What people say: – Cathy Garbin

October 2022

Having Cathy as my LC has been a positive and valuable experience. I was so overwhelmed when I left hospital with a low-birth-weight baby on a 3 hour feeding and pumping schedule. It was my goal to exclusively breastfeed, but I had no idea how to get there. With Cathy’s support, calm guidance and invaluable experience I have managed to transition to exclusive breastfeeding 6 weeks later. I would highly recommend Cathy to anyone on a similar journey, you will be in safe hands.

April 2022

The cardiologist was happy to leave the naso-gastric tube out when we saw him last Friday and F has now been discharged from hospital in the home program. I just want to thank you so so so much for all of your help, I can’t believe F in now exclusively breastfeeding and off the tube. He would still be on the tube if not for you- you gave me the courage to give it a go. It’s given our family back so much time, taken away so much stress and now F has so much more time to develop- such a positive change in him. Thanks again!! E

January 2022

Cathy, I haven’t had a chance to say a proper thank you but THANK YOU. L…. and I are doing so well. Your support was so valuable to us and our feeding journey. And just in general and I navigated (and let’s be honest, am still!) early parenting. Hope you are well ?

August 2021

An exclusive breastfed boy with a very happy mum! Probably 12-13 weeks till he really nailed it. THANK YOU. Tell your mums to persevere- these bubs just need to be a bit more mature to get it- that’s my opinion. and we as mums need lots of love and support along the way from people like you.

June 2021

Thank you for all your support and help. I would not have continued on breastfeeding with C if it weren’t for your kindness and guidance. When the time comes hopefully I don’t have issues I had with H however will be in touch if I do. Take care xx

April 2021

Thank you so much Cathy, couldn’t have done it without your help. You have been a very consistant support and have gone above and beyond so thank you. A

May 2020

Hi Cathy,

Just wanted to say thank you for your guidance on my journey. You have been a huge help and wonderful support to M and myself.

Thank you so much,

Sxx

December 2019

Dearest Cathy,

Thank you from the bottom of my heart for your time, compassion, wisdom and kindness in helping me to breastfeed M. Having a plan beforehand made all the difference and having you and B there for me straight after birth ensured I got the best start possible. I am so proud that M has been mostly breastfed, something I never thought I’d achieve. You are truly amazing. Love A and M

April 2019

Hi Cathy

My apologies it has taken me so long to get to this however I just wanted to say a very big thank you for everything you did for H and I. There is no doubt in my mind that had you not come into our world there is no way I would still be breastfeeding.

It was such a tough start for us however your knowledge, expertise and gentle approach made me feel like I could push through and continue feeding my new baby as I wanted to.

I still have days where it seems really hard but continue to use the tips and tricks you taught me and we have now made it to 4 months!

At least now I know, if I have the same experience next time around, you will be the first person I call!!

Thank you again.

February 2019

Hi Cathy, Thank you so much for your assistance, we managed to breastfeed which I didn’t think we would be able to after not latching for 6 weeks. Really appreciate it ???????????? x

October 2018

“Following a disastrous and upsetting experience during our time in hospital, I was ready to give up on breastfeeding by week 2. Cathy was the reason I didn’t. She acted swiftly when we contacted her and her kind and calm manner gave me much-needed confidence to keep going. With Cathy’s support, I managed to double my pumped supply week on week and by the time my son was eight-weeks old, he had become an exclusively breastfed baby.”

October 2018

Thank you for all of your support. It has made our lives so much easier & nice to know i have the same continued advice from someone who knows what they are doing!

Cheers

Nikki x

September 2018

Dear Cathy

In 2010, when you were helping me with breastfeeding my silent reflux baby, you said to me

“Do what you have to do to get through today, and if it creates a problem for tomorrow, deal with it then”.

So many times your advice has been a touchstone for me, and I have passed that advice on to countless other women. As I repeated it again this morning, I thought I would let you know how this small moment has resonated through many lives.

Thank you 🙂

Alison

August 2018

Hi Cathy,
I just wanted to say thank you for your help in the early days with my second child, my daughter Emmie.
Yesterday was a bit of a momentous day for me because Emmie weaned after months of preperation at 2 yrs and 9 months. So for the first time in 6.5 years I woke up neither pregnant or breastfeeding. I feel like I have to mark it in some way as it as been an epic journey! Thank you for all that you do!
Erica

June 2018

Cathy, you have such a gentle way, and I am still breastfeeding today because of your constant support and encouragement. You have been so incredibly kind and patient. And I could not have asked for a better person to help me on this very special journey. I will be forever grateful for your generous support. Nicole (+ James)

April 2018

Sincere thanks Cathy for all your help. You went above and beyond to help me getting easily over that “6-8 week hump”. So knowledgeable and personable….it was a pleasure dealing with you.

I’ll definitely be sending my breastfeeding friends your way! Forever grateful, Laura and baby Evan xx

March 2018

I just wanted to say thank you for today and thank you for your support. This is THE most beautiful experience having Charlotte and watching her grow but also the scariest with lots of unknowns. Knowing I have a person helping me means a lot. The scales are giving me peace of mind and are letting me enjoy breastfeeding again. Than you so much again! W

November 2017

Thank you for your exceptional support for Cora and and my breastfeeding journey. I have no doubt without your help I would have felt too overwhelmed to continue breastfeeding. By listening to my concerns, coaching me through challenges, encouraging me to trust my instincts and your ongoing availability whilst we were establishing breastfeeding I felt empowered to persist. I was also extremely thankful you encouraged me to follow Cora’s lead as baby lead attachment has reduced both our stress levels. You also have such a calm manner and non judgemental approach that really allowed me to feel at ease throughout .

P, Cora and I are extremely thankful for your excellent support and I couldn’t recommend you highly enough.

Thanks for going above and beyond, TL

October 2017

I just wanted to thank you so much for helping with my breastfeeding almost 18 months ago. Tonight was the last feed for Jack as we are starting IVF in a couple of months. It’s been a wonderful 18 months of feeding and I have you to thank. Kind regards, Jess

October 2017

Just been thinking of you and wanted to say again a big thank you for how much of an amazing help and support you were to me wth the breastfeeding. I feel so grateful that it was your website I came across. I still cant recommend your enough when ever I get the opportunity and I just thought you would like to see a current photo of Zak. He will be 3 this week.

July 2017

Roxane is now 1 year old and we are still breastfeeding! We couldnt have done it without your help.With a difficult birth and a newborn with cystic fibrosis, breastfeeding is something I am very proud of, that helped my self-worth and helped me bond with child. She is 855 for weight which is rare for CF. Thank you again Kate

February 2016

THANK YOU for all of your help. The feeding is going much better and Hamish is putting on a steady 200g a week. We could not be happier. I have also sent your details to some of my friends who have been having trouble too. Thank you so much, it means the world to me to be able to feed him. All the best, Jen

February 2016

Thank you so very much for all your kindness, care, experience and support! I truly appreciate it and may all the goodness you do for others be returned to you always. I always look forward to the opportunity of recommending you. You’re one in a million.

Lots of Love Lisa, Ray and Zak

January 2016

Dear Cathy,

Words cannot express how grateful I am to you for your support and guidance with breastfeeding. I will continue to breastfeed as much as I can for as long as I can and Patrick is thriving. THANK YOU! Ana, Luke and Patrick xxx

October 2015

Dear Cathy,

At long last I am finding the time to write you the thank you note that I have been mentally composing since you started helping me and Maggie establish breastfeeding.

The care plan you created was sensible, evidence-based and most importantly baby centred. You have the most wonderful way of combining your clinical knowledge of breastfeeding with your understanding of babies’ moods and needs. Your plan included quantitive measures of Maggie’s intake with loving advice to increase skin-to-skin time and allow Maggie to feed while lying so she felt secure and supported. You helped me interpret and understand what she was trying to tell me through her behaviour when feeding.

Beyond all your clinical expertise, I thank you for your ongoing moral support as I rode the peaks and troughs of post-partum hormones combined with the bitter disappointment of my longed-for breastfeeding relationship not going to plan. You provided me with hope and calm. You had seen many mums travel the road before me and had watched “slow to start” babies go on to be good breastfeeders. The long lens view you were able to give me kept me going when things were at their worse.

Your support was above and beyond expectation by anyones measure. You always returned calls and emails no matter if it was an evening or weekend. And to know also that throughout you and Greg were also having to shoulder very difficult times makes your commitment all the more exceptional.

I have made you and Greg a chocolate cake which I hope you will enjoy with family and friends.

Thank you from the bottom of my heart. Every time I breastfeed Maggie I feel grateful that this special bond was saved.

Sincerely, Emily

June 2015

Hi Cathy,

I’m not sure if you remember me. You helped me establish breastfeeding with my daughter Maggie 14 months ago. I was terribly anxious and upset that I was unable to feed my new baby. You diagnosed a posterior tongue tie, and organised a treatment plan, and kept in contact all through the 8 weeks it took to get breastfeeding going smoothly. As a scientist myself, I really appreciated your fact-based approach to breastfeeding problems and solutions. You were really reassuring, and you made me believe that I could do it (which, for me, I think was half the battle).

I gave Maggie her last breastfeed yesterday morning. She didn’t even notice. She was ready. No tears (except from me).

I just wanted to say thank you. I couldn’t have done it without you. I nearly gave up countless times, but your support kept me going. I am so glad that I stuck with it. It has been so rewarding.

Thanks again,

Kath (and Maggie)

April 2015

Its been quite some time since we were in contact last, so I thought I would send you an update.

But firstly, something which has been on my mind for a long time, is that I wanted to sincerely thank you for the help you provided to me after I gave birth to Mikah. I have to say I was in one of my life’s lowest points, feeling helpless to not be able to feed my baby with the pain and yet his cries of hunger. You came to visit me within hours of my phone call to you, which I made in pure desperation. A heartfelt thank you for being there and providing the expertise and advice I needed.

Mikah is 5 months old next week, and still exclusively breastfed. He’s an absolute angel and super strong and healthy. We managed to breastfeed direct (without the nipple shield) almost on the month after he was born, and we are now experts at the lying down feeding position as he’s now so distracted by the world.

I start work full-time again next week, so new challenges lie ahead, but I have been meaning to send this email for months.

I hope you and your family are well and I may just be in touch when we decide to venture to have number 2!

All the best,

Jossette

PS – Ive attached a photo of Mikah for your enjoyment

February 2015

I just wanted to thank you for the loan of the pump and all the help you gave us last year.

You saw me at my absolute worse- and were so kind, compassionate and practical.

S is a happy thriving little boy- who now loves breastfeeding, with no sign of weaning despite my return to work on Wednesday. I used the pump every day up until December, it was fantastic. All the best, E

November 2014

“Thank you so much for the loan of the breast pump. I can honesty say it was of great use and it kept me going longer than I expected. Your help was invaluable- I would not have persevered but for you. So thank you. Being able to breastfeed Luca was a wonderful experience. Kind regards, Bianca

June 2014

“After returning home from the hospital we experienced a lot of problems getting our little one to attach and feed. Feeding time often resulted in tears and a lot of anxiety. We called Cathy on a Monday morning and she was at our house that very night. She provided practical advice and support. She left us with an action plan of how to improve our situation and after a week of following her advice we are now feeding without any tears or anxiety and our little one is gaining weight! What a difference it has made to our lives. Thank you for everything Cathy!”

Cheers

Jade

June 2014

Cathy’s support, guidance and understanding were crucial in ensuring my baby and I established and maintained a successful and pleasant breastfeeding relationship. Her wealth of knowledge and experience was of great comfort to me during the challenging first few weeks of both my babies lives. Without Cathy’s help I doubt I would have continued to breastfeed.

Whilst there are lactation consultants/midwives available in hospitals and at child health centres, I found the conflicting breastfeeding advice received by different professionals tiring and totally confusing. Nothing can replace the value of receiving advice from one experienced, dedicated person.

Cathy’s home visit removes the stress of leaving the house with a newborn (not to mention the terrifying experience of trying to get a screaming newborn to latch on in a sterile nurse’s office). The regular follow up phone calls provided me with much reassurance as my breastfeeding experience seemed to change every day in the first six weeks or so.

I cannot thank or recommend Cathy enough. If you are having trouble with breastfeeding do yourself a favour and contact Cathy.

