Nursing isn’t just about food, it’s a connection and parenting tool at your disposal
Why “By Your Side”?
Parenting was never meant to be done solo, we all need our village.
I remember that feeling of bringing home my baby and wondering, what on earth am I doing?!
We all need support through every stage especially when it comes to learning how to feed our babies. No matter how much preparation you put into learning about breastfeeding, until your baby is born and you put them to your chest you don’t really know what you're doing. Even then, it’s a brand new skill that you and baby both need to learn.
With social media and internet searches that don’t filter proper evidence based information, you need someone who will be by your side, to answer your questions and walk with you on this journey.
Exciting News!
I am excited to share that I a mentoring Michelle from Holding Space on her journey to becoming an IBCLC herself! Michelle is a mother, birth doula, prenatal educator, and photographer in East Vancouver.
She believes that the most important thing you can do leading up to your birth and postpartum is to make sure you have a good village of people surrounding you. We are meant to be in community, we are meant to be held and supported during birth and into postpartum, and having the right people around you during that time is so valuable. She feels privileged to have walked alongside close to 200 families as they’ve journeyed to meet their babies, and it has been a natural shift for her to expand to help families navigate the world of feeding their baby. She is so thrilled to have the opportunity to continue to pursue more education in this area, as she works toward her IBCLC certification.
Mentoring students is so important, as this is one of the best ways that we can train new IBCLCs and have more lactation support available to families who need and deserve it. At this point, Michelle will be joining me at client visits when families are willing in order for to her to first gain some observation hours, before moving on to working with families directly under my supervision. We are grateful to everyone who is open to having Michelle be a part of their feeding journey!
What is an IBCLC?
IBCLC stands for International Board Certified Lactation Consultant
Did you know?
IBCLCs come from all different backgrounds but share a common education and experience in lactation and feeding support
We work with the parent-baby dyad to provide evidence based information and to help them achieve their goals
IBCLCs must continue their education every year, ensuring their skills are maintained and that they are aware of any new recommendations or protocols from the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine and World Health Organization
We have undergone 95 hours of lactation education, 500 hours of hands-on lactation support, completed 10 science courses at the university level before being accepted by the IBLCE to write a 4 hour board exam and then need to re-certify every 5 years