All three mothers said they were given differing advice by different health professionals and did not feel fully involved in decisions about feeding.

Vicki also felt re-traumatised every time she had to explain her feeding journey.

“It’s too many different people getting involved, because every single time you see a new person, you have to retell the entire story.

The women also said prior to giving birth there is plenty of information explaining how important breastfeeding is but not enough about the potential difficulties.

“You feel like you’re making the wrong choice every time because nothing’s coming easy, as it was told to you,” said Jess.

Carla Mastroianni, an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) based in Brighton, said feeding advice should be more holistic.

“We see this plan and no one is looking at the mother behind this plan […] if we asked we’d know that she’s not OK, she’s not coping, she’s drowning,” said Mastroianni.

She said resources are low and training around feeding is “almost non-existent”.

“In an ideal situation an infant feeding specialist should visit a woman twice a week for two to three weeks,” Mastroianni said.

Jo Haworth, chief nurse for Maidstone and Tunbridge Wells NHS Trust, said she was sorry to hear of Vicki’s experience.

“We understand how difficult feeding challenges can be for new parents, particularly where additional support is needed,” she said.

“We are working with our teams so that the advice and care we provide is clear, consistent and compassionate for every parent.”

Haworth said the trust has strengthened its support “so parents feel listened to and confident in the decisions they make”.

She says the support includes help from community midwives, infant feeding cafes and help on wards from midwives, nursery nurses, volunteer peer supporters, the trust’s midwifery lead for infant feeding and a dedicated infant feeding support worker.

“We will continue to focus on ensuring families receive the care they need in the postnatal period,” Haworth added.

A spokesperson for University Hospitals Sussex NHS Foundation Trust said: “We’re very sorry that Ms Nicholson felt unsupported during such an important time.

“We’re reviewing her care and are keen to work with her and other families to understand how we can continue improving their experience.

“All our maternity staff are trained every year in infant feeding, and we’ve recently strengthened our breastfeeding support with new guidelines, specialist input and improved training.

“Breastfeeding initiation at our trust is almost 90%, well above the national average, and we’re working towards Unicef Baby Friendly accreditation to keep improving care for families.”