Jennifer was fantastic! I went to Jennifer shortly after my little one arrived. Jennifer was very knowledgeable, positive, compassionate, and just an all-around lovely person with a calming and warm presence. She makes you feel very comfortable from the start, which is essential for the work that she does. She took time to understand the challenges we were facing with nursing and work with both me and my baby to develop a plan that we could use to work on breastfeeding. My little one also had some issue with tongue-tie and Jennifer gave us a wonderful recommendation for a specialist who could help us. I am convinced her encouragement to go see the specialist (who ultimately corrected the issue) helped us avoid a lot of pain and nursing trouble. Jennifer was very easy to book, with a responsive assistant who was quick to get us in to see her. I am so glad that we worked with Jennifer and would highly recommend her to any mom interested in getting help with breastfeeding. read more

Jennifer is the BEST! I took my son to see her when he was 3 weeks old. He was a preemie, born 6 weeks early and wasn't latching for being born so soon. He had to be bottle fed in the NICU so I was worried he wouldn't be able to latch. Jennifer made me feel comfortable and confident at our visits and helped us reach our nursing goals. She is super knowledgeable and I recommend her to anyone seeking help with lactation. read more

Jennifer is an outstanding Lactation Consultant - her descriptions and explanations make everything more clear and what was difficult before, suddenly becomes easy. She is efficient and yet friendly and caring. She covers a lot of ground in a short amount of time while not feeling rushed, and she clearly knows what she is talking about. Visiting her has been extremely helpful to my daughter and me, and I would certainly return should I need more advise. I would recommend her to my friends in a heartbeat. read more

Jennifer took the time to listen to our situation carefully and evaluate before giving us her professional opinion. She is very knowledgeable and empathetic. We absolutely loved the way she engaged with our daughter, and look forward to seeing her again! read more

Jennifer is amazing! I highly recommend her! She thoughtfully answered every question I had and took all the guess work out of what I was going to expect. I saw her before and after the birth of our daughter. Going to her before birth really helped me understand what to expect and she gave me the tools and information to start breastfeeding off on the right foot. This was critical for a new mom like me. I had follow up visits with her as well and I can report baby and I are doing well and still breastfeeding all thanks to her. read more

Very painful experience! This person made me and my baby suffer! She doesn't care about you or your baby and will forget about your issues the minute your consultation is over. I decided to write this review because during pandemic it's extremely important that you're able to connect with the provider, especially after the surgery which she referred us to. We saw her at the beginning of March 2020. It was very hard to schedule an appointment with her. But I decided to wait because "She is that good". She was nice during the consultation. However all the advices she gave were wrong. First, I had clogged milk ducts after her "milkshake" massage technique. She neglected all other factor that could be the reason for a poor latch (torticollis, high muscle tone, positioning ) and concentrated on tong tie issue. She referred my baby for a tong tie release. We had it done ASAP 2 days after her consultation. It was extremely important to be seen by her PostOp. The next day after the surgery I received a text message that all the appointments have been cancelled due to COVID -19. It was impossible to reach her with questions. I was only able to text her assistant. I begged if Jennifer could call me or do a video call. Silence... That's all I received. I can't describe my feelings. My baby was suffering, I was devastated. After 2 months of suffering by baby refused the breast. I exclusively breastfed my first child and didn't have any problems with breastfeeding. When I needed help here with my second, all I got was carelessness. I write this review with the tears in my eyes. Hoping this review helps someone. read more

Jennifer was so lovely and helped show me how to change my daughter's latch so it would be better both for me and for her. It made a world of difference! She's wonderful and I highly recommend. read more

