I haven't always been a Lactation Consultant, in fact I had never even heard of a Lactation Consultant until I had my son in 2009. I started my working life as a Medical Librarian, based in large university hospitals in the UK. Then I met my husband (just over 20 years ago now) and everything changed.

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Long story short, I moved to San Francisco and had a baby. Stripped of the support of extended family I really struggled; I struggled with everything baby-related, but especially with breastfeeding. I felt so alone and helpless and it wasn't until I got the expert help I needed that things started to turn around for me. This help presented itself in the form of a Psychiatrist, a postpartum doula and a Lactation Consultant; three brilliant women who helped me get out of the very deep, dark hole I was in. 

 

You can find out a bit more about that time here. I contributed to The Birth of a Mother podcast in 2021:

 https://open.spotify.com/episode/7mXCzYzJbIL795VJPoTtg9

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As my son went off to school (after being a stay at home parent for 5 years) I started to wonder what I was going to do with the rest of my working life. As luck would have it a friend suggested I apply for a job working front of house in a "Boutique" attached to the Lactation Department of a local hospital. After a year or so of renting out breast pumps and fitting women for nursing bras I realized I had found my calling!

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I started by getting my Lactation Educator qualification and began answering the phone helpline and facilitating our twice weekly breastfeeding support group. I quickly moved into teaching parenting and breastfeeding classes to our expectant families. It took me about 2 years to complete the 1000 clinical hours and Lactation education needed to sit the IBCLC exam and in 2020 I passed! During the last 9+ years I have worked with over 6,000 newborn families and it has been the greatest privilege of my life to be of support, advice and comfort during such a vulnerable time. I look forward to bringing those years of experience into helping you and your new family.