Author: Abrie McCoy, CLC (Certified Lactation Consultant)
When building your prenatal and postpartum care team, we often only think about an OBGYN, midwife, and pediatrician. Did you know that you can (and should!) include a lactation consultant as a member of your prenatal and postpartum care team? Lactation consultants help educate and support your feeding efforts. Also lactation consulting services are required to be covered by health plans at no cost to you.
Prenatal Team
The prenatal period is a time for preparation and planning for the arrival of your baby. This is your time to buy and set up baby gear. This is also the time to learn about baby feeding. Whether your feeding plan is breast, bottle, or both- a lactation consultant can be helpful in learning what to expect, different feeding methods, and creating your feeding plan. Being fully prepared to care for your baby will take some of the pressure off of you and help you become that much more successful with baby feeding.
Some things to cover during pregnancy:
- What to expect in the first week with baby feeding
- Hunger cues
- Diaper output
- Breastfeeding
- Bottle feeding
- Combo feeding
- Milk expression
- Choosing a pump
Postpartum Team
You did it – you have delivered your baby into this world! You have spent nine months growing your perfect baby, now the time has come to provide nourishment outside the womb. While breastfeeding may be natural, it may not always come easily. Having a professional to assist with any obstacles can help make the process easier. Again, lactation consultants are helpful with other feeding methods, too. If bottle feeding, they can teach methods to help you avoid overfeeding, appropriate amounts to feed, and support oral development with other feeding methods. No matter your feeding method, you have another member of the team to turn to for support.
Things your lactation consultant can assist with postpartum:
- Latching difficulties
- Supply concerns
- Feeding difficulties
- Pumping
- Paced bottle feeding
You deserve support! You do not have to navigate the prenatal and postpartum periods alone. Reach out to get support from a lactation consultant such as SimpliFed covered by many health plans at no cost to you in pregnancy and postpartum. You can sign up here to learn more.