Deserves six stars. You get Jennifer and you get the crème de la crème of lactation consultants. My wife had to be induced early and then had some complications that got him admitted to the NICU of the hospital he was born in and then had to be transferred to another NICU. Being in the NICU for two weeks and this NICU did not have any kind of live in situation for us, my wife was unable to breastfeed our baby immediately and the NICU got him immediately used to the bottle which was a fast flow bottle. Ugh. After our baby was born and the hospital lactation consultant at Hoboken University was horrible. She was OBSESSED with our baby being tongue tied and made it seem like a painful procedure with a long recovery to fix the tongue tie was all the latest rage and reading off a litany of the who's who of Hoboken who are all getting their babies tongue tie fixed. Until then, my wife cannot breast feed according to this "lactation consultant." When we went to our pediatrician, she took a good strong look at our baby and immediately dismissed the lactation consultant's claim of being tongue tied. Yes, he was tongue tied, but just slightly and it would not impede his ability to breast feed. Next up was yet another "lactation consultant" who seemed to be the first one's partner in crime. Not only was she sitting here talking about her baby for half the time, but then, finally after almost an hour and a half of talking about herself, she finally got to my wife and baby. Two seconds into looking at my baby, once again I hear this crap about my baby being tongue tied and there's NOTHING my wife can do until he's clipped and fully recovered. Of course, this has nothing to do with the fact that my wife's milk supply seemed like it was drying up -- for which the lactation consultant had no help for. See my review of this "lactation consultant" for further information. We went to a different doctor and once again she affirmed that our son was not tongue tied. My wife remembered a friend from our local synagogue highly recommended Jennifer and with everything going on with our baby, subsequently forgot the recommendation. After facing so many challenges with our baby, we were hopeful that Jennifer could be of help. Be of help? Jennifer was and is AMAZING! Jennifer came over THAT MORNING in the middle of a snowstorm to help my wife not only increase her milk supply but also breastfeed our baby. Around 10:30 the doorbell rang and in came a tall woman bursting with incredible energy. Her positive attitude was absolutely infectious. While my wife was her client, she immediately went over to our baby who normally hates strangers and won him over in 5 seconds. Then, she went over to my wife and treated my wife as if she was her only client. She did an incredibly thorough physical examination of my wife's breasts to check for deficiencies and actually found some. She looked at my wife's blood tests during her pregnancy and suggested she get something new checked that would physically hamper her milk supply. Talking with Jennifer, I felt like was talking with a walking talking lactation EXPERT. Jennifer had a wealth of knowledge and information that is absolutely invaluable. Then, Jennifer went back to our son and gave him a thorough examination, which after being in the NICU for two weeks he was not a fan of anyone examining him. Jennifer was gentle, kind and sweet and our little baby is absolutely smitten with her now. Jennifer needed to give my wife two weeks of time to get her milk supply back. Once she did, she made a follow-up visit. When she weighed our baby on her first visit, he weighed just under 7 pounds. In her second visit, he now weighs just under 9 pounds. My wife has been pumping out milk faster than a dairy cow due to our son's high demand for the white stuff. Now was the time to see if he could latch now that my wife's milk supply was back. Jennifer walked in the door, quickly weighed our baby (see above) and got to work and in under 5 minutes, our son fully latched on and was getting milk straight from the manufacturer! The smile on my wife's face could not go away and once again, my son got to interact with Jennifer and is now asking to borrow money so he can send her flowers. Do not even think about getting another lactation consultant. Jennifer is the best out there. She is incredibly professional, incredibly knowledgeable and overall the experiences we have had with her are very highly praise worthy. No, her services are not covered by insurance, but consider her cost compared to the cost of buying formula at least twice a month for at least a year, combined with the fact that the formula you buy may or may not agree with your baby's stomach, combined with the fact that your baby may outright reject the formula and you and your baby have to go through this painful process of buying formula and let's be honest, there's nothing better for a baby than mommy mil read more

Jennifer was amazing. I had problems with latching and a tongue tied baby as well as low milk production. She was friendly and professional. Gave me a plan and my milk production tripled in a few days. It was nice to hear from someone who understood that having the baby's health is the most important and, even though she's a lactation consultant, some moms just can't do it. It was a refreshing point of view as other consultants push direct breastfeeding. I highly recommend her. read more

