When my grandsons were born, I honoured that tradition too—with broth, night feeds, and presence.
My arms were never the problem.
They were always just right.

There was no awkwardness. Just mutual respect.
Unfamiliar doesn’t mean unsafe.
Different traditions, same care.

I froze. She hadn’t.
Just as I went to adjust her—burp. Quiet, perfect, and right on time.
We all smiled. I could breathe again.

I held the baby on my knees, supported her with my right arm, and used my left to gently pat and shift her.
Then came the question: “Has she burped yet?”

I didn’t want to challenge their tradition.
But my daughter-in-law gently encouraged me—she’d told them I was good at this.

Immi, the baby’s mum, explained that in her culture, babies aren’t sat up too early—it’s thought to harm their backs.
But when I was asked to show how I help wind babies, I hesitated.

In Uganda, I was trusted to hold a baby crook-to-crook—just as any grandmother might.
No fuss. No hesitation.
Just quiet trust and warm acceptance.

Now my children trust me with their babies. The same arms. The same love. The same quiet resilience.
Full story on my Facebook page: Sarah:Changing the narrative

www.linkedin.com/in/sarahdisa...

A midwife once told me, “Your arms hurt because you never put him down.”
But I didn’t dare to.
My arms were the perfect shape for holding a baby.
And they still are.

I held him constantly—not just out of love, but fear. Fear that someone would say I couldn’t cope. That he deserved someone “better.” But I could cope. I was enough.

Image description: A woman sits quietly beside a large, pale blue mask. Her posture is calm, reflective—like she’s resting after carrying the weight of performance. The mask lies discarded beside her, a symbol of the effort it takes to seem “okay” in a world that doesn’t ask.

Alt text: A digital illustration of a woman with auburn hair sitting on the ground beside a large, light blue mask. She wears a mustard jumper, sits with her knees up, and has a calm, neutral expression. The background is soft and muted.

YES Alt text isn’t about you-it’s about who’s being excluded when you skip it.

It’s one small click that says: I thought about who might need this.

if you forget do better next time, and keep going.

Access isn’t optional. It’s the baseline.

#AccessIsCulture #WhoseWordsAreThese #DisabilityJustice

Labour pandering /adopting far-right rhetoric is both morally wrong and strategically self-defeating. Studies demonstrate that this approach shifts public discourse, strengthening far-right movements, and often results in losses for the mainstream party. Get a backbone Labour look after the needy.

Absolutely disgraceful.

I concur. It’s very refreshing to hear that I’m not alone in hating Christmas. We’ll all breathe a huge sigh of relief on the 27th.