The Fourth Trimester: Compassionate Support for You and Your Baby
The fourth trimester is a time of profound change—physically, emotionally, and mentally. It’s a season of love and connection, but also of challenges, tears, and transformation.
As you welcome a new baby into your life, you’re also meeting a new version of yourself. And that’s no small thing. It’s hard—really hard—and it deserves care, time, and support.
Since qualifying as a midwife in 2015, I’ve been committed to standing alongside women and families during this tender period. Very early on, I realised how often postpartum care falls short—especially around breastfeeding, pelvic floor health, and the deeper scars that birth can leave, both visible and invisible. That awareness has shaped my path ever since.
I’m now an IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant) and a Tongue-tie Practitioner. I’ve also trained extensively in pelvic floor care and scar therapy across pregnancy, birth, and the postpartum journey, all while continuing to work as a home birth midwife.
Breastfeeding Support
Breastfeeding is a beautifully intimate dance between parent and baby—a rhythm of love and nourishment. But even though it’s natural, that doesn’t mean it’s always easy.
As an IBCLC and Tongue-tie Practitioner, I provide evidence-based, compassionate support from pregnancy through the early days and well beyond. Whether it’s the first latch or navigating unexpected challenges, I’ll be by your side to ensure your feeding experience is as smooth and positive as possible.
Support includes:
- Latch difficulties
- Nipple pain
- Engorgement, mastitis, or blocked ducts
- Milk supply concerns (real or perceived)
- D-MER (Dysphoric Milk Ejection Reflex) and breastfeeding aversion
- Relactation
- Nipple shields
- Selecting and using breast pumps
- Feeding preterm or multiple babies
- Breastfeeding after breast surgery
- Assessing tongue function and performing frenectomy if required
If you’re expressing milk or using formula—by choice or necessity—I can also help with bottle-feeding support, including choosing the right bottle/teat, paced feeding techniques, and responsive feeding approaches.
Private Midwifery Visits: Whole-Person Postnatal Care
My visits offer more than routine checks—they’re a space to feel seen, heard, and cared for as you adjust to life with your new baby. Services include:
Birth Reflection
A safe and supportive space to process your birth experience—whatever it looked like, however it felt.
Routine Observations
Gentle, respectful monitoring of your and your baby’s well-being—supporting you to trust your instincts and body.
Perineal Care and Pelvic Floor Assessment
Expert support for healing and restoring your pelvic floor health. That heavy or uncomfortable feeling after birth isn’t something you just have to live with—we can work on it together.
Scar Treatment (C-section or Vaginal Birth)
Scars often carry more than just physical tension. Whether from a tear, episiotomy, or caesarean, we can explore gentle techniques to support healing—both on the surface and deeper within the tissues where emotional memories may linger.
Emotional Well-being
I offer a listening ear and emotional support as you navigate this life-changing transition—because your mental and emotional health matter just as much as your physical recovery.
Fourth Trimester Guidance
What does your baby really need in these early weeks? Mostly you. But we’ll also cover practical support around babywearing, sleep, feeding rhythms, and creating your own version of family life.
It’s a privilege to walk beside you in this season of becoming.
Nelly Pellegrino
Midwife, IBCLC and Tongue-Tie Specialist
Hello, I’m Nelly, and midwifery is in my blood. With my mother and father being midwives, I grew up immersed in the world of birth and its profound beauty. I recall the joy I felt listening to stories of births, first cries, and the incredible strength of women bringing new life into the world. This deep connection to midwifery shaped my path from an early age, inspiring me to pursue this calling myself.
I completed my midwifery studies in 2015 and spent a year working in a hospital in Italy, where I gained invaluable experience. However, I soon realised something was missing—a sense of fulfilment that I couldn’t quite put into words. Determined to find the answers, I moved to the UK, hoping this new chapter would provide the clarity I sought.
My Journey
My journey began in neonatal intensive care, where I worked as a nurse, but I found my true passion only when I returned to midwifery. I had the privilege of assisting in my first home birth, and it was a transformative experience. The love, power, and magic that fills a home at the moment of birth is indescribable. In that peaceful, familiar environment, I witnessed something truly profound: a woman’s birth is not just a physical event but a deeply personal, spiritual, and political act of rebirth. In this space, the woman and her partner are at the centre of their journey, and my role is not to lead but to listen, to hold, and to quietly support. This was a turning point, both professionally and personally.
It became increasingly clear to me how often women and families are overlooked in the birth process, with their needs and desires sidelined. This realisation drove me to become part of the change I wanted to see in the system. I chose to specialise in areas I felt were neglected: breastfeeding, pelvic floor health, and the emotional and physical scars left by birth.
I became an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) and a Tongue-tie Practitioner, and I dedicated myself to further training in scar therapy and pelvic floor care, from pregnancy through to postpartum. Throughout this journey, I’ve continued to work as a home birth midwife in Brighton, where I am honoured to support families through one of the most profound moments of their lives.
Qualifications
- Traditional Chinese Medicine applied to Pregnancy and postpartum, Bologna 2020, TAO School
- Biomechanics for birth, Brighton 2021, Optimal Birth
- Aromatherapy for birth, Brighton 2021, Expectancy- Acupuncture in pregnancy, 2020, Debra Betts and Loredana Zordan
- Natural ways to facilitate labour, 2021, Expectancy
- Tongue tie practitioner, Brighton 2022
- Perineum competency in pregnancy, birth and postpartum before birth, 2022, SEAO
- IBCLC, 2024
- Birth Scar Healing Treatment, 2024, SEAO
- Pelvic Floor Assessment, 2024, Guida al Perineo
Interests
- Breastfeeding
- Sexual, menstrual and perineal health
- Feminine Wisdom
- Chinese Medicine and complementary therapies
- Reading
- Food lover