Existential and embodied presence—the meaning of peer support caring as experienced by breastfeeding peer support mothers in Sweden

Abstract

Purpose

Many mothers face breastfeeding challenges that professional healthcare lacks the capacity to address, which can evoke exposedness and vulnerability. In Sweden, the non-profit Breastfeeding Support Organisation provide breastfeeding peer support. The aim is to deepen the understanding of the meaning of peer support caring, as experienced by breastfeeding peer support mothers.

Method

This study adopts a Reflective Lifeworld Research approach. Twelve lifeworld interviews with peer support mothers in the Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation was conducted.

Results

The essential meaning is described as an existential and embodied presence. This is further illuminated through the constituents; embodied knowing awakens caring, embracing the breastfeeding story, transcending time and space, being an anchored companion, and finding an authentic way of being.

Conclusions

Breastfeeding can evoke existential anxiety—feelings of homelessness and uncanniness—that awaken a desire for what Heidegger calls Care: a fundamental mode of being marked by engaged, reciprocal concern for existence. In this study, peer support caring is explored as a voluntary caregiving practice. When this practice embodies elements of Care, it becomes existential caring—a transferable form of care that fosters existential health and wellbeing, meaning and authenticity. Existential caring may enrich professional care, where structural limitations affect breastfeeding support.

Background

In Sweden, most new mothers begin breastfeeding, but many find it difficult or even impossible to continue. When breastfeeding is hard to manage, mothers may be surprised and overwhelmed by the experience (Larsen et al., 2008; Williamson et al., 2012). This can present an existential challenge, as well as feelings of existential exposure and a sense of loss, vulnerability, and insecurity, where life feels upended, and motherhood becomes hard to manage (Palmér, 2015). Breastfeeding difficulties can result in existential trauma in motherhood, potentially giving rise to a fear of breastfeeding (Palmér, 2019). Care and support, both peer-led and professional, are central for successful and continued breastfeeding (Blixt et al., 2024; Gavine et al., 2022; Hacking et al., 2024). However, new mothers often lack sufficient care and support during breastfeeding, resulting in feelings of failure, inadequacy, and loneliness (Palmér, 2015; Ericson & Palmér, 2018). Even fathers suffer when breastfeeding is difficult and need care and support to strengthen their partners and themselves (Ljungberg et al., 2024).

Limitations within the healthcare system may hinder care and support for parents experiencing breastfeeding difficulties, placing additional burdens on parents, as healthcare professionals may have insufficient knowledge, limited time, and a lack of collegial support (Gustafsson et al., 2017). Therefore, guidance, structures, and resources in healthcare needs development to provide adequate care and support (Antila et al., 2024). However, this does not only include structured, documented, and specialised professional knowledge.

In this article, we explore peer support caring as a caregiving practice within voluntary organisations. We argue that this practice, when shaped by existential engagement, authenticity, and mutuality, can be understood as existential caring—a form of care that is transferable and potentially enriching for other contexts, including professional healthcare. We relate this to Heidegger (1996) concept of Care (Sorge), which refers to a fundamental mode of being: an active, concerned involvement with one's own existence, others, and the world, often awakened through existential anxiety. While Care is a philosophical concept, existential caring represents its practical manifestation in caregiving relationships. As we will show, peer support caring can embody elements of Care, especially when it involves meeting as equals and fostering existential health and wellbeing through shared vulnerability.

Peer support has been described by Dennis (2003) as voluntary provision of emotional, appraisal, and informational assistance by a created social network member with similar experiences. Breastfeeding peer supporters provide such support to mothers, helping to boost their self-esteem and confidence while reducing feelings of loneliness (Chang et al., 2022). One such peer support organisation is the Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation (Amningshjälpen, 2025), where breastfeeding peer support mothers with personal experiences of breastfeeding offer voluntary support to breastfeeding mothers and their partners. The breastfeeding peer support is tailored to parents' needs and wishes but does not provide medical advice, instead referring these questions to public healthcare. Care and support are primarily provided through phone, SMS, and social media (The Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation, 2025).

Historically, breastfeeding care and support has shifted between private and public spheres. Yet, over the years, breastfeeding care and support has become more regulated by healthcare, also known as the “medicalisation” of breastfeeding, where women's knowledge and experiences have been overshadowed. This medicalisation still dominates today and contrasts the woman-to-woman support that was once common (van Wijlen 2019). During the 20th century, childbirth moved increasingly from homes to hospitals, and breastfeeding became a matter for which healthcare professionals provided care and support. The goal was to make childbirth safer, medically speaking, but this regulation also became a way of controlling both women and children with the aim of “raising” good citizens. Mothers were often separated from their infants and restricted to scheduled breastfeeding times in hospitals. The rise of formula milk in the mid-20th century further undermined women's confidence in breastfeeding, as marketing portrayed formula as being superior to breast milk. The Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation started during the second wave of the women's movement in the 1970s in response to low breastfeeding rates, the medicalisation of breastfeeding, but also as an effort to reclaim women's right to breastfeeding knowledge and restore woman-to-woman support (Kylberg et al., 2021).

