'Here's why tea and toast was the best meal I had after giving birth'

• NHS hospitals offer tea and toast to women after they have given birth
• Brooke Kirkley claims it is the most delicious, comforting meal
• She welcomes her third child into the world in November - and is already looking forward to the post-birth tea and toast

Whenever I’m sitting with my sister having a catch up over tea and toast, she always fondly remembers how delicious the basic meal was after giving birth to her children. 

My sister, Brooke Kirkley, 33 is a mother to two young daughters, with another baby girl due in November.

Although my sister has enjoyed many delicious meals over the years from extravagant restaurant experiences to home-cooked meals, the one meal she talks about the most is the tea and toast the NHS provided to her after both of her children’s births. 

I sat down with her to find out exactly why the meal meant so much to her.

“It’s like a reward” she joked, referencing the viral TikTok sound.

Brooke explained that during the labour of both of her children, (the first in 2015, the second in 2019), she was unable to eat. 

I was there for the second labour as a birthing partner, and I remember how hungry she was, and yet she was unable to eat for around 24 hours due to medication making her sick and being in too much pain. 

She also ended up having emergency caesarean sections with both children too, which meant that she had to be ‘Nil by Mouth’ ahead of the surgery - which means that she was unable to consume any food or drink.

By the time her children were welcomed into the world and Brooke was back on the ward, she was offered a cup of tea and slices of buttered toast, which she felt was exactly what she needed. 

“Your body has used up so much energy during labour and birth, and tea and toast is the perfect food to make you feel a bit better,” Brooke explained. 

“Food is the last thing on your mind, but once all of the trauma of giving birth is over you realise just how hungry you are.

“Then the nurses offer you tea and toast, and it’s the most comforting thing in the world.”

Brooke explained that she felt the tea and toast is made to perfection, with “beautiful tasting tea with creamy full fat milk”, and “proper butter, melted onto lightly toasted bread”.

I ask how it compares to a usual cup of tea and toast, and Brooke is adamant it's not the same, as she explains: “It’s not just the fact it’s given to you when you feel you need it most, but it’s the comforting aspect of someone else making it for you.”

I asked Brooke if she would want something more substantial like a McDonald’s breakfast and she strongly disagrees: “For me, I need something a little bland like tea and toast because after both of my births I still felt a bit sick and out of it. Tea and toast is delicious and not too overpowering.”

But it’s more than just the taste of the meal that Brooke remembers so fondly, as she explains that the moment of enjoying tea and toast after giving birth gives you a chance to collect your thoughts. 

“You’ve got this adorable brand-new baby, but you can feel slightly overwhelmed. The moment of eating the tea and toast gives you five minutes of peace, to regroup and begin to feel normal again.”

Brooke is really looking forward to welcoming her third daughter into the world in November, but is also already looking forward to the tea and toast after giving birth. 

“I can’t wait to meet her, see if she looks like her sisters and watch her grow, but I won’t lie I absolutely can’t wait to experience the delicious tea and toast again.”

Let us know your experience of enjoying tea and toast after birth in the comment section below 👇