Los Angeles + SoCal
Lactation Counseling and Postpartum Doula
Frequently Asked Questions:
Let's Get You Answers!
What do you do during a Prenatal Visit?
DOULA:
Private, in-home or virtual prenatal gives you the opportunity to: 1. Connect prior to baby/babies' arrival; 2. Go over basic newborn care and products; 3. Create a mutual understanding of how I assist in the postpartum stage. Prenatals are shorter than the postpartum shifts, but they are not insignificant.
​
LACTATION:
Private, in-home or virtual prenatal gives you the opportunity to: 1. Prepare for lactation in the postpartum period; 2. Educate on common feeding challenges; 3. Answer your questions about feeding and products.
​
NOTE that booking my prenatal class can replace the need for a separate prenatal visit! Prenatals provide more general information of your choosing and preparation for the 4th trimester.
What do you do during a Postpartum Visit?
I specialize in family-centered care through hands-on lactation support, referrals, baby-related tasks during parents' self-care, newborn education, light cooking, light cleaning, errands, and perinatal mental health screening.
How are nighttime Postpartum Doulas different from other night support?
Postpartum Doulas are family focused and do not take over childcare. We focus on how to support the entire family while educating and creating a space for healing, parental confidence building, and smooth integration of the newborn(s) into the family. Night support looks different from one doula to the next, but I specialize in lactation and newborn education while creating opportunity for independent sleep.
Newborn Care Specialists are experts in all things newborn-related, but do not do many of the things doulas do, such as perinatal mental health screening, household tasks, and errands. Some don't specialize in lactation support and referral resources.
Night Nurses are registered nurses who support families with medical and newborn care at night. Note that many clients refer to any night help as a "night nurse."
Night Nannies are sometimes trained and provide newborn care at night.
Who can and should hire a Postpartum Doula?
Any expectant parents, birthing people (including surrogates), and adoptive parents looking for education, emotional support, referrals, and practical support could use a doula.
​
Common past clients of mine are people who: do not have people who can help or family nearby; struggled with previous postpartum experiences; anticipate perinatal mental health challenges; have little to no experience with newborns or lactation; are single parents.
​​
The clientele wanting, needing, and benefiting from doula support is not exclusive to this list. Anyone can hire a doula!
What's the difference between a Certified Lactation Counselor and an IBCLC (Lactation Consultant)?
-
Certified Lactation Counselor, AKA CLC, Scope: works within her scope to provide non-judgmental guidance for clients with various feeding goals (e.g. increasing supply, resolving basic lactation and bottle challenges, understanding the benefits of breastmilk vs non-human milk (formula), basic product recommendations, and weaning). ​We observe & correct latches, troubleshoot basic breast/chestfeeding pain, educate how to heal nipples, provide weighted feeds, and refer out to a local list of experts: IBCLC's, Chiropractors, OT's, Speech Pathologists, and Pediatric Dentists.
-
Cannot perform oral and physical infant assessments.
-
​​
-
IBCLC Scope: everything a CLC does, and more: oral exams for baby, supply issues, complex troubleshooting of breastmilk feeding challenges, nipple shape challenges, tension evaluation, expertise in pumps and schedules, etc.
-
Provides complex lactation support and troubleshooting​
-
UPDATE: I am awaiting the results of my IBCLC exam! Licensure TBD soon!
Who can take your classes?
My Newborn Basics and Lactation ​Foundation classes are now merged into one, centered around the needs of new or expectant parents. I also offer VIRTUAL Lactation Foundation classes to Birthworkers who are looking for lactation education towards certification as a Doula/NCS, or just hoping to expand their feeding knowledge. I welcome anyone looking to learn about newborns and lactation basics, including parents, doulas, NCS, lactation professionals, people wanting to become parents, surrogates, birth workers, and more!
​
Please reach out if you have questions about the classes.​
How do I know if we're a good fit? What are the next steps?
I always say to potential clients, PLEASE interview many doulas. Fit is 70% of hiring a doula, while information is 30%; if you do not trust your doula, is the information going to be useful?
My routine with prospective clients includes virtual consultation, in-person interview, contract review and signing, and retainer collection. Let's talk, connect, and explain your needs + my services, learn a little about each other, and ultimately determine if we're a good match!
​
My rule of thumb is if you want to book me and we are just waiting to meet in person, I put off interviews if you signing the contract; after we meet and determine we are a good fit, I collect the retainer then sign the contract myself, ultