Mamas In Lockdown is an emotional and inspiring collection of personal stories and photographs from over 70 parents who were pregnant or gave birth during the Covid-19 pandemic in Aotearoa New Zealand, particularly during the time of alert levels 4, 3, and 2.
During the time of lockdown and Zoom consults Denise realised how much families needed to talk about their experiences of being pregnant, giving birth and learning to feed their babies during the Covid-19 pandemic.Many women were feeling isolated, alone and lacking in support, and were trying to come to terms with how their birth had been changed beyond their control. Being someone who likes to write to empty her head of busy thoughts, Denise wondered whether this might be a tool that these mothers would find useful. When Denise discussed the idea of writing everything down as a way of moving forward and putting things into perspective with some mothers, they thought it was a great idea and were really keen to share their stories... and Mamas in Lockdown was born.
“Mamas in lockdown captures a unique moment in history/herstory. The personal stories in this book portray the challenges and beautiful moments of strength and courage... Beautifully put together, this book will draw you in!"
The book has been a great success and is listed in the Maternal Wellbeing section of Books on Prescription - a programme devised to increase access to high quality health information. The resources included in this programme have been recommended and reviewed by health professionals.
Many of the parents have stayed in touch and sought support during their subsequent births.
About the author
Denise is a qualified Breastfeeding Counsellor and Certified Healing Birth Practitioner with over 16 years experience supporting families, founder of The Breast Room® and author of Mamas in Lockdown.