From a caring science perspective, voluntary breastfeeding peer support can be understood as a form of natural caring—a general human capacity to care for others that promotes health and wellbeing. This capacity of caring has been described as a general and natural ability between people that enables individuals to experience health and wellbeing (Eriksson, 2018). Natural caring is developed between human beings in a society and includes relationships with others, such as breastfeeding peer supporters. Eriksson (2018) argues that allowing natural caring to take place creates conditions for a better society founded on compassionate and humane care for one another. A society where people care for one another flourishes, prospers, and shapes conditions for health and well-being (Bergbom et al., 2022). From a caring science perspective, health means feeling whole and integrated, and in relationships with others, experiencing well-being, satisfaction, interaction, pleasure, and trust (Eriksson, 2018). Health is also described as well-being and as “being able to” perform one's life projects. Well-being means being intertwined with existential vitality and with having the power, desire, and ambition to realise one's life project (Dahlberg et al., 2011). In line with this, breastfeeding can be understood as a life project, and breastfeeding difficulties as an obstacle to reaching this. Caring during breastfeeding enhances health and well-being and “being able”, despite breastfeeding difficulties. But in some situations, professional care is lacking and needs development (Palmér, 2015; Ericson & Palmér, 2018; Antila et al., 2024). In relation to this, Eriksson (2018) argues that natural caring is of significant interest to caring science because it embodies the most fundamental idea of ​​caring and can therefore be seen as the foundation of caring science. Consequently, professional caring can therefore be learned from natural caring.

The aim of this study is to deepen the understanding of peer support caring by exploring how breastfeeding peer support mothers experience this practice within a voluntary organisation. We approach peer support caring as a caregiving practice that, when shaped by existential engagement, authenticity, and mutuality, can be understood as existential caring—a transferable form of care. Drawing on Heidegger, (1996) concept of Care (Sorge)—a philosophical understanding of human concern awakened through existential anxiety—we examine how peer support caring may embody existential dimensions. We also discuss its potential relevance for professional care, particularly within institutional healthcare systems, where care risks becoming more instrumental and less relational.

Heidegger's philosophy of existence—Care as the very basis for existence

This study is grounded in an existential caring science perspective (Palmér et al., 2022a), through which peer support caring is explored as a caregiving practice within voluntary organisations. We examine how this practice, when shaped by existential engagement, authenticity, and mutuality, may develop into existential caring—a transferable form of care that promotes existential health and wellbeing.

The analysis is informed by existential caring science perspectives (Palmér et al., 2022a), existential sociological perspectives (Flisback & Bengtsson, 2024) and by Heidegger, (1996) concept of Care (Sorge), understood as a fundamental mode of being: an active, concerned involvement with one's own existence, others, and the world, often awakened through existential anxiety. While Care is a philosophical concept, existential caring represents its practical manifestation in caregiving relationships.

In Heidegger, (1996) terms, Care is a broad concept that implies an active engagement in life. It forms the very basis of our existence and is therefore understood as an engaged way of living. The opposite of Care is a modus in which we approach our life and the world as if it was not our concern, in which the future and our own death are bracketed as anonymous happenings to an anonymous “they” (1996, p. 107). In contrast, Care involves caring about and always planning for the future. Even though existence is built upon the engaged attitude of Care, the disconnected approach of “they” is, however, more common in everyday life. To live as “they” do, according to Heidegger, constitutes a decay in which we not only forget the meaning of Care, but also the fact that existence always consists of three dimensions—the present, the past, and the future—and that life is always “being-towards-the-death”.

We may be forced back towards the approach of Care and temporality of life when the routine of everyday life is broken. In the “breach” (1996, p 70), when something does not work as expected or as it did before, the meaning context or the “reference becomes explicit”. The strongest example of this is anxiety; which, in Heidegger's terms, is not a state of mental illness, but a basic mood involving an existential realisation of being exposed and that life is limited in time and space. This existential experience of being exposed forces us into introspection, which simultaneously directs us towards others. In other words, it highlights the existential concern that underlies our fundamental and “authentic” being—a mode of being in which we are called to engage meaningfully with ourselves, others, and the world.

Our starting point is that peer support caring can be analyzed in relation to Heidegger's concept of Care—a fundamental existential engagement with life, others, and the world. Care, as a philosophical notion, involves being involved in something existentially decisive and is inevitably intertwined with others. When peer support caring embodies such qualities, it may develop into existential caring.

However, according to Heidegger, (1996), Care for one's fellow man has “two extreme possibilities”, and sometimes the “carer (here: caregiver) “takes” the other's “care” away from them and places itself in their taking care, it can leap in for other” (p. 114). In this way, the other is deprived of their own agency and can become a being “who is dependent and dominated even if this domination/…/remains hidden from him/her” (p. 114). The other possible “extreme” of Care is not grounded in the “leap in for the other” but is based on the desire to “leap ahead of them” (p. 115, italic in original); i.e., the desire to guide the other towards autonomy and existential development, as well as the other's existential potentiality for being. According to Heidegger, it is this latter form that “essentially pertains to authentic care” (p. 115, our italics).

When we analyze peer support caring as experienced by breastfeeding peer support mothers, the question arises: what does such caring mean for peer support mothers, and how is it developed? How does Heidegger's notion of Care evolve within the context of peer support caring? Whether Care appears as offering the other a ready-made solution or supporting her in regaining her own agency and autonomy, it always involves something existentially urgent that must be awakened. As Heidegger, (1996, p. 264) writes, “[t]he call is the call of care”. If such a call can arise in peer support caring when lived experiences expose a breach or rupture, could something similar also be awakened when mothers face inadequate professional care in healthcare settings?

Approach and method

In this Reflective Lifeworld Research study (RLR) (Dahlberg et al., 2008) a phenomenological meaning-oriented approach was used to illuminate the meaning of the phenomenon peer support caring as it is experienced by peer-support mothers in the Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation. RLR is epistemologically grounded in phenomenological and hermeneutical philosophy about the lifeworld, what it means to be human and human understanding. Research founded on the epistemology of the lifeworld can reveal existential issues and meanings about caring (Dahlberg et al., 2008, 2024; Galvin, 2021; Palmér et al., 2022a). RLR is a phenomenon-oriented approach, in which the phenomenon is in focus during the entire research process. A phenomenon is understood in a phenomenological manner as “something, that is experienced by someone”. Thus, the overall focus of RLR is to illuminate the lived world, thus expand our understanding of being human and of human experiences. Another epistemological assumption is that human beings are immersed in a natural attitude, which is an unreflective and taken-for-granted attitude as much as human consciousness is intentional. Intentionality means that human consciousness is always directed towards something other than itself; the world is always experienced as something and has a direct meaning for us through our consciousness. In terms of shifting focus from the natural, everyday attitude into a scientific attitude, methodological principles have been outlined by Dahlberg et al. (2008). The methodological principles in RLR move from a natural attitude towards a phenomenological attitude characterised by remaining open to the lifeworld phenomenon and to lived experiences and meanings, and thus open to “the otherness” of the phenomenon; being flexible regarding the phenomenon; and bridling one's understanding of the phenomenon as well as one's own preunderstandings during the research process (Dahlberg et al., 2008).

Participants and data collection

The meaning of peer support caring was explored through lifeworld interviews (Dahlberg et al., 2008) with 12 peer-support mothers the Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation, Amningshjälpen. The 12 participants were purposely selected to ensure variation of meanings about the phenomenon, i.e. to include a diversity in terms of professional and peer support experience, geographical location (including both urban and rural areas), age, number of children, breastfeeding experience, as well as cultural backgrounds. All participants identify as women and have had lived experiences of breastfeeding and of being a peer-support mother. The length of the engagement as peer-supporter varied between 3 and 13 years and all participants had their own experiences of being in contact with and/or receiving support from both professional healthcare and breastfeeding peer-supporters during their own motherhoods. The ages ranged from 33 to 50 years and two of the participants were born outside Sweden.

Lifeworld interviews focus on the phenomenon, in terms of lived experiences and meanings of peer support caring, guided by the methodological principles of RLR (Dahlberg et al., 2008). In accordance with the RLR approach, the interview is conducted in an open, flexible, and bridled manner, directed toward the phenomenon. This methodological orientation serves as the rationale for not using a predefined interview guide. Instead, the interviews began with participants being invited to talk about the phenomenon in an open and reflective way. All participants were asked an initial question designed to encourage reflection on their lived experiences: Please, tell me about what it means to you to be a peer-support mother in the Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation. The phenomenon was further explored during the interview through follow-up questions that aimed to deepen the understanding of the meaning of peer-support caring. Examples of such questions include: Please tell me more about that, or What does it mean to you? All interviews except one were conducted by video conferencing services online, and one was conducted face-to-face. Only participants' voices were digitally recorded, and all the interviews were transcribed verbatim. All participants were given both written and verbal information about the study and gave their written consent to participate before their interview.

Data analysis

A phenomenological analysis was conducted to illuminate the essential meaning of the phenomenon of peer support caring, thereby deepening the understanding of the meaning of caring as experienced by peer-support mothers. The analysis was conducted according to the methodological principles of the RLR approach, which are openness, flexibility, and bridling and involve turning to lived experiences to garner in-depth understandings of the phenomenon of caring (Dahlberg et al., 2008).

The initial analysis was conducted by the first author and subsequently developed further through collaborative efforts between the authors. The analysis was performed manually. The process of analysis was characterised by iterative movement between the whole (the peer support interviews) and the parts (the meanings in the interviews) and the “new whole” (essential meaning and its constituents). The interviews were read through several times to create an understanding of the interviews and the meanings of caring for breastfeeding mothers. The analysis then started with a search for meanings in the interviews, marking parts of the text that contain meanings about the phenomenon. The meanings were then compared and brought together in clusters, which are different patterns of meanings that relate to each other and the phenomenon. During this process of analysis, when all meanings had been identified and brought together into clusters, a new whole, in terms of the essential meaning of caring, began to appear. The essential meaning consists of constituents that describe variations and nuances of meanings related to the phenomenon, and constituents capture the essential meaning and build a structure of meanings.

Ethical considerations

The study was conducted in accordance with the research principles described in the Helsinki Declaration (2013). Ethical approval was obtained and granted from the Swedish Ethical Review Authority in accordance with Swedish laws and regulations (Ethical approval number: 2023-00228-01). All participants were given both written and verbal information about the study. Written consent obtained from participants was informed. They were also informed about their right to withdraw from participation during the study.

Result

The essential meaning of peer support caring, as experienced by breastfeeding peer-support mothers, reveals caring as an existential and embodied presence. The embodied experience of breastfeeding calls forth a deep existential commitment; a conviction to care. This commitment touches on an existential presence in which fundamental questions about existence, meaning in life, and freedom, authenticity, and responsibility, emerged through one's embodied breastfeeding journey. The act of breastfeeding emerges as an existentially meaningful act, shaped by one's own lived experience of being existentially exposed inherent to being a breastfeeding mother. It is this shared existential exposedness that forms a foundation of peer support caring as an existential and embodied presence that in turn manifests itself as an anchored companion. In this dynamic, caring unfolds in the space between shared and unique experiences, as well as in the boundaries that connect and differentiate them. It arises in the relationship between oneself and the breastfeeding mother, where mutual intertwining gives life a deeper meaning.

Peer support caring is shaped by the existential and embodied nature of breastfeeding, where breastfeeding stories become a foundation for caring. These stories weave together into a collective narrative, forming a tapestry that portrays breastfeeding as a deeply meaningful act. Peer support caring, as the weaving of these breastfeeding stories, transcends social norms, and a lack of knowledge, time, and space, creating a connection that holds and conveys the essence of breastfeeding. In this way, caring creates an existential and embodied presence, a space of freedom where the meanings of breastfeeding are absorbed and shared. A space in which the existentiality of breastfeeding is connected in togetherness. It becomes an intertwining between self and other, where “to care and to be cared for” are mutual intertwined. This mutual caring enables existential development as a form of freedom, where shared existential exposedness and mutuality develops into a meaningful life in which health, well-being, and recovery are possible. Peer support caring as an existential and embodied presence is inseparable from the ongoing process of becoming and being, both as a human being and as a mother.

The meaning of the phenomenon of peer support caring is illuminated through the following constituents, which should be seen as variations of the phenomenon: embodied knowing awakens caring, embracing the breastfeeding story, transcending time and space, being an anchored companion, and finding an authentic way of being.

Embodied knowing awakens caring

Embodied knowing awakens caring means that one's own lived experiences of breastfeeding form a foundation for understanding the vulnerability, exposedness, and concerns that arise when struggling with breastfeeding. One's own lived experiences awaken a will to engage in peer support caring and serve as an existential driving force for engagement (cf. Nord, Palmér & Flisbäck 2024). This fundamental capacity for Care must be awakened, and is often elicited through an experience of something feeling off and lacking, or in Heidegger, (1996, p. 70) terms; of being in a “breach”. Embodied knowing means that the previously unknown aspects of breastfeeding become familiar through lived experience. The embodiment of breastfeeding is etched as an embodied memory, affecting life.

I remember having many breastfeeding problems//my milk ran out.I couldn’t pump. My daughter just cried.And then I had to feed her. but no one explained how it was supposed to work. There are so many, many things, and it feels so hopeless, and nothing works. The baby just cried.

This embodiment recalls loneliness when breastfeeding is difficult, which awakens a sensitivity towards caring for others. The lived experience of being exposed becomes an embodied memory, awakening a desire to care for others and prevent loneliness. Turning one's own experiences into something that helps others is both meaningful and a way to give back, encouraging a sense of togetherness.

I want to give back the support I received and be a peer support mother in Amningshjälpen (The Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation), offering help to women who seek togetherness in our community.

Embodied knowing illuminates an awareness of what it means to experience togetherness and closeness, even in lonely situations. This embodied knowing awakens a desire to be truly genuine and gentle with others. Embodied experiences of being cared for in togetherness are etched as a sincere memory, evoking a sense of belonging and feeling “at home” in the strain of breastfeeding difficulties.

These women have given me so much warmth, love, and a sense of belonging when I didn't feel truly included. If I can just pass that on to a woman who comes to us through Amningshjälpen, to our active group, and be part of the community, that would be wonderful!

Embodied knowing means recognising the vulnerability of others through one's own lived experience, understanding what it feels like, and knowing what is needed. The unknown of breastfeeding and the feeling of “homelessness” becomes known in caring (cf. Heidegger, 1996).

Embracing the breastfeeding story

Above, we have seen how the experience of one's own vulnerability and exposedness as a breastfeeding mother has awakened the existential will to Care for and support others in similar situations. This awakened caring should not only be understood as only a cause but also as a foundation for how one's own experience—the embodied knowing—serves as an existential resource for caring. We will now explore and deepen this how and illuminate the existential caring that emerges from it.

Embracing the breastfeeding story means inviting the story to be told and listening carefully. It means remaining open to uniqueness in the breastfeeding story, not taking for granted what the story is about, and instead working to remain sensitive to what is being told but also what is unbearable to tell.

I need to be very attentive and listen to the story about the problem. I need to listen, truly listen. Where is that person?

Breastfeeding evokes existential issues and questions about motherhood and parenting. In caring, it is essential to have the courage to listen to and understand the existentiality of breastfeeding. Embracing the breastfeeding story means embracing existential dimensions of being a mother struggling with breastfeeding.

Existential feelings and thoughts arise around motherhood and parenting when breastfeeding doesn’t work. “Why can’t I do it when everyone else can? What’s wrong with my body?” For me, caring is about meeting these feelings and thoughts.

Caring through embracing the breastfeeding story means going beyond the obvious biological or physiological aspects, such as the infant's weight gain. It involves genuinely meeting the mother in her worries and striving to understand what breastfeeding truly means to her.

