I love this resource from childbirth educator and fellow doula Melek Speros from Birth Blissfully in Austin, Texas. Use her graphic to facilitate questions to your provider and confirm that you are on the same page. This is also a great list to consider when interviewing possible providers. Remember it's YOU who are hiring THEM! The ICAN group of Salt Lake and Utah County is also a great resource for education, support and advocacy for Vaginal Birth After Cesarean.  

I recently had the opportunity to chat with some lovely Mom's on breastfeeding and talk about different struggles and experiences with feeding their babies. I'm SOOO grateful for their thoughts and insight! Each person has a different journey and a different feeding experience, none the less, now is the time to gather and support each other on wherever our journey takes us!

I would love to hear YOUR thoughts in the comment section below! Thanks friends for sharing. 
SegoLily
On Milk Supply
​"That it's easy. That the baby just knows how to latch, that you will automatically have enough milk always, that it won't ever hurt....."
M. A

 "If you try X it will make your milk production go up. Nope, you can do ALL THE THINGS and still not make enough." S.B

"You don't have to/shouldn't pump in the beginning, just nurse, nurse, nurse and your supply will regulate appropriately- not for me and now I'm dealing with low supply issues." C.D

On Tongue Ties
"Honestly the most frustrating misconception to me was "he'll eat if he's hungry". Our LO did not eat actually because he had a tongue tie which made it really hard for him to get enough so he wouldn't wake to eat and wasn't gaining weight for weeks so I woke him every 3 hours to eat. People said that to me over and over, so I felt crazy thinking he wasn't getting enough and for being so regimented, and hurt because that statement just isn't supportive at all.
W. E

On Losing Weight
"The weight will just melt off "  J.L

"I'm nursing twins and there still isn't anything melting off!" B.B


On Scheduled Feedings
" I thought that the first two months was going to be the way it was forever. If I deviated from my routine of feeding from both breasts, the last one, first etc, it was going to be horrible. Now I honestly just do to a quick feel and feed from the fullest side, keeping in mind to make sure I'm feeding from both sides throughout the day, but not always so regimented." P.G

On Painful Nursing
 " That it would be very painful. It wasn't for me!!" L.B

 Myth "To chafe my nipples at the end of pregnancy to get them "toughened up" for nursing. " B.B

" That everyone gets cracked and bleeding nipples and that it hurts and that it is normal. Also that I would feel a certain feeling when my milk came in (I didn't feel anything besides them getting huge and was told my milk wasn't in until the Dr said it definitely was)" H.U

"It's natural, and it won't hurt if you're doing it right. False. It will likely, at some point, be mildly excruciating, because your nipples have never had this much undivided attention (most likely, ahem). This, to me, is the absolute worst one because it leaves so many of us expecting virtually NO pain (or at worst, mild discomfort) and results in feelings of failure before we've hardly begun!" C.C

"I think I'm one of the lucky ones, baby boy and I figured out how to latch within a few days, and once my nipples healed from he initial cracking we've not had any pain." J.C

On Breast Cancer
 Myth"One that really scared me was that it could increase your risks of getting breast cancer. So happy I did research when I had children so I could breastfeed!" H.I

Bonding
Myth "That breastfeeding will interfere with the father's ability to bond with the baby." L.A

More Myths
"That you are in control. After hitting our one year goal I realized it wasn't going to be up to me when we stopped!"
​N.P

"That babies need water (supplementation). "A.H

"That I wouldn't be able to nurse with my inverted nipples."  B.B

 "That you don't have to burp baby when breastfeeding." D.A

"Never wake a sleeping baby, he'll eat when he's hungry (and that) breastfeeding is the most natural thing in the world - this one is very false and makes you feel like a true failure (especially with those postpartum hormones). 
 C.D 

Local Resources 
For those looking for peer or professional breastfeeding support check out these fantastic local resources!

La Leche League  

1. La Leche Leauge meeting (meets in Weber/Davis, Salt Lake & Utah counties throughout each month

2. IBCLC's (Internationally Board Certifed Lacation Consultants)
       Segolily Collective +Mother Fed - Located in downtown SLC
       Meghan Reed - Serves the SLC & Park City areas
​       Julie Johnson- Serves the Salt Lake county area

Close to twenty women gathered together from the across the valley, different personalities, strengths, weaknesses, backgrounds, political views, and philosophies. What bonded this group was a love for serving women, cherishing the miracle of life and a desire to be more effective in doing so.

During the course of two weeks, we shared in laughter and tears, rejoiced in moments of blessing and lent shoulders to cry on. Experienced childbirth educator, doula, mother and founder of the Curtis Method of Hypnobirthing Lauralyn Curtis facilitated this training covering topics from what is really means to Hold Space for someone, active listening, being present, comfort measures during birth, supporting Mom and her partner during and after birth, giving birth beyond fear, tension relieving scripts, the power of an active mother- directed birth and creating positive affirmations. Lauralyn Curtis and veteran doula’s shared their wisdom on the need for informed consent, evidenced based birthcare and the high value and respect a women should always be shown.

We left feeling empowered, a sister-hood of doula’s embarking on this adventure together. Friendships forged and a circle of care.

​

Okay, maybe just the pickles or just the ice cream! During both of my pregnancies I craved both ice cream and pickles (not together). It probably didn't help that I was pregnant during the heat of Utah summers both times HA! I came up with this recipe during my second pregnancy and it became a fast favorite! BONUS no refined sugar in the ice cream. *If you are dairy free try substituting the milk for almond and the heavy cream with coconut cream.

Banana Sweetened Vanilla Ice Cream
1 cup heavy cream
2 cups milk
11/2 t vanilla
2 frozen bananas


Blend bananas with milk until smooth. Stir in cream and vanilla. Process in ice cream maker until thick and desired consistency. 

Chocolate Shell
2/3 cup dark chocolate chips
1 1/2 T coconut oil

In microwave safe bowl or double broiler on the stovetop melt chocolate and coconut oil on low heat until smooth and then set aside. 

Honey Roasted Pecans
1/2 cup pecan pieces
1 T honey
1 t butter

Stir constantly over medium heat for 4 min. Spread on parchment paper to cool or place in freezer for a couple minutes. 

Serve chocolate shell and pecans over ice cream. 

In life when meeting someone new we often ask the question, "What do you do?" or we ask a child "What do you want to be when you grow up?" Our occupation doesn't define us but it often provides insight into that person's world, their interests and gives us a glimpse into their everyday life.  Like most kids, my answer varied changing throughout childhood from president, astronaut, politician, professional chef, something in corporate business, Doctor,  mother to finally in college choosing a degree in business because, "I had to do something". After spending several fun years in the financial services world my husband and I started a family. After the birth of our son something shifted. Seeing this tiny human enter the world as a beautiful miracle of life made my heart simply melt. I began reading and watching everything I could on childbirth, pregnancy, reading birth stories and watching programs like "Call the Midwife" and National Geographic's vivid and beautiful In the Womb. During this time I discovered Doula's women who provide physical, emotional and educational support to women and their partner's during pregnancy, labor and in the postpartum period. The scientific side of me loved hearing how women who had a doula were MORE SATISFIED with their birth and that women who had continuous support during their labor were LESS likely to have newborns that needed time in the NICU among other positives.  Serving women in this way is an absolute delight and I am honored to both witness and support you during the birth of your child.