Our consultation with Jennifer was great. Her explanations and demonstrations were very useful and clear. Her friendly and professional demeanor was wonderful! I would recommend her to anyone who needs help with something so natural but not always so intuitive. read more

The lady with a midas touch! Thankful for the speedy "diagnosis/solution" to my concerns in 1 session today. I wish that I have met her earlier so that I would be more prepared with breastfeeding my first child born 6/15/2016. As the other reviews has stated, Jennifer is professional, courteous, and all around amazing (the best one out of the 4 lactation consultants I met for the past 7 days). read more

Jennifer is AMAZING! I first went to her when my baby girl was 4 weeks old because I was a paranoid new mom, freaking out if my baby was latching well and getting enough milk - she spent enough time with me and baby and gave valuable suggestions which made feeding a breeze thereafter. Fast-forward 12 weeks later, I went to Jennifer for a back-to-work consultation. She understands every mom-baby situation and recommends best practices in terms of diet, pumping schedule etc. I would whole-heartedly recommend Jennifer to all the new mommas out there. read more

Before meeting with Jennifer, I was thisclose to giving up on breastfeeding entirely. My baby wasn't gaining weight and I was in extreme pain to the point that I would sob while feeding my son. Thanks to her quick diagnosis, expert recommendations, and easy-to-follow treatment plan, breastfeeding has become effortless and pain free. She is professional and knowledgeable, while being warm and empathetic at the same time. She's also extremely honest and ethical. For example, early on in the process I was still struggling and asked whether I should come in for another consultation. She assured me that things would improve and recommended that I give it a few more days and that I could come then if I needed to. Sure enough, things got much better and continued to improve and I didn't need that next consultation. I highly recommend Jennifer and only regret that I didn't visit her sooner. read more

This review is LONG overdue, but when you have twins and a 3 year old, time is very tough to find. That is no excuse though. Jennifer is a wonderful lactation consultant and a very sweet, down to early person. This is not the type of thing that is comfortable for everyone. It is definitely tough to just whip your boobs out and on top of it have someone else touch them! :) She makes you feel very comfortable though and it isn't a big deal. She really shows you all different types of "moves". I had nursed my first child for 8 months, but having twins is an entirely different story. Nursing twins was one of the hardest things I have ever experienced and Jennifer made it a little simpler for me. I would totally recommend her. read more

Jennifer has helped baby and I from engorgement to lip-tie to oversupply to excess lipase to back-to-work pump plan to false-alarm under-supply. She is fantastic and gentle with both mom and baby. She is in high demand for a reason and I highly recommend. She will pull through for you and can give you advice before your appointment if appointment isn't immediate. She is on Aetna plan (I think) so you may have to pay out of pocket-but she gives you paperwork to submit to other insurance carriers and you can certainly justify the carrier. Even if not covered, a lactation specialist is worth the out of pocket expense. Jennifer is also available via text for follow up questions and has a closed Facebook network of moms support group which is helpful. read more

Jennifer is the best! I reached out to Jennifer after being told by another lactation consultant that my son had tongue tie and needed several interventions in order to be successful with breastfeeding, despite my son gaining good weight. Luckily I met Jennifer who also assessed my son's anatomy but more importantly assessed function. With her guidance on positioning and technique I realized that I could be successful without the invasive procedures. Jennifer is very knowledgeable and has helped me with all my breastfeeding concerns. She gave me the confidence I need to be successful. Another plus is that she taught me how to use a ring sling which has helped with breastfeeding outside of home. read more

Professional, courteous, efficient. Able to diagnose problems quickly, provide fixed and references for other providers as needed with a true opinion as to whether they are good. Speaks French and English which was a plus for me. Very delicate and nurturing with the newborn. A real pleasure to work with. read more

