Why every Newborn Mom should see a Lactation Consultant - Tomball, The Woodlands, TX
To all newborn mamas out there, and to the moms who have yet to deliver their precious baby, please take my advice and schedule a lactation consultant ASAP. As a Houston-area mom of two children (4 year & 2 year olds), I cannot express how much I was unaware of the challenges that one might face regarding nursing one’s child for the first time. Oftentimes, moms are so excited for their baby, that they are only thinking about fun things such as planning the nursery, scheduling newborn photos, picking out the going home outfits for baby & Mom but considering a lactation consultant is vital information to research as well. Story time: when expecting my first child, my son, I always planned to breast feed and after watching my older sisters nurse their babies, I had NO IDEA I would struggle to feed my child. As soon as my son was born, it was a struggle to get him to latch for DAYS. I saw several lactation consultants while in the hospital, however, every time they came, my son was sleeping and therefore they gave me tips and suggestions. I was provided guidance to pump every 3 hours to stimulate milk production and we were taught how to feed him via syringe.
Let me tell you, this was just the beginning of the struggle. After weeks of failing to get him to latch, but trying constantly, I had been exclusively pumping and bottle feeding my son. After my son was 6 weeks old, I finally made an appointment to see a lactation consultant with Bayou City Breastfeeding. The lactation consultant I worked with changed everything for me. She was very honest in giving advice and suggestions while also keeping my expectations realistic in expressing it will take a long time to teach my son, who had minor tongue tie, to latch. Long story short, my son never did latch and I exclusively pumped all of his feedings for his entire first year of life (plus an additional 3 months due to dairy issues…but that’s a whole ‘other story.)
You may think that being unable to latch my son and feed him directly via breast would lead me to feel unaccomplished by my numerous meetings with the lactation consultant at Bayou City Breastfeeding. On the contrary, the advice and wisdom my lactation consultant provided me with regards to exclusive pumping as well as my son’s reflux pains literally saved my mental health during postpartum. My son cried so much and had so much reflux and pain, fussiness, etc. My lactation consultant did not focus solely on breastfeeding. She inquired about all concerns regarding feeding my son which led me to express his gas pains that I could not solve. She provided me with NUMEROUS herbal and safe remedies to assist my son in easing his pains and reflux. As a freshly postpartum mom, struggling to latch her first baby AND dealing with his crying for hours every evening without any solace: I was STRUGGLING, to say the least. Postpartum with my son was SUCH A CHALLENGE and one that I never knew was coming. Like I said, before my son was born, I never knew I would struggle to feed him. With that being said, many of my mom friends have also expressed issues with nursing such as pain or constant spit up/reflux that they were unsure of how to fix for their child. I recommended they all see a lactation consultant and BAM problems solved. They were provided various positions to assist with pain when nursing as well as lower the chances of reflux for their child.
The biggest lesson I’ve learned myself and from watching my mom friends: you don’t know what you don’t know. So many of us don’t know that these “minor problems” have simple fixes that are easily relied by lactation consultants! You do not have to have major struggles, like me, of inability to latch just to see a lactation consultant. EVERY NEW MOM CAN BENEFIT from their advice and suggestions to make feeding your child easier, whether that be directly via breast or pumping. My lactation consultant let me know that I was using the incorrect flange size, which explained the pain and bleeding that I was experiencing. So while I was never able to breastfeed my child directly, my lactation consultant provided vital information to make exclusively pumping for 15 months POSSIBLE. Without her advice, I sincerely doubt I would have been able to continue pumping for much longer than the 6 weeks I had prior to meeting her.
I cannot stress enough the importance of seeking assistance from a lactation consultant and I have nothing but the best review to provide for Bayou City Breastfeeding. You can see their services and locations here, as well as finding if they accept your insurance.
