A mum from Northern Ireland has opened up about her experience after giving birth to her twins prematurely in Altnagelvin Hospital.
Margaret Darcy, whose twins have now been in the Derry-based hospital for over 11 weeks, gave birth to Ellen and Hugh in May after they entered the world at 29 weeks. A 'full term' pregnancy is between 37 and 42 weeks, according to the NHS.
As part of breastfeeding awareness month, Ms Darcy has shared her journey through the neonatal unit and her experience of the hospital's tongue-tie service.
Read more: Belfast woman urges breastfeeding mums not to put up with pain and seek help
Tongue-tie (ankyloglossia) is where the strip of skin connecting the baby's tongue to the bottom of the mouth is shorter than usual. In some cases, if not corrected, it can restrict the tongue's movement, making it harder to breastfeed.
Speaking ahead of potentially being discharged from the hospital, Margaret said: "We've had our ups and downs along the way but from very early on we were very encouraged to do skin to skin and initially I had expressed and then used the hospital pump.
"From about 32 weeks, they began to latch and we noticed that they had a tongue-tie, so that was snipped here in the unit.
"And really from then, they just little by little gone from strength to strength and we're thrilled for them. We've had great support here [at Altnagelvin Hospital's neonatal unit]."
A spokesperson for the Western Trust said: "The Western Trust is a Unicef Baby Friendly Accredited Trust and that means we support and protect breastfeeding.
"In some cases, your baby may have a tongue-tie which impacting on breastfeeding. In those cases, your midwife or health visitor may refer you to the midwife-led tongue-tie service. The service is now available at Altnagelvin Hospital and South West Acute Hospital."
The Trust will also be supporting ‘The Big Latch on’ breastfeeding event on Saturday 6 August 2022 with information and support available to mothers on the day. For further information on breastfeeding and how you can help support breastfeeding mothers visit www.breastfedbabies.org.
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