If there was a scale beyond a 5 star, Jennifer definitely deserves that. I had the best experience with her. She took her time and did not rush the appointment which is very refreshing. I loved that she was attentive to me and my baby. Offered great advice and made me feel comfortable. You can truly tell she is very passionate about what she does and that is what makes the experience 10 times better. I highly recommend her. You will not be disappointed. read more

At my first and only meeting with Jennifer I thought very highly of her. I had been to a previous LC and she did not recognize the name. Jennifer added that since she had never heard of the LC then she must not be good. To be honest, all the LC's I have met were not much able to do anything for me. They all prescribed this herb over that herb. I gave two stars because at least she is covered by health insurance so I did not have to pay out of pocket. But all and all I left feeling uplifted that maybe that she knew the answers, when in fact she didn't. Also, she said she was good with follow up and I found that not to be true. read more

As a first time mom, Jennifer was the best thing that happened to me, and I'm so happy I went shortly after my son was born. It allowed me to avoid mistakes in latching properly, pain and soreness. Plus my son had laryngomalacia which made feedings disquieting. Breastfeeding can be stressful if you lack confidence but she was a great teacher and the best cheerleader. I am six months into breastfeeding and thankfully I have had no issues. As a working, single mom, breastfeeding is the most special part of my day. It's when we bond. I credit Jennifer for how wonderful an experience it has been for me. read more

I was referred to Jennifer by a lactation consultant in the hospital where I delivered. My son was thought to have a deep posterior tongue tie before we were discharged from the hospital and was evaluated by ENT. I was told that deep posterior tongue tie does not affect breastfeeding, that I should try a nipple shield. If we wanted the tongue tie to be fixed, it would have to be under general anesthesia in an operating room with an overnight admission to the pediatric ICU. Now as a mom that scared me, and as a pediatrician, it did not make sense. I had never heard of a tongue tie being fixed in an operating room. So...I toughed it out for 2 weeks, but the nipple pain worsened. I was almost crying upon latching from the severity of the pain. This was my third child...I nursed the other two for 1.5 years each. I knew something was wrong...but pediatricians, myself included, don't know much about tongue ties, unless they are "classic". I called Jennifer and made an appointment at about 3 weeks of age for the baby. I drove 45 minutes from my house to see her because she was highly recommended. Let me tell you. ..she did not disappoint! Professional, Personable, Knowledgable! She did a tongue function test on my son and agreed that there was a deep posterior tongue tie. She also diagnosed a lip tie. She showed me the test as she was doing it so I could understand. She watched me nurse. Taught me how to shape the breast to get it deeper into the baby's mouth when latching. Explained that it was not my latch that was causing the pain, but rather the tongue tie/lip tie. She gave me a referral to a reputable laser dentist in central Jersey who took care of both the tongue and lip tie within 5 minutes without any anesthesia! She also emailed me reading material to help me make a decision about the procedure. 48 hours after the procedure she saw us again. Taught me tongue stretches and exercises necessary for proper healing and nursing. She was very flexible with scheduling appointments. Always stayed in touch via text/email/phone. She is wonderful with babies! Holds, cuddles, shushes in a comforting way...even the spitty ones! (Mine is quite spitty). I learned so much from her as a breast feeding mom and breastfeeding supporting pediatrician! Her office is beautiful. Clean. Stylish. Properly equipped with a scale and changing table. Metered parking outside the building. Parking garage nearby. Oh..and enough space for a stroller. Go see Jennifer if you are having any problem breastfeeding! You won't be disappointed! read more

I adore Jennifer! She is insightful, educational, understanding and just such a peaceful presence that she immediately made me feel comfortable and taken care of. As a new mom of a with a list of challenges with regards to breast feeding and well as establishing a milk supply, Jennifer was a god send. I honestly thought my situation was hopeless and that I wouldn't be able to breastfeed at all. Instead i was given a wealth of information in an environment that was so healing and empowering all at the same time. I would recommend her a million times over and am grateful to have her in my corner. read more

