Laura is a remarkable lactation consultant with an abundance of knowledge in homeopathic remedies. More importantly, Laura is a kind-hearted woman who cares for the emotional well-being of the mothers she works with. My breastfeeding journey was definitely not what I had expected it to be and ultimately I wish I would have met Laura earlier on in my journey. If you are having any difficulties with breastfeeding, please reach out to Laura. She was the first consultant I came into contact with that was able to help me get ahead of the pain and was there for me every step of the way. Below I have shared my entire journey, as my breastfeeding experience was quite unique. If you don't have time to read the whole thing, I hope you can take to heart my advice and look no further than Laura. Laura not only has a vast amount of knowledge, but more importantly she will be there for you emotionally on every step of your breast feeding journey.
When my husband and I found out we were pregnant we decided that I would breastfeed. We went to a lactation class and a child birth class while I was pregnant and we felt prepared for our breastfeeding journey. I got a pump through my insurance and had gotten several items from my shower to prepare for breastfeeding. We were excited and prepared for when our daughter arrived, or so we thought. In the hospital our daughter latched well and the nurses said we were doing great, despite me being in a lot of pain. When we got home the pain got worse and our daughter would start screaming every time I would go to feed her. It was a never ending battle of pain and tears, but I wasn't ready to give up. I saw four lactation consultants and three doctors who diagnosed me with hyper-lactation and recommended I pump following nursing. I began pumping following my daughter's nursing sessions every three hours at the recommendation of the consultants to relieve some of the pain I was in and eventually I went straight to pumping because it was too much stress on my body to nurse and pump.
Six weeks into breastfeeding, I was pumping, extremely engorged with raw nipples, and I was miserable. Through Facebook I found someone who recommended that I contact Laura. Through our conversations Laura could tell I was in pain and made several recommendations for homeopathic remedies to help get me ahead of the pain prior to our meeting. When we got the opportunity to meet, Laura was so patient with me, my husband, and my daughter. She said we were doing everything right and she wanted to help, but she could tell my energy was winding down. Laura wanted to help get the pain down and get our daughter back to nursing, but ultimately she told me she could tell I was suffering and wanted to get me to enjoy being a mother. At our meeting Laura gave me more homeopathic remedies to try when I got home. These treatments were finally helping me get ahead of the pain, but emotionally I was exhausted as my daughter had developed a flow preference from being on the bottle for four weeks and getting her back to the breast was very difficult.
At this point I made the decision to dry up. Without Laura I would have never been able to do this safely. Every other person I saw said it was too dangerous and that I just needed to keep pumping to prevent engorgement. Even though Laura ideally wanted me to keep nursing, she knew that mentally I couldn't do it anymore. She texted me daily after I saw her to see how I was doing and reminded me daily I was doing the right thing. With Laura's homeopathic remedies I was able to dry up slowly, safely, and in the least amount of pain possible. The best part of it was that the homeopathic remedies were safe and allowed me to provide my milk for my daughter till four months of age.
I do not regret trying to breastfeed and as difficult as it was I am glad to say I tried. The only regret I have is that I didn't find Laura sooner. If I saw Laura sooner I truly believe that I would still be breastfeeding my daughter. By the time I saw Laura I was emotionally drained and sick of hearing how "lucky" I was to have an over-supply of breast milk. Laura was the first person to recognize I wasn't "lucky," I was in pain and I was not enjoying the experience. Laura provided me with the emotional support and advice to get me through the pain. I now can say without a doubt that the only thing I was "lucky" about was meeting Laura, as ultimately her support and advice made me whole again and allowed me to be the mother I always dreamed of being. read more