Episode 29: Pregnant and mothering with a cancer diagnosis

Diagnosed with thyroid cancer while breastfeeding her toddler and pregnant with her third baby, Kate Visser, shares her journey through her illness and how she has navigated treatment through pregnancy and breastfeeding.

Kate is an experienced midwife, nurse and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant and mothering through breastfeeding is important to her and her little ones. We discuss Kate’s shock at learning she had cancer; being told she wouldn’t be able to breastfeed Tommy, the baby she was expecting; her emotional journey as a mum of small children; handling other people’s reactions and why she kept her illness secret from most people.

Kate also shared how she has planned for the next stage of her treatment and what this means for her as she will need to wean her babyTommy much sooner than she had planned, how she is planning for this and the grief and adjustment it means.

Kate has bravely pivoted her private lactation practice to keep on supporting breastfeeding mums – see her courses and resources at her website.

Resources:

Milky Business Use code titsup10 for 10% discount off Kate’s courses and products.

Download Kate’s FREE flange sizing tool for pumping mums, Click HERE

Sponsor discount: 15% Off Qiara

Australian made and owned Qiara, probiotics isolated from breastmilk, have been helping families for over 10 years. Qiara is formulated to support health during pregnancy and breastfeeding while reducing symptoms and occurrence of mild mastitis.

Go to Qiara.com.au and use the discount code TITSUP when you check out

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Kate is an experienced midwife, nurse and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant from the NSW Central Coast. She is a proud mama of 3 (who somehow survives without coffee) and knows what it’s like to need professional breastfeeding support that is holistic and timely. Her life’s work is to see YOU thrive and flourish in the journey you want to have. She is passionate about providing education through courses and consultations to give you the best start at breastfeeding. She has developed her own range of products to make your journey informed, comfortable and simpler. Her goal is simple- keep breastfeeding simple and relevant.

Qiara Pregnancy & Breastfeeding contains the patented probiotic strain Lactobacillus Fermentum CECT5716, originally isolated from breast milk, which may help you:

• maintain a healthy microflora, important for you and your baby before, during and after pregnancy
  restore balance of good bacteria in breast milk that may have been disrupted by antibiotics, or other external factors.
• relieve or reduce breast pain and discomfort associated with mastitis
• reduce the recurrence of mastitis
• Take Qiara Pregnancy & Breastfeeding from preconception, your last trimester, or throughout your entire pregnancy and breastfeeding.
• Costing less than a cup of coffee, simply stir one sachet per day into a glass of water and keep breastfeeding with Qiara.

Seek medical advice if mastitis symptoms persist longer than 12 hours or if your symptoms worsen.

Sponsor discount: 15% Off Qiara

Australian made and owned Qiara, probiotics isolated from breastmilk, have been helping families for over 10 years. Qiara is formulated to support health during pregnancy and breastfeeding while reducing symptoms and occurrence of mild mastitis.

Go to Qiara.com.au and use the discount code TITSUP when you check out.