Jennifer saved me nursing my son. I called Jennifer in a panic after the ped group I was with tossed formula my way and told me I MUST supplement. I received more information in the first five minutes in my meeting with Jennifer than with 3 appointments with the ped. She went through everything she needed to without rushing me and we left much more confident that my 4 day old son was fine and gaining weight perfectly. Could not ask for a more gracious, professional, and compassionate consultant. read more

I made an appt with Jennifer because I was having so much pain while trying to breastfeed and felt like my supply wasn't increasing. She came to my apt and taught me so much about how to breastfeed correctly, how to hold the baby, about pumping as well as supplements that would help. I actually was scared to bf after the initial bad start because of the pain but after meeting with her, I learned that bfing could be painless (for me) and felt encouraged to keep trying. She was very kind and knowledgeable. I would and have recommended her highly read more

Jennifer completely turned my baby and I around to be able to thrive and be happy again. I was super stressed and feeling hopeless..... by the same evening after Jennifer had worked with us, my baby and I had made a 360 degree turn around. After 3 previous lactation consultants that we found to not be too helpful and we were going downhill fast as far as nursing at breast and milk production, we were lucky to be recommended to Jennifer by someone we knew. Not only was she EXTREMELY knowledgable and very thorough in her examination assessment and follow through during our session, it was also very clear that she has a deep love for her work, and takes true joy in bringing a mother and child together to have everything they require to thrive and progress BOTH bonding and feeding. Not only was I capable and aware/knowledgable after Jennifer worked with me and educated me on everything needed specifically for whatever little quirks were our issues, she also left me feeling empowered which was a huge deal after all we'd been through. Our full-term baby being in the NICU for a week and a half, we'd previously worked with 2 lactation consultants in each of the hospital's he was in and a third one after who did not help us as my milk continued to deplete and our baby would not latch and nurse. We had just about given up hope and was very concerned as Formula was almost his only option at that point and we had already tried 3 that were painful for him, and were on a 4th formula and he didn't like much but at least not painful. We were at a loss how to proceed. My mother's instincts told me that he couldn't feed naturally/instinctively because he'd been through so much at hospital (IV, tubes, spinal tap, all kinds of other tests, etc.) and that we needed help adjusting and learning how to acclimate to each other and also to figure out how to get my depleting milk back before I completely lost it, both my milk and my mind :). The 3rd lactation consultant completely disregarded me when I tried to discuss all this and was entirely focused on saying he is tongue tied and ignoring all our other issues and needs, and was not particularly caring or thorough. Our pediatrician has pretty solid experience examining for tongue tie and assessed our baby is physically totally capable of feeding and has no level of excessive tongue tie that would impede his feeding....yet we could not seem to find a lactation consultant that wasn't caught up/obsessed on the tongue tie. I could not feel more blessed that we were referred to Jennifer. The business name of "Mahala" could not be more appropriate as Jennifer embodies the spirit of expert help, community spirit, and gentle loving approach in how she works with mother and child. By the end of the week after Jennifer had worked with us, my husband commented to me "ever since Jennifer has been here, you have been a new person, you are so much happier and calmer." Along with helping mother and child, Jennifer has brought a family together and left peace and love in her wake :-). After all we have been through I appreciate so much more everything we have now, and am unbelievably grateful to Jennifer for helping to educate and empower our family to do so well. read more

Our experience with Jen has been awesome.  She came recommended by our trusted post-partum doula/friend.  At first, our pediatrician was a bit concerned with our newborn boy's weight gain.  We've met with Jen twice so far.  She helped to diagnose his tongue tie and helped my wife to latch better.  The result is that he has gained 18 ounces in the last 9 days.  Jen is full of knowledge on this subject and natural health in general.  And, she makes our appointments fun.  Highly recommend her services if you need help with feeding your child. read more

