Baby Weaning and You With Rebecca Reed

podcast Oct 10, 2022

by Dr Ruth Allan | 10 October 2022

Rebecca Reed joins Dr. Ruth Allan on the 50th Episode of Brain Health: Unchaining Your Pain and 10th Episode in series 3

Rebecca, founder of Siendo, is a mental health and wellbeing trainer, speaker and advocate. Rebecca launched Siendo to give people the knowledge, tools and confidence they need to support their own wellbeing at every stage of their lives

Rebecca delivers Mental Health First Aid and Suicide First Aid training, Workplace Mindfulness Training and she offers a wide-range of wellbeing talks to organisations of all sizes

In this Episode, Rebecca talks about her changes in relation to her self-identity and self-worth as she went through pregnancy to becoming a mum. She and Ruth both discuss their very different birthing experiences, and how this impacted their perspective in life

Rebecca discusses her struggle with coming to terms with not being able to breastfeed, after her milk dried up trying to keep up with the demands of her baby. She lays out the simple, yet powerful wellbeing steps she took to find her way out of the darkness of the deep post-weaning depression she experienced as a result of the dramatic drop in her milk supply to restore the balance of her hormonal levels and reconnect with her child again

Society or mum's often place a huge amount of expectation on themselves around the commonly used slogan 'breast is best'. Yet breast isn't always best, as a baby's survival is dependent on the decisions taken by a parent, and if that means bottle feeding to ensure their survival, then that's ok.

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Listen to Episode 050 with Rebecca Reed and Dr Ruth on Apple Podcasts

Disclaimer: The content in the podcast and on this webpage is not intended to constitute, or be a substitute for professional medical advice, diagnosis, or treatment.

Connect with Rebecca Reed

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Connect with Dr Ruth

Related episodes, books and websites discussed during the episode

Discussed in this podcast

  • 3.19 - What optimal brain health means for Rebecca: founded on self-worth

  • 5.35 - The thief of comparison when becoming a parent!

  • 7.10 - Rebecca's journey to becoming a mental health advocate

  • 10.10 - Breast feeding experience and experience of post-weaning depression
  • 12.20 - You can't run forward in life if there's a bungee cord pulling you back to your past: the risk of opening up a 'mental health pandora's box' by coaches not equipped to manage it
  • 15.20 - When Rebecca's 'mental health pandora's box' was opened on her journey to becoming a mum
  • 25.00 - The impact of stress, nutritional choices and toxic load on pregnant mums on their baby
  • 27.40 - The birthing experience (not in too much graphic detail!): how Rebecca went into active labour incredibly quickly and how this built her resilience
  • 31.50 - Ruth's birthing experience - a very different one to Rebecca
  • 35.10 - Rebecca's experience post birth: the tectonic shift from her core identity
  • 38.50 - Breastfeeding challenges, including tongue-tie, the lost of identity when pumping to generate milk, and subsequent post-weaning depression
  • 42.20 - The weight of responsibility when becoming a new mum to effectively raise your child
  • 43.30 - The impact of Rebecca stopping breast-feeding in a week on her mental health, due to her milk running out: feeling smothered in darkness and out of control, crying uncontrollably. Her fear of having suicidal thoughts again
  • 46.50 - The change in the attachment to her child when her milk ran out
  • 48.40 - The impact on Rebecca's self-worth when she stopped breastfeeding
  • 51.10 - Sometimes breast isn't best
  • 54.00 - Rebecca's key steps of getting out of the darkness from having post-weaning depression: meditation, going back to the gym, talking to her family and friends about how she was feeling, nutrition, including removing sugar, dairy and gluten, skin-on-skin contact with baby to reinvigorate connection and watching funny shows
  • 1.04.40 - Simple steps to take to take back control: Touch, making eye contact, giving hugs, music, laughter.

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DISCLAIMER: Please always seek the advice of your general practitioner or other qualified healthcare provider with any questions you may have regarding a medical condition. Never disregard professional medical advice or delay in seeking it because of something you have heard on the podcast or on my website.

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