Thank you, Thank you, Thank you!!!!!!!!! Alina and Ewan and Mariella x

May 2014

Just a quick note to thank you for the invaluable service you provided for Elizabeth.
The timing of your visit couldn’t have been better – they had just arrived home from the unexpected two days in hospital feeling somewhat fragile and armed with formula feeding instructions. Elizabeth’s milk came in about half an hour after your visit – a combination of your reassuring professionalism, being back in her own home and mother nature, no doubt!
She is doing extremely well and Annabel is thriving. She is a contented baby and they are even getting the occasional five hour stretch of sleep at night which I tell Elizabeth is amazingly good at 6 weeks.
Once again, many thanks Cathy.
Margaret

January 2014

Cathy is absolutely amazing – worked wonders for Lara and the twins who were fully breastfed to seven months – great start to a healthy life.
Professor Jill Downie

January 2014

“I was having a very difficult time breastfeeding and finally gave Cathy a call when Brandon was three weeks old. My nipples had blood blisters and was in pain. I was expressing frequently as Brandon was not latching on properly. I was so tired as was doing 2.5 to 3 hourly feeds each time and sterilising the equipment took extra time. By the time I had put Brandon to sleep I was up for the next feed. I found Cathy from the Australian Breastfeeding Association website and chose her based on the reviews and testimonials as well as the fact that she actually came over to your house for consultation. That makes great sense as she can then have a look at where you usually breastfeed and whether the sitting position is correct on your chair, etc… Cathy came on the same day to my house and spend over 2.5 hours with me and Brandon to teach me the correct technique. She also discovered that Brandon had a bit of tongue tied and told me that was one of the main problems he was not latching on properly. She advised me to get his tongue snipped and things will get better. Also my nipples were very large and his mouth is quite small and have not grown to accommodate that. She advised me to do half express and half breastfeeding for a few weeks. She also did say that Brandon’s mouth will get bigger on week 6 and things will get easier. Cathy contacted me throughout the 6 weeks on a weekly to twice weekly basis and called when she promised to. She is a real professional, a guru in her profession, caring and genuinely wants to see you succeed. When I had an issue or question I rang her and she would returned my phone call with great tips as soon as she could. Brandon is now 12 weeks old and I am fully breastfeeding him and only express when I need to. It has become so easy and we have developed a real bond between us. I would have given up breastfeeding if it was not for Cathy. Thanks so much Cathy and we are both very grateful for all your help, support, patience and kindness. I will definitely be referring you to anyone and everyone who are looking for help in breastfeeding. You are a lifesaver!

Grace

Dec 2013

what can I say?! Thank you for your guidance and patience over the last few months. You have had a knack at knowing exactly where I am up to physically and mentally! We wouldn’t be where we are today without your help

Mel

Nov 2013

Just an interim really big thank you to you also – I know I must be one of your most labour intensive clients! I have really really appreciated your support – what a God send !

Mel

Nov 2013

Hi Cathy its Meneesha. I just wanted to touch base and say thank you again for everything. We have a very happy and healthy exclusively breastfed baby and we just couldn’t have done it without you. Thanks again xx

Meneesha

Oct 2013

Just a quick email to feedback on our progress since your visit to help Caris and me yesterday. Firstly … Wow! What a difference your advice and help has made! I am calling you the ‘baby whisperer’ when I tell my family and friends about you. Caris is breast feeding on every attempt now and is having a decent feed on each side. We are following with expressed milk as a top-up and she is so much more settled now. She is lying peacefully after a nappy change instead of constantly looking for a feed and crying. We have used the lying down position a couple of times and she responds really well. Still a way to go but such a big change already – thank you! Thanks again,

Penny & Caris.

I just wanted to say a big thank you for your help in getting us started breastfeeding. The first week after Alice’s birth was so stressful particularly with the feeding issues we were having. The moment you walked in our house I felt a sense of calm and felt instantly confident that you could help. The home visit and continued follow up was brilliant! I am still enjoying breastfeeding my now 6 month old daughter. I have absolutely no hesitation in recommending you to other mums struggling with breastfeeding.

Nicola

I just wanted to let you know that after your help last year my breastfeeding journey with Lacey has been going well. She is still feeding 4/5 times a day even though she is on solids. She is an extremely healthy 10kgs at 8 months of age. Thank you again for your expertise as it would have been impossible to continue without your help.

Leigh

Thank you so much for visiting us yesterday – I really appreciate you coming on a Saturday and spending time with us, it was so helpful and feels like we a one step forward…. such a relief! thanks so much for all your help and support over the last few months, it’s made an enormous difference as I don’t think we would have got this far with b/feeding without it.

Catriona