Breastfeeding can have a lot of ups and downs for many new moms. It’s completely normal to breastfeed as a new mother, and breast milk is even recommended as a baby’s exclusive form of nourishment for about half a year. Typically, breastfeeding is relatively simple and doesn’t require outside professional assistance.
However, there are a variety of different scenarios that can occur during breastfeeding that can benefit from a lactation specialist or consultant. These professionals are medically certified and can help new mothers overcome challenges related to breastfeeding. Read on to find out what resources are available to help new moms with breastfeeding, and when it’s best to call a lactation specialist to help make breastfeeding easy and painless.
Decide Whether You Want a Lactation Consultant or Educator
There are different kinds of healthcare professionals that you can choose from if you’re a new mother that wants some assistance and tips related to breastfeeding. Intervention for breastfeeding when issues arise and follow-up assistance for common concerns are the prime areas of expertise for lactation consultants and educators. You’ll be able to get the right amount of care and consultation you need by choosing a lactation consultant or educator to help with breastfeeding.
Lactation Consultants are medical clinicians and are experts with hands-on experience consulting breastfeeding moms. These consultants will be your go-to if you feel most comfortable with the help of a registered nurse, dietitian, or feeding therapist. These consultants have training that is extensive but will likely be more expensive to bring on for consultation than a lactation educator.
Lactation educators specialize more closely in supporting breastfeeding mothers and educating them about lactation. Unlike lactation consultants, educators most likely won’t have access to a referral for further lactation consultation. However, lactation educators are well-equipped to handle all basic breastfeeding questions, and can usually refer you to other educational resources for breastfeeding.
Visit Simply Nourish today to learn more about what resource options are available to you as a new breastfeeding mother.
Finding a Lactation Specialist That’s Right For You
To start, check in with your health insurance provider to see whether they provide lactation services. This is often a good place to start when looking for a specialist, and these services can be heavily discounted or even free depending on your provider and your provider’s area of coverage. Service fees will vary based on providers and their areas of coverage, though, so make sure that there aren’t other, more affordable resources available to you first.
Birth hospitals also commonly offer free or nearly free breastfeeding services like clinics and other support facilities that cater to new mothers and infants. Birth hospitals tend to provide support faculties that can provide new mothers with breastfeeding resources and services. If there is a birth hospital near your residential area, do some research to see if it provides specific resources for new mothers looking for assistance with breastfeeding.
Talking with your infant’s pediatrician is another great place to start looking for resources to help with breastfeeding. Your pediatrician will be able to conclude whether your infant has any issues with breastfeeding that could be cause for concern. More often than not, pediatricians will also have lactation educators active inside their practice. At the very least, consult with your pediatrician to see if they can refer you to other nearby lactation consultants in your area.
When is the Right Time to Call a Lactation Specialist?
Expecting mothers are usually in the best situation to call a lactation specialist. A mother who is expecting will benefit the most from the mental and physical consultation that a lactation specialist can provide. These consultants can be available to help you hold your newborn in a way that’s best for breastfeeding, or provide general tips to make breastfeeding easier.
It can definitely be a struggle for a newborn mother to not have their baby breastfeed as often as they’d like. New mothers can struggle to feel like their newborn isn’t breastfeeding enough, which can cause concern even when their situation is completely normal. Lactation specialists can help provide professionally backed reassurance in the event your infant isn’t feeding as naturally as you think they should be.
New mothers tend to worry that consulting a lactation specialist will be hugely expensive. But in fact, the cost of a visit to a lactation specialist is usually much lower than all the costs of receiving at-home care from a lactation specialist. Getting a supply of feeding formula tends to be much more expensive, and will quickly rack up thousands of dollars in a reduction in health care costs. Simply visiting a lactation consultant will save you a ton of money in the long run and will still give you the advice you need when you feel like you require professional breastfeeding assistance.
Visit the Simply Nourish website to learn more about finding lactation specialists who can provide you with the breastfeeding consultation services that are right for you.