Being able to meet the mother without focusing too much on the weight curve and this or that.//It’s more about the woman’s own story.what is it she’s trying to tell.what are her worries and how can I help her.That, right there, is caring.

Embracing the breastfeeding story in a caring manner means listening and affirming whatever the experience entails. Caring involves being open and allowing feelings and experiences to be shared in an atmosphere of trust. It also means reflecting on the story in relation to other breastfeeding stories, sensitively acknowledging its uniqueness while transparently conveying that other mothers have shared experiences.

Caring is about affirming and supporting the women in what they experience and feel, reassuring them that it’s okay to feel the way they do, that everything is allowed, and yes, we’ve encountered this before. Everyone has their own story that shapes how they feel and how they view breastfeeding. I meet the woman where she is, and we start from there.

Embracing the breastfeeding story can be challenging when it comes to reading and understanding through writing, for example, delivered via digital media such as email, social media, or chat. In text, it is easier to misunderstand or take for granted what is being communicated. Instead, the act of caring involves, in an open and reflective manner, visualising and allowing the unique breastfeeding story to unfold within the text.

I often do this when I write, because it’s always so difficult when writing.it’s an art to be able to express oneself in a way.But I usually explain that I understand what you're describing like this.that when I read your email, I.//But feel free to correct me if I’ve understood it wrong.

Caring by embracing the breastfeeding story is a delicate balancing act between being open to the uniqueness of the mother's experience and, at the same time, being transparent about one's own. This balance involves evaluating whether sharing one's own story is appropriate as part of caring. In some situations, it can be supportive for the help-seeking mother to connect with someone who has had similar experiences, but one's own story should never overshadow hers.

Transcending time and space

Transcending time and space illuminates how the temporal and spatial framework of caring create the conditions for the existential practice of peer support caring. Transcending time and space means that caring occurs regardless of time and space; whenever and wherever it is needed. Caring surpasses and overcomes the limitations of time and space. This transcendence is inherent in bridging gaps through a deep conviction in the importance of closeness and of being with the mother on her terms.

We are available for a large part of the day. I am very active in the evenings because I find that it works best then, as that’s when other healthcare providers are not accessible. I believe that availability and our quick responses are key.

Caring that transcends time and space and means being present with the mother when others are unavailable—being flexible towards the uniqueness of the other. “Transcending” means caring through varied pathways of communication, such as via phone, email, social media, and chat, independent of physical location.

I receive a lot of text messages. I feel that many prefer this way of communication. Maybe they find it difficult to call, but they are happy to write or email and explain. We offer possibilities that healthcare doesn’t. We are available regardless of where the mother lives.

Caring that transcends time and space involves being present and being with in a sense that is timeless. However, being transparent about unavailability and the option to decline a conversation is also central. In this way, referring the mother to another peer-support mother is a form of caring that demonstrates honesty toward both oneself and the mother. This approach allows for the necessary space to rest and regain strength for the future.

I respond when I can, but I also remind myself that I have no obligation. I can write to someone or reply, "I don’t have time right now. If you need an answer, try another peer support mother." We’re allowed to do that, too. And that’s probably better than me replying a week later, because that wouldn’t be very fair.

Caring that transcends time and space means being close to mothers in a human way of being. It means meeting and forming a relationship with the mother on her unique existential terms and conditions. In caring, the mother is in charge, allowing for a genuine human connection where both individuals are there in an intertwined relationship, forming each other.

Being an anchored companion

Being an anchored companion focusing on how existential caring is practiced and the goal of such caring—to help others reach an active approach in life. According to Heidegger (1996), one side of Care is the maintenance of autonomy in relationships, an existential development in which the act of Care does not anticipate the other's “existential ability to be”. Being an anchored companion means that caring is grounded in trusting a mother's capacity to breastfeed, strengthening them when it comes to breastfeeding on their own terms. The foundation of trust in caring lies in the shared experiences of being a breastfeeding mother, which enables understanding and belonging. These shared experiences are essential for being an anchored companion.

So, through The Breastfeeding Support Group…I can increase women’s confidence when it comes to breastfeeding, showing that it works perfectly fine this way.

Being an anchored companion means being present and encouraging mothers in uncertain and challenging breastfeeding situations. Anchoring involves trusting and believing in the mother's capacity to take responsibility and manage breastfeeding.

A friend to call, with breastfeeding knowledge beyond that of a regular friend. Being a peer support mother is more than just giving advice—it’s about cheering on, offering encouragement, and reassuring that things will get better…It’s a supportive role.

Being an anchored companion means that caring strengthens the relationship between the mother and child by trusting the breastfeeding process. It involves considering the entire context in which breastfeeding occurs and understanding that breastfeeding impacts the life of the new family. It is a holistic approach towards caring in which breastfeeding is understood as an existential experience that changes life.

I’ve thought a lot about this title, "hjälpmamma" (peer support mother). It’s a very suitable title. It’s not just about breastfeeding that comes up. Of course, breastfeeding is the focus, but it’s also very much about feeling adequate as a mother—how to relate to the baby. And sleep is a huge topic as well.

Caring means balancing trust in breastfeeding, the mother, oneself, and the healthcare system. Being an anchored companion means being present to build trust and security in all these aspects while encouraging cooperation rather than conflict. Creating a trusting relationship in which sensitive issues can be addressed and reflected upon is at the core of caring

Breastfeeding is rooted in relationships, and support must come through some form of connection. And relationships take time. There needs to be some kind of relationship in place to discuss sensitive topics and understand how to talk with the other person.

