Visiting and speaking at Facebook Headquarters, featuring in a picture sent out across social media by the company’s world-famous COO, Sheryl Sandberg, and gaining access to a potential USD1 million in funding for her own voluntary initiative. It’s all in a day’s work for the Bahrain-based breastfeeding champion.
Adhunika set up her Facebook group, Breast Feeding Support for Indian Mothers, in June 2013. She explains: “I have always been the sort of person who’s full of questions. When I was pregnant with my oldest child, I wanted to breastfeed because I had read up on the advantages. But, once he was born, I realised there was noone to ask things such as how long do you feed from each breast? I went through lots of websites but there is a lot of conflicting information.
“You see the pictures of motherhood and everything looks perfect – they’re in perfect clothes and there’s no spit-up in sight. But, in reality, it’s hard and there would be long hours where I would just nurse and nurse.
“When my son was seven months old, by that time I was in Ireland [with my husband’s job] and I joined an Irish breast-feeding support group. I felt like I wasn’t alone any more. You have people telling you they’re there for you.
“About four months after that I founded the Indian group because there are lots of traditions that are followed, for example, in regard to confinement and diet – so I wanted something that was culturally sensitive and non-judgmental. I wanted to have someone on call that you could ask for personal advice when you’ve barely slept and you feel like a zombie!”
After one year, the group had around 300 members and Adhunika teamed up with friend Madhu Singh Panda, who was also a member of the Irish group. Adhunika continues: “I wanted the group to be a real support to lots of people and to provide accurate information, because there’s an awful lot of it [conflicting information] out there.
More than anything, I wanted to provide a platform that’s respectful – no mommy wars or airs of superiority for different types of parenting. I actually felt bullied on some platforms when I raised differing opinions and that made me feel lonely.”
These days, the group has grown to 85,000 members with a team of 40 on call to offer advice and support 24/7. And Adhunika says: “I keep reiterating to my team that we’re all doing our best for our children, and I don’t want anyone feeling that they’re not, or others feeling that they’re doing better.”
The group has members from the Indian diaspora, and others from across the world but primarily from the sub-continent, and they are a diverse group, from professionals to stay-at-home mums. “But, they’re all women who’ve had that feeling of helplessness,” says Adhunika.
In February, Facebook announced its Community Leadership Programme. Adhunika applied and, last month, was delighted to discover she was among five chosen from 6,000 entrants to become a community leader – giving her potential access to the massive funding to grow her programme.
She says: “To be honest, it hasn’t really sunk in yet. It’s a huge responsibility and I know I have to make plans to use it wisely and come up with a proper strategy. I would like for us to have better before-birth education at the antenatal stage because, once the baby comes along, it’s ‘hello sleep deprivation’.
“I’d like to have more meet-up groups – we previously had them in 12 cities in three countries: India, Australia and the UAE, and would like to revive them. And more breast-feeding education in hospitals in India.
“I’d also really like to reach out to the rural segment in India, but we need to look at how feasible that is – anything new always comes with resistance, even more so when it’s an initiative by a woman. Whatever I do, I want it to be sustainable, to grow over time.
“For now, though, I’m looking at all the options and just feeling incredibly grateful.”
