tullamore Library this Saturday, November 25 at 10.30am to celebrate the group’s first birthday.

The Offaly branch of the national breastfeeding and parenting support charity was founded last year by local mum Jasmine Elkhershi and Cuidiú Breastfeeding Counsellor Carolina von Ow from Geashill.

The group has enjoyed a busy first year, hosting several meetings a month in ‘The Space’ in Tullamore library. Bumps, babies and older children are welcome at the group’s informal meetings where both new and experienced mums meet up to chat about breastfeeding over tea and cake.

“Breastfeeding has lifelong health benefits for both mother and baby, but unfortunately it doesn’t always go smoothly,” said Cuidiú Offaly chairperson Jasmine Elkhershi. “The 2022 Bainne Bheatha study highlighted lack of support as the main reason many mums in Ireland stop breastfeeding before they are ready. This is where Cuidiú Offaly comes in.”

The group boasts two trained Cuidiú Breastfeeding Counsellors who provide expert breastfeeding support via telephone as well as in person at Cuidiú’s meetings in Tullamore. As well as this peer support, Offaly mums can avail of free professional breastfeeding support from HSE lactation consultant Patricia Marteinsson.

“Only last year there was no community breastfeeding support available here in Offaly and now we have this thriving community of mums supporting each other, as well as professional support from Patricia,” said co-founder Carolina von Ow.

This has proven to be a winning combination for Offaly mothers. “Good, practical support in the community is vital for mothers to achieve their breastfeeding goals, whether they are exclusively breastfeeding, combination feeding or pumping,” said chairperson Jasmine Elkhershi.

“We can really see this being borne out by the statistics as well. One of the highlights of the last year was that Offaly had the highest rate in Ireland of women continuing to breastfeed at three months postpartum. To have 100% of mums continuing to breastfeed is just incredible.”

The future looks bright, too, as four more Cuidiú Offaly members are currently training to be Cuidiú Breastfeeding Counsellors. Breastfeeding mums or mums-to-be who are interested in breastfeeding are encouraged to drop in to this Saturday’s meeting or one of Cuidiú Offaly’s regular meetings, which are held on Thursdays and Saturdays. Dates and details can be found on Cuidiú Offaly’s social media accounts @cuidiuoffaly.