Being an anchored companion means building a caring barrier, counterbalancing the opinions and thoughts of others while defending the interests of the mother and child. As an anchored companion, caring involves strengthening mothers to make choices about breastfeeding that align with their own wishes. Caring can strengthen the ability to stand firm against external opinions by trusting themselves. Caring also means providing reassurance when it is challenging to manage societal norms and expectations.

It’s about being a counterbalance and someone who stands up for breastfeeding. If a mother wants to breastfeed, it feels good to be the one who can defend it and act as a protective barrier against the opinions and judgments of others.

Social norms of how mothers should behave are deeply ingrained and internalised, making motherhood challenging and difficult to navigate. Being an anchored companion means breaking this image and the myth of what a mother should be like. Caring involves transforming mistrust into trust, ultimately strengthening women.

Finding an authentic way of being

The existential driving forces and the will to engage in peer support caring has, as we have seen before, been awakened by one's own lived experiences of breastfeeding. Another existential driving force is to find an authentic way of being. This means that caring provides opportunities for existential dwelling, creating meaning in life that might otherwise feel uncertain or meaningless. It provides life with a direction and purpose, offering a sense of worth in living in an existential manner.

I do this to have something to fight for.it gives me a goal, a purpose in life. I work in an office, but it doesn’t feel right in any way. Helping others is what helps me; it gives me meaning.it’s what makes it meaningful to get up in the morning.

Caring, in terms of finding an authentic way of being, means taking responsibility for the well-being of both oneself and the mother in a vulnerable and exposed situation. This responsibility involves contributing to meaningful change for the mother and her breastfeeding experience, and can lead to satisfaction in life.

Being a peer support mother is very rewarding for me because I feel that I can reach the women. I can give so much in a situation where they are very vulnerable or feel alone. It is very meaningful for me, and after a consultation, I am usually very happy or satisfied, as if I have made a difference. Here, I could do something to make things better, and there was someone who truly wanted help, whom I hopefully could assist.

Finding an authentic way of being involves developing caring relationships that are meaningful. It means being valued and recognised as a worthy human being while also valuing and affirming others in mutuality. Caring, as authenticity, entails believing in the mutual confirmation present in relationships; it enables existential development as a human being and contributes to the development of society in general.

I am seen.I am listened to, I get to talk about thoughts and feelings, and I get to feel that I have contributed and made a difference in the world—that there is meaning to my existence.

Caring means navigating and understanding oneself and one's breastfeeding experiences in mutual relationships with others. Authenticity also entails being present for oneself and for another person in a shared way that nurtures well-being for both. Caring means recovering and reclaiming dignity as a human being and as a mother, helping to overcome embodied challenging experiences.

Caring means that I can process my own guilt.I feel better by caring.If I can help others. Being a peer supporter can be about processing my own experience of breastfeeding.

An authentic way of being involves intertwining care for both oneself and the mother. A desire to live authentically awakens reflection on what is meaningful in life and how to contribute something important to others.

Existential reflections on the result

This study deepens the understanding of the meaning of peer support caring as an existentially grounded practice, reflecting the human capacity to engage in existentially decisive situations—i.e., what Heidegger (1996) describes as the authentic practice of Care. In the article, we explore what peer support caring consists of and discuss its merits for mothers in the existentially exposed position of breastfeeding, a focus rarely illuminated in research.

The results reveal that the meaning of peer support caring, as experienced by peer support mothers, is existential. It can be interpreted as an existential caring, a form of care that embodies Heideggerian principles such as authenticity and reciprocity. Two constituents address the existential motivations and existential driving forces for becoming a peer support mother and what it provides; two focus on the practice of care as enacted; and one concerns the framework of time and space, highlighting the flexible and digital dimensions of the practice.

Peer support caring, understood as an existential practice and as a human capacity to engage in existentially decisive situations, can be related to what Eriksson (2018) describes as “natural” caring. Eriksson argues that, similar to existential caring, peer support is of interest to caring science because it reflects the fundamental idea of caring: a society in which people care for each other fosters a holistic perspective that promotes health and wellbeing.

When analysing peer support caring, we compare it to Heidegger, (1996) concept of Care. Peer support caring reflects key aspects of the Heideggerian Care, such as authenticity, reciprocity, and an experience-based, equal approach to the other. Moreover, it is grounded in compassion and existential responsiveness, helping both oneself and the other to engage in a committed, authentic mode of being—it is a form of existential caring that acknowledges the existential dimensions of breastfeeding. This includes supporting the mother in choosing to continue or cease breastfeeding, and in finding wellbeing regardless of her decision. In this context, we show that engagement in peer support caring helps the peer support mother to find a meaningful and existentially engaged approach to life. This engagement reflects a recapturing of the authenticity of Care, as conceptualised in Heidegger's philosophy, which goes beyond the inauthentic mode of being within the “they”. Drawing on Heidegger, (1996) concepts, we are able not only to concretise the existential and relational merits of non-profit peer support caring, but also to conceptually distinguish professional healthcare from peer support caring practices by using the broader philosophical term of Care [Sorge].

