Show Notes
This week on the boobingit guest my special guest is international speaker, campaigner and author Zainab Yate. Zainab is a breastfeeding advocate and infant feeding research ethics specialist. She’s also a specialist on the complex topic of breastfeeding aversion and agitation having suffered from negative emotions whilst breastfeeding her own children.
Last year Zainab released her book about aversion, called ‘When Breastfeeding Sucks’ based on the research she did with thousands of breastfeeding people around the world. Her findings have shaped how we view breastfeeding aversion and have helped many seek help and be better understood by the breastfeeding supporters who work with them.
In our chat, Zainab explains what breastfeeding aversion is, how it can come about and what we can do to seek help and support. It's not always a case of needing or wanting to stop breastfeeding.
Zainab also talks openly about her own experiences of aversion with her two children, how it defined her early motherhood and why she struggled to tell anyone about it in the beginning. In her Iranian culture and as a Muslim woman, breastfeeding was assumed, and so for Zainab there was no other option but to breastfeed. She tells us how she found it difficult to describe what was happening to her and why this motivated her to do her own research into the phenomenon.
More from The boobingit podcast
In a special episode of the Boobingit Podcast, we sit down with Ashley James—TV presenter, broadcaster, DJ, and mum-of-two—to talk about the judgment parents face when it comes to feeding choices and why it’s time for change. Ashley first rose to fame on Made in Chelsea and has since built a successful career in broadcasting, regularly appearing on shows like This Morning and Good Morning Britain. As a passionate advocate for body confidence, mental health, and parenting rights, she has used her platform to speak openly about the realities of motherhood—including the highs and lows of breastfeeding. In this episode, we dive into the findings of a new report from MAM, which surveyed 1,000 British parents. The report found that 63% of parents face intense criticism in early parenthood – 17% for their baby’s public behaviour, 16% for feeding choices, and a growing 15% for using a dummy. Ashley shares her own experience with mum-shaming and online backlash, and we discuss why feeding choices—especially breastfeeding—continue to be such a divisive topic.
In this special Christmas episode of the boobingit podcast, Kathryn Stagg IBCLC discusses alcohol intake whilst breastfeeding.
In this episode we speak with Lucy Ruddle IBCLC about breastfeeding grief, and what that can look like for different people.
We're kicking off the 2024 series of the boobingit podcast looking at how we can create a breastfeeding legacy. Our special guest is mama of two and business owner Petrina O'Halloran.
In this Christmas special, we speak with Dr Afif El-Khuffash about everything you need to know about drinking alcohol whilst breastfeeding – during the festive season and beyond.