Who's Who in Breastfeeding Support:

There are numerous providers of lactation support services, all of whom are needed to maintain and improve breastfeeding initiation, duration and exclusivity. Differing preparation, credentialing, and terminology of these providers is confusing to families, insurers, employers, hospitals, and policy makers. The use of terms such as "counselor," "specialist," " educator," and "consultant" are often mistaken to mean the same thing. Read more to bring you from confusion to clarity in USLCA's
An Inventory of Breastfeeding Support

WHO Growth Charts

A growth chart is used by pediatricians and other health care providers (like lactation consultants) to follow a child's growth over time. There is a difference in normal growth rates between breastfed and formula-fed babies. The World Health Organization (WHO) growth charts, which better reflect the growth pattern of the healthy, breastfed infant are considered the standard for children under two. Growth charts have been constructed by observing the growth of large numbers of NORMAL children over time. Growth charts are different for boys and girls. When a child deviates from his or her previously established growth curve, investigation into the cause is generally warranted. In addition, children with specific conditions such as Down Syndrome and Turner Syndrome follow distinct growth curves which deviate significantly from children without these conditions. Contact me if you need further assistance.
Girls growth chart NB-6 months
Girls growth chart 6 mo to 2 years
Boys WHO growth chart NB-6 months
Boys WHO growth chart 6 mo to 2 years

Local Resources:

The local La Leche League is a wonderful resource for mother to mother sharing. Contact them at 318-475-3243.

If you are enrolled in WIC, please contact your peer counselor for assistance with support you can receive through this program, which can include an effective breast pump for mothers returning to work or school.

Useful Web Links

www.infantrisk.org - Medications and Mother's milk information as well as information on Post Partum Mood Disorder.

www.kellymom.com - Very indepth breastfeeding information, written by an IBCLC.

Under the Breastfeeding Button, you will be lead to great videos on newborns.stanford.edu/Breastfeeding - There is a great video on "Maximizing your Milk Production" for pumping mothers; and another on "Hand Expression"

YouTube video - Great video on how to use Paced feeding technique to support a breast baby that needs to receive bottles.

www.ibconline.ca - Dr. Jack Newman's website.

www.secretsofbabybehavior.com - Help for new families to understand why their baby does what he does!

www.breasthealthproject.com - Lymphatic breast massage to mimic the natural action of the lymph system.

There are times when you may have difficulty pumping, there are things that can help! For some, just looking at your baby's picture or video can help; for others smelling your baby's blanket is enough. Some find that they are having difficulty turning off the outside world and focusing, that is where Guided imagery comes in. Check out the information from Robin Frees IBCLC: Click here to visit NewBorn Concepts.

The loss of a baby after 18 weeks gestation will typically start the cascading of normal hormonal changes that occurs after birth of a term infant, this includes milk production. Help with relieving the body of the pain of engorgement is found within this video http://bfmedneo.com/resources/perinatal-loss-support/ If you would like to make a donation of Legacy milk, please contact Brenda by phone or email for more information.

Perinatal loss is life changing and the grief can be eased with the help of support. Check out the facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/1125830927483263/?ref=share or website https://juliannagraceministry.weebly.com/ Find a Pastor or counselor so you and your partner can talk about your loss.