In previous research on non-profit welfare organisations, it has often been said that non-profits can offer more citizen-oriented and flexible welfare than public welfare. In other words, Non-profit organisations and associations possess a flexibility that goes beyond fixed and ready-made solutions (cf. Flisbäck & Yngve, 2024). From this perspective, the risk of professional healthcare seems to be its inflexible and sometimes instrumental and disciplined form. Another risk is that the carer may place themselves above the other person's knowledge of their own life situation and health. Based on Heidegger, (1996, p. 114) phenomenological and existential perspective, the other may, in this way, be deprived of autonomy by the carers approach of “leaping in”.

Recent studies have shown that professional care tends to have this “superior” and objectified approach patients (Ericson & Palmér, 2018; Eriksson, 2018; Palmér, 2015; Van Wijlen, 2019). The findings of this study illustrate that one of the existential merits of peer support caring is its mutual and flexible character, grounded in shared lived experience and reciprocity. The difference between the influence of peer support mothers and breastfeeding women within the Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation is minimal. Both groups share common experiences of existential challenges, vulnerability, and exposedness in the breastfeeding context. This shared experience fosters a relational dynamic of mutual dependency and existential solidarity, contributing to the development of existential health and well-being. Importantly, this dynamic is not limited to “successful” breastfeeding but emerges through the practice of sharing.

Embracing the breastfeeding story appears to be crucial for achieving health and well-being in terms of “being able to” for both peer support mothers and breastfeeding mothers. This act of sharing anticipates the existential potentiality for being, and sheds light on the breastfeeding story, taking the woman's lived experience and personal meaning of breastfeeding as the starting point for caring (c.f Palmér et al., 2021). In relation to the present study, this is relevant in both peer support caring and professional care, as it highlights the existential dimension of the caring encounter.

As a result of the present study, embracing the breastfeeding story emerges as a fundamental condition for peer support caring to be understood as caring. It can be interpreted as a way of meeting between the peer support mother and the breastfeeding mother on equal and exploratory terms, with an openness and sensitivity towards the other's existence and experiences (c.f Palmér et al., 2021). This relational openness is central to the existential dimension of caring, as it shifts the focus from biological function to lived experience.

This is one of the essential meanings in which the phenomenon of peer support caring is described as an existential and embodied presence—a focus on the lived experiences of breastfeeding rather than breastfeeding as a biological issue. The findings reveal that the embodied knowing of breastfeeding, derived from lived experience, transforms existence by encouraging freedom, authenticity, and responsibility. This awakening of Care reflects the desire to provide existential caring, emphasising the existential dimensions of breastfeeding.

In terms of Heidegger, Care often emerges from existential loss, hardship, or deprivation—what Heidegger, (1996) calls “existential anxiety”. This anxiety entails an uncanny experience of being existentially homeless, when the routine of everyday life is disrupted. Researchers have noted that this feeling of homelessness particularly affects resource-poor groups in encounters with welfare, such as women (Flisbäck & Bengtsson, 2024). However, in these exposed situations, existential anxiety can lead us back to the authentic mode of Care, reconnecting us with temporality. In other words, existential anxiety reveals how our past, present, and future are interwoven, and reminds us of the finite nature of time. For peer support mothers, their own experiences of breastfeeding challenges, vulnerability, and exposedness are interpreted as existential anxiety, which awakens their desire to Care, to unite with other mothers, and to engage in existential caring.

Recent studies in Sweden (Palmér, 2015, 2019) have highlighted vulnerability and exposure in the context of breastfeeding difficulties. These findings have prompted reflections on cultural and societal aspects, particularly how breastfeeding in a Swedish context is associated with the notion of being “a good mother”, while simultaneously revealing a lack of adequate care and support for these mothers. Against this backdrop, peer support caring as an existential practice and a human capacity to be involved in something existentially decisive, i.e., what Heidegger (1996) describe as the authentic practice of Care. The equal, experience-based, flexible and mutual activity of peer support caring appears to help peer support mothers find a meaningful approach to life within a broader societal context, marked by normative expectations and institutional limitations. Or in Heideggerian terms, it enables recapturing of the authenticity of Care as something beyond a decayed “they”—an existential caring.

Strengths and limitations of the study

The strength of the present study lies in its phenomenological meaning-oriented approach (Dahlberg et al., 2008, 2024), in which the results have been developed using existential philosophy to deepen the understanding of peer support caring as experienced by peer support mothers and how such caring contributes to meaningfulness. This study focuses on the phenomenon of peer support caring as experienced by peer support mothers in the Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organisation. More specifically, it examines one peer support organisation and 12 peer support mothers. This is important to consider when applying the results to other contexts. In RLR, the phenomenon-orientation enables generalization beyond individual experiences. However, generalization must be critically examined, as meanings are always contextual. The phenomenon and results are shaped by their specific context, which influences their applicability. Still, the search for essential meaning and nuanced variations (Dahlberg et al., 2008; Van Wijngaarden et al., 2017) supports a form of generalization. In our study, peer support caring as experienced by peer support mothers in the Swedish Breastfeeding Support Organization was explored. However, as described by Van Wijngaarden et al. (2017), the phenomenon of peer support caring has been characterised as an essential meaning with nuances, forming a structure that encompasses both generality and particularity in terms of meaning. To capture these nuances, quotes illustrating variations in meaning have been included. We argue that caring can be understood as a universal phenomenon—an intersubjective encounter between people that transcends specific contexts, which is a strength of this study. This essential structure, enriched by contextual quotes, allows the findings to inform broader understandings of caring, including other peer-support contexts and culturally similar contexts as well as professional settings.

