About babyLove Breastfeeding
My Mission
At babyLove Breastfeeding, lactation support means more than just latch assistance and building milk volumes, and breastfeeding doesn't always mean a baby exclusively at the breast. It can involve lots of support from pumps, supplemental feeds and bottles - and that's ok!
Here you will find support for all feeding methods and individual goals, where formula supplementation is viewed as a supplementation to breastfeeding success.
Feeding a tiny human is, well, human - and it looks different for all families. I want you to feel supported - where you are, and where you want to be.
Education + Experience
I started off my professional career as a NICU RN in 2008 working in a Level IV nursery at UCSF Children's Hospital. After my first baby was born I transitioned to an OB/GYN RN for five years, where I found myself not being able to provide great breastfeeding education to new families due to lack of knowledge. I returned to school and obtained my Lactation Educator Certificate, then returned again and obtained my IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant) in 2014.
As a Lactation Consultant (RN, IBCLC) I have provided breastfeeding support in many roles:
I have supported inpatient Postpartum and NICU families. I helped create the NICU Lactation Program at Stanford Children's Hospital and cared for families in the NICU, CVICU, PICU, etc. I've trained nurses, helped with Baby Friendly designation process and improved lactation support evidence based care.
I have helped businesses create and grow Lactation Support Programs and provided pumps and classes to large corporate companies such as Netflix, Sephora, SurveyMonkey and Salesforce. I spoke at HR Conferences, created corporate policies and advocated to normalize pumping in the workplace .
I have helped families in outpatient clinics and offices after hospital discharge as they navigate feeding challenges in the year ahead of them, both in person and virtually.
I helped create and promote a virtual lactation support platform to help mothers find clean and inviting places to pump worldwide, while helping companies bring this to the workplace so pumping employees can locate and access lactation spaces.
I have taught Prenatal and Mommy + Me classes, in addition to leading in person and virtual breastfeeding support groups for Special Care Parents and Well Baby Parents.
My Journey
I have had three feeding journeys, and they have all looked so very different! I struggled a lot with my first baby and it was a mess of nipple shields, pumping, lots of formula and bottle feeding. I had learned a lot so by the time I got to my second journey so I thought it would be a lot easier this time.
My second baby had a whole new, and very different, personality than my first so basically everything I thought I knew went out the window and I started from scratch again. We started off our feeding journey together with high bilirubin that required phototherapy and NICU admission. I also returned to working full time as a OB/GYN RN so I spent months pumping in exam rooms, cars and cramped closets. Then she decided to wean abruptly on her own.
Fast forward seven years later and my third journey began. We worked with greater than 10% weight loss at the start, a pandemic and a toddler who refused to wean.