Nothing short of amazing. She is my 3rd lactation consultant-- and my last ;) I had so many issues - and she explained each one and came up with a plan to help me. She knows EVERYTHING! she was referred to me by upper breast side and from our first conversation-- 20 minutes of help before I was even her patient-- I knew I was in the best hands. She told me that one of my supplements was counteracting one of my medications- something the previous 2 consultants missed and no one else had told me. She cared so much and was so thorough! From then on she has only continued to impress me with her deep knowledge of all things breastmilk and baby as well as her caring approach and amazing responsiveness. You can tell she really cares for you (both) oh yea, and my baby loves her! You will be in great hands with Jennifer on your side. Also she takes Aetna-- someone previously said she doesn't accept insurance and that's no longer the case. read more

Meeting with Jennifer at Mahala Lactation just several days after getting out of the hospital saved my nursing relationship with my son - I am sure of it. At the hospital, my little boy was diagnosed with a tongue tie and because of the damage done to my nipples, i had to feed with a nipple shield and start pumping immediately. Straight from the hospital, we took our little guy to get his tongue tie released. Soon after, I wanted to meet with an lc to check on progress and help me with latching. After my nipples healed, he was not interested in my breast, and when he did show interest, the latch was still very painful. The first moments with Jennifer, I felt like I was in the hands of a pro. Her office is serene, clean and inviting, and her personality exceptionally warm and reassuring. She immediately advised that the tongue tie was not released enough and that in addition, everyone to date had missed my son's lip tie. She referred me to a specialist who corrected the tongue tie and performed the lip tie release. In addition, she showed me awesome tips to get my little guy to latch with minimal pain. After his procedures, we met again, and she coached me through an after-care program to ensure that we minimize the chance of reattachment. Every visit includes a take-home summary of after care, and she is super responsive via email and text. Finally, she also looks at mommy's well-being, asking about your pre-natal and pregnancy conditions that may need to be monitored. For example, I had a hypo-thyroid, and Jennifer advised I get a panel of tests to ensure that I am at my best, as well as supplements to strengthen my system while I am breastfeeding. Finally, patients of Mahala Lactation get invited into a private forum with other patients, and not only have I felt supported by these women and their posts in my own breastfeeding journey, but I have also learned a lot from their experiential posts and questions. An all-around 5 star experience and highly recommended for anyone who wants to make the best decisions on feeding their little one. read more

The best! Super thorough. Recommended to my best friends and sister-in-law. They said they wouldn't have wanted anyone else!

To set ourselves up for success from the start, we proactively booked a post-delivery lactation consultation with Jennifer the week we brought our daughter (our first) home. We didn't have any major issues with breastfeeding at that point, but still found the consultation immensely helpful. Jennifer was supportive, provided reassurance, shared tips and gave us the guidance needed to begin our breastfeeding experience with confidence. We have UnitedHealthcare, which covered 60% of the cost (though I would have gladly paid for it in full out of pocket). Jennifer and her team have thought of ever detail to make her clients' experiences as easy as possible -- from scripts to for calling your healthcare provider to check on reimbursement and offering the ability to text for an appt to getting the paperwork in advance and a private Facebook group for clients. Would 100% recommend an appt with Jennifer. read more

Today I had my first prenatal consultation appointment with Jennifer and she was beyond amazing! Professional and super knowledgable, she was able to give me tons of advice, teach me techniques, and overall get me ready to breastfeed my little girl when she arrives in just over three weeks. I was very nervous about the idea of breastfeeding (dedicated to it but nervous because I don't have many family members who have done it and limited friends with breastfed babies) and Jennifer answered my questions and stayed with me for two hours going over everything. I feel SO much more prepared to start on this journey and establish such an important relationship with my baby. Before finding Jennifer I had a phone consultation with another lactation consultant and an in person visit with yet another one and found both of them rigid and a bit pushy. On my third try I found Jennifer, who could not be more opposite with her laid back and understanding approach. I definitely plan to use Jennifer again for a postpartum consult when the baby comes home and I highly recommend her services!! read more