Furthermore, the phenomenological approach has led to concept development. Concepts developed here can be applied to caring in general, and peer-support and professional care can benefit significantly from these findings, contributing to theorising transferability. However, a limitation of the study is that we only examined the lived experience of peer support caring from the perspective of non-profit carers; e.g., breastfeeding peer support mothers. Additional studies that investigate breastfeeding mothers' lived experiences of peer support caring are urgently needed.

In Reflective Lifeworld Research (RLR) the emphasis to explore a phenomenon and its meaning, rather than focusing on a specific subject. During the analysis, a pattern of meaning that describes the phenomenon is illuminated by the researcher. This process is guided by an open, flexible, and bridled approach to the phenomenon. The orientation toward the phenomenon itself serves as the rationale for not applying member checking, triangulation, or peer debriefing. The decision to include twelve participants was not predetermined; rather, we were guided by an openness to capturing a diversity of meanings. The richness of meaning in the data was the primary reason for including twelve participants. While it is possible that including more participants could have further enriched the variation in meanings, there was also a risk that the data would become too extensive, potentially complicating the analysis.

In RLR, objectivity is central throughout the research process. As Van Wijngaarden et al. (2017) describe, it concerns the researcher's openness to the phenomenon and its meanings, recognizing that preunderstanding can hinder new insights. Palmér et al. (2022b). emphasizes that preunderstanding is part of our lifeworld and often unconscious, making it difficult to fully grasp. Shifting from a natural to a reflective attitude—by questioning how the phenomenon appears in one's own lifeworld—is one way to address this. Otherwise, there is a risk of merely confirming existing knowledge. In this study, openness and reflection has been guiding principles, supported by a diverse research group with varied professional and personal backgrounds, such as midwife and associate professor in caring science, professor in sociology and senior lecture in Work Life Science, encouraging reflection and deeper understanding of the phenomenon.

As the interviews were conducted in Swedish, the transcriptions were also made in Swedish. The quotes included in the manuscript were translated by a professional English proofreader to ensure a rigorous process. The authors verified the fidelity of the translations to the original meanings to ensure validity.

Conclusion

This study concludes that breastfeeding experiences act as a breach that awakens existential anxiety, such as feelings of homelessness and uncanniness. These experiences evoke a desire for what Heidegger referred to as Care [Sorge]—a fundamental mode of being that involves a reciprocal, flexible, and engaged approach to the world, stemming from existential vulnerability and exposedness. In the context of peer support caring, this form of Care is interpreted as existential caring—a transferable and embodied practice that fosters existential health and well-being by making life meaningful, creating a “homelike” sense of being-in-the-world, and promoting an authentic way of being. The findings suggest that peer support caring, as an existential and embodied presence, has the potential to inform and enrich both other peer support organisations and professional care settings. By integrating principles of existential caring—such as authenticity, reciprocity, and attentiveness to existential exposedness—professional care can move beyond instrumental routines and reconnect with the existential dimensions of caring.

Acknowledgements

The authors want to thank the breastfeeding peer support mothers contributing to the study and the Centre for Welfare Studies, University of Borås, Sweden, for funding the study.

Author contributions

Conceptualization: L.P., M.F., T.N; data curation: L.P., T.N; formal analysis: L.P., M.F; funding acquisition: L.P., M.F., T.N; investigation: L.P., T.N; methodology: L.P., M.F; project administration: L.P., M.F., T.N; resources: L.P., T.N; software: L.P., M.F; supervision: L.P., M.F., T.N; validation: L.P., M.F., T.N; writing—original draft: L.P., M.F; writing—review and editing: L.P., M.F., T.N. All authors have read and approved of the final version of the manuscript.

Biographies

Lina Palmér (ORCID: 0000−0002−4319−4584) is an Associate Professor in Caring Science at the Faculty of Caring Science, Work Life, and Social Welfare at the University of Borås, Sweden. She leads the research group Existential Issues in Caring and Learning Contexts. Consequently, her research interests focus on existential issues related to caring, health, and well-being, particularly in the context of breastfeeding, childbearing, violence against women, and the care of older people. Lina is dedicated to advancing the field of existential caring science and developing its theoretical foundations.

Tora Nord (ORCID: 0000−0002−4189-670X) is a senior lecture in Work Life Science at the Faculty of Caring Science, Work Life, and Social Welfare at the University of Borås. Her research focuses on shifts in responsibility as to employment and welfare services in contemporary Sweden.

Marita Flisbäck (ORCID: 0000−0002−5611−6323) is a Professor of Sociology at the University of Borås and the Research Director of the Centre for Welfare Studies. Her research focuses on the existential meaning of work in relation to family life, welfare, and late capitalist working life. The analyses are primarily based on perspectives from existential sociology, social class theory, and feminist sociology.

Funding Statement

The authors want to thank the Centre for Welfare Studies, University of Borås, Sweden, for funding the study.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Data availability statement

The participants of this study did not give written consent for their data to be shared, so due to the sensitive nature of the research, supporting data are not available.