Elsevier

Women and Birth

Volume 36, Issue 4, July 2023, Pages e388-e396
Women and Birth

Breastfeeding in the pandemic: A qualitative analysis of breastfeeding experiences among mothers from Canada and the United Kingdom

https://doi.org/10.1016/j.wombi.2023.01.002Get rights and content
Under a Creative Commons license
open access

Abstract

Background

Previous research shows that the COVID-19 pandemic resulted in both barriers and facilitators to breastfeeding. However, little research has looked specifically at first-time mothers’ experiences of breastfeeding during the pandemic or compared experiences of mothers living in different countries.

Aim

This research explores mothers’ breastfeeding experiences to describe how the COVID-19 pandemic has affected breastfeeding journeys in Canada and the United Kingdom.

Methods

Ten semi-structured online interviews were undertaken with first-time mothers who breastfed their baby at least once during the COVID-19 pandemic and are living in Canada or the United Kingdom. Interview transcripts were coded inductively using thematic analysis.

Findings

One overarching theme (all on mother) and four sub-themes were identified: 1) accessing and advocating for health care, 2) social support, 3) becoming a mother in isolation, and 4) breastfeeding baby. Similar themes were constructed for both countries.

Discussion

Mothers reported that diminished health care and social support created challenges in their breastfeeding journey. Many mothers reported receiving virtual breastfeeding support, which was largely experienced as unhelpful. Some mothers reported fewer distractions from visitors and more one-on-one time with their infant, which helped them to establish breastfeeding and a strong mother-infant bond.

Conclusion

In both Canada and the United Kingdom, new mothers need consistent, reliable health care and social support when breastfeeding. This study supports the need to protect breastfeeding support in the midst of a global emergency and beyond to ensure positive breastfeeding experiences for both mother and baby.

Keywords

Breastfeeding
Lactation
COVID-19
Breastfeeding support
Peer support
Health professional

Cited by (0)

1

ORCID ID: 0000-0003-2541-6072

2

ORCID ID: 0000-0002-1024-2594

3

ORCID ID: 0000-0002-5942-4444

4

ORCID ID: 0000-0001-7205-5869

5

ORCID ID: 0000-0002-0860-5392

6

ORCID ID: 0000-0002-0438-0157