Breastfeeding/chestfeeding should not be painful! Ongoing and significant breastfeeding pain is a sign that something is wrong. Unfortunately, Julie‘s feeding journey was full of pain for the first few months! She was in a lot of discomfort both while the baby was feeding, later in between feeds and throughout the day as well. It turned…

This is part two of Tara’s breastfeeding story! This one got really long, so we made it into two parts. That’s what happens when Jessica’s best friend is the guest. They just kept going! Tara‘s original vision was to exclusively breastfeed Evie for at least a year. But as she says, even though these were…

This one got really long, so we made it into two parts! That’s what happens when Jessica’s best friend is the guest. They just kept going! Tara‘s original vision was to exclusively breastfeed Evie for at least a year. But as she says, even though these were her “best laid plans,” the reality ended up…

This one is so special! Liz shares her journey of growing her family via a gestational surrogate, and how she induced lactation to bring in her own milk supply! Jessica hosted, and said “beautiful” and “oh my gosh” more times than you can count throughout this amazing story of strength, support, and love for baby Eve and Liz‘s…

Sarah’s breastfeeding story Sometimes it is so nice to just hear a positive breastfeeding story! We tend to hear more about the how things went wrong instead of right. Sarah is lucky enough to have a lot of family support and access to lactation help when she needed it, so guess what? She reached her…

Barbara is joined by Nancy Mohrbacher to talk about education, particularly about professional lactation education. In the field of education, the traditional method of lecture and Power Point stills dominates the trainings that are available. Research has show over and over again that this is one of the most non-effective ways to help people learn.…

My work is extremely important to me and is a perfect fit for all of my beliefs and my personality. To me, what we do here at the Breastfeeding Center of Ann Arbor is to help families either become more attached to their babies (hopefully through breastfeeding but sometimes this isn’t possible) and also help…

Yes! Yes! Yes! We say birth and postpartum doulas are the front line defenders of breastfeeding along with nurses and midwives! I believe that the explosion of doulas in Detroit, MI is one of main reasons for this incredibly, too long time in coming change: “According to Michigan Department of Health and Human Services data,…

In 2020 Nancy Mohrbacher published her latest book, Breastfeeding Answers, 2nd Edition. We jokingly call this book BA2 and it is one of the most important books in the field of lactation. I was honored that Nancy was willing to co-host a professional book group with me. I had hosted two other book groups before,…

So sorry for the delays in podcasts! COVID has done a real number on me and I have been struggling to get tasks done that are not critical. Jessica and I are committed to recording and releasing more often! Thank you for your patience. Barbara Back in May 2022 I got this email: “I don’t…

Breastfeeding twins? Yes! Sometimes you feel like breastfeeding one baby is almost impossible but then you have TWO babies! Anna shares her story about how she is successfully breastfeeding her twins. It was not easy but also achievable with the right help and support. When you have babies who are early, even a little bit,…

Becoming an IBCLC is not easy! Many people are surprised to find out that to becoming an IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant) is hard. You need 8 college courses, 6 continuing education courses, 300-1000 clinical hours working with breastfeeding families, a 90 hour professional lactation course, and THEN you can qualify to take a…

What is hand expression? Great question! Basically it means getting breastmilk out of a lactation breast without a baby or a breast pump. At The Breastfeeding Center of Ann Arbor, hand expression is a typical tool we review with most of our families because you never know when you might get caught with no baby,…

Breastfeeding book groups? What on earth do I mean by breastfeeding book groups? So, fall of 2019 I had just finished helping Lisa Marasco with some final edits of her and Diana West’ new edition of Making More Milk, 2nd Edition. The holidays were coming and I ordered a copy of the book for each…

OMG. It has been too long! Karen and I recorded this back in June but due to Covid I haven’t been able to get this to move to the top of my list to publish. Thank Jessica for pushing me (in the nicest way) to keep after this and get it done! We love breastfeeding…

Barbara Robertson chats with Nancy Mohrbacher about her new edition of Breastfeeding Answers, 2nd Edition and their upcoming project. Do you want to unlock the secrets of Breastfeeding Answers, 2nd Edition? Barbara D. Robertson will be joined by Nancy Mohrbacher, the author of the book, to discuss their upcoming venture and break this down for…

Oversupply? Too much breastmilk? Is that really a problem? The answer is, YES, oversupply is a big problem for people who are struggling with this. Milk everywhere, choking babies, are there answers? For sure! Listen to this podcast to get more information. Symptoms: Baby choking Baby clucking at the beginning of feed (when the milk…

Another breastfeeding story! This one is particularly dear to Barbara’s heart. Melissa came to see Barbara after the birth of her first baby and was struggling with her rate of breastmilk production. Although Melissa was able to increase her supply a bit, she still needed to supplement her baby. Second baby When Melissa was pregnant…

Here are our COVID updates! Barbara accidently published the unedited version of this podcast! Here is the edited version. Sorry! Jessica COVID updates Jessica is at home with her two your children trying not to miss a beat while being a full time parent and having her and her partner continue to work full time.…

Here are our COVID updates! Jessica COVID updates Jessica is at home with her two your children trying not to miss a beat while being a full time parent and having her and her partner continue to work full time. This sadly, is a common theme. Although this is very challenging, Jessica is very aware…

A conversation with Laurel Wilson IBCLC! Yes, we were lucky enough that Laurel Wilson IBCLC reached out to us to do a podcast. We have been big fans of Laurel for a number of years. I attended a talk to hers in Grand Rapids a number of years ago and was hooked! Don’t know Laurel…

What is your breastfeeding support network? Who do you need in this team? Partners Partners are a critical player in your breastfeeding support network. A partner can make or break a breastfeeding relationship. Not necessarily because they don’t support breastfeeding but if you are struggling with breastfeeding, this struggle can be hard to watch if…

A new breastfeeding story! Lauren is a very experienced breastfeeding mother. She joins us today with baby Luke today to talk about her breastfeeding story. She has nursed four children! When you have more than one child it is important to remember that each breastfeeding experience will be different. Each breastfeeding journey is a unique…