Zarina The Doula - providing care and support for mothers and babies

22/11/2025

Co sleeping is so normal in all parts of Asia…as a south asian we don’t see it as an issue or ever think of sleep training. This is clearly a western concept for the baby to fit your schedule than accepting or understanding them as individuals

Did you know that in Japan, over 70% of infants and toddlers co-sleep with their parents?

It’s not controversial.
It’s not something they hide.
It’s a tradition called *soine*, a sleep arrangement where baby sleeps between mother and father, like the character for “river.”

It’s done to promote security.
Not independence. Not training.
Security.

And in Japan, “sleep training” doesn’t even exist as a concept.
Night waking isn’t treated as a problem, no matter how a baby is fed.

Their SIDS rate?
0.2 per 1,000 births.

Compare that to the U.S., where SIDS rates are more than 30 times higher.

Some research suggests Japan’s low SIDS rate is related to their high rates of co-sleeping.

Dr. James McKenna, the world’s leading infant sleep researcher, spent 30 years studying this.
His research shows,

Babies who sleep close to their mothers have more stable breathing.
They wake more easily, which helps protect against deep, risky sleep.
Their sleep cycles sync with their mother’s.
They regulate better.
It’s not broken sleep.
It’s biologically normal sleep.

But somewhere along the way, Western culture sold us a different story:
That babies should sleep alone.
In a crib.
Through the night.
By 6 months.

That story was built in the 1950s
based on formula-feeding, isolated sleep, and adult centered routines.
It wasn’t based on biology.
It wasn’t based on connection.
And it’s not working.

Most babies don’t sleep through the night by 6 months.
Most parents who try sleep training eventually stop, because it doesn’t feel right.

Maybe the problem isn’t your baby.
Maybe it’s the expectation that babies should sleep like adults.

Your baby isn’t broken.
They’re waking because that’s what human babies do.
They’re following instincts that have kept our species alive.

Waking. Reaching. Responding.
That’s how connection grows.
That’s how brains build.
That’s what safety feels like to a baby.

So if you’re contact napping, co-sleeping
if you’re tired, touched out, and wondering if you're doing it wrong...

This is your reminder
You’re not failing.
You’re doing what humans have always done.
And your baby is doing exactly what they’re meant to do 🖤

16/11/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1Bk8rnFDgy/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Slate grey nevus, also known as blue-grey spots or congenital dermal melanocytosis, are a type of birthmark that are typically flat and blue-grey, or sometimes purple, in colour.

They are most common on babies with Black and Brown skin and are generally found on the sacrum and buttocks, but can also be observed on arms and legs.

Slate grey nevus are NOT bruises. They are simply the result of pigment cells, or melanocytes, not reaching the surface of the skin.⁣ They do not hurt and generally require no treatment; they often fade by the age of 4.

If you identify a slate grey nevus when doing a baby examination, or NIPE, it is important to document it. This is to avoid it later being mistaken for a bruise.

Finally - you may have heard these birthmarks called ‘Mongolian blue spots’. This is derogatory, racially insensitive terminology and should NOT be used. If you hear it used in practice, please take the time to correct it. We can all play our part in decolonising language and midwifery education.

📸: 💕

24/10/2025

Something that so many of us have unknowingly agreed to…sad to say

23/10/2025

Do you have breast milk which is surplus to your baby's needs? It could be donated to help premature babies in hospital neonatal intensive care and can help save lives.❤️ Becoming a milk donor is a simple process which our team can talk you through. It involves a blood test and questionnaire, and you will need to be:

⭐️A non-smoker / non-vaper

⭐️Able to express at least 2 litres of milk within a 10 week period, or have a freezer stash of surplus milk which was expressed in the last 10 weeks and frozen within 24 hours of being expressed.

⭐️Based in Hertfordshire, Norfolk, Suffolk, Essex, Kent, North London, Sussex, Bedfordshire or South Wales

⭐️If you are taking certain medications this may not be compatible with donating milk. Please contact our team for more information.

Taking the time to become a milk donor is an amazing step. You could be changing the lives of a tiny baby and their family forever.

If you can help please email info@heartsmilkbank.org or call our team on 01442 505 020.

Please share this post with any local groups and contacts.

There is more information on our website here: https://bit.ly/3IwzOsl. Thank you 🙏❤️

20/10/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/1JDHp3d6NB/?mibextid=wwXIfr

It’s wild when you think about it…
a mother’s body doesn’t just feed her baby..
it protects them.

If a breastfeeding mom is near someone sick,
someone sneezes, coughs, whatever..
her body starts creating antibodies within hours.
And those antibodies?
They show up right in her milk.
Exactly what her baby needs, right when they need it most.

That’s not just milk.
That’s connection.
That’s instinct.
That’s living medicine.

On tap.
On time.
On purpose.

Our bodies are incredible.
Motherhood really is science and soul mixed together.

20/10/2025

If anyone needs training… it’s parents.

Everything your little one does is BIOLOGICALLY normal.
It is what your baby was designed to do.

Frequent feeding? NORMAL
Always wanting to be in your arms? NORMAL
Hates sleeping alone aka the crib? NORMAL
Loves being rock? Considering the womb was a cradle…
yep totally NORMAL.

Now let me ask you this…

How often do YOU eat?
Do you like cuddling ?
What about sleeping alone?
If it were possible… wouldn’t you love to be rocked to sleep?

Babies aren’t meant to be trained.

We live in a society that rushes babies to grow up. From bouncers, to weaning off breast milk second solids enter the picture… everything is backwards.

Infants signal their needs for more than just food. They also need comfort, closeness and warmth… all of which they had in the womb.

Touch is fundamental to human communication, bonding, and health. As adults… we require human touch to thrive… and so do babies!

In just a short few years… your baby will be walking and exploring the world and they won’t need you as much as they do now.

So next time your little one is in need of your ‘assistance’ aka love and responsiveness, realize that they aren’t doing it to manipulate you or make you feel hopeless… they are doing it because they NEED you.

14/10/2025

https://www.facebook.com/share/17HZtBG7bK/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Did you know about homeopathy?
The original London Homoeopathic Hospital was established on October 10, 1849, although it did not receive its first patient until March of the following year. Founded by Frederick Foster Hervey Quin, the hospital was first located in Golden Square, Soho. After several revivals it is now known as the Royal London Hospital for Integrated Medicine, located at 60 Great Ormond Street, London.
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14/10/2025

Cranialsacral Fascia Therapy - CSFT

The most essential part of my Doula tool
Kit…Fascia, such a huge pathway back to health and wellness.
In my work I often combine this valuable therapy with my Postpartum Treatments which benefits your recovery immensely. During birth it can provide beneficial release and relief particularly during those difficult moments when fascia needs release in the areas it has become tangled and stuck…So many of you have benefited during crucial moments!
My family are obsessed and come to me one by one for so many things as mentioned in the slides above!
Let me know if you have any questions or would like to try it out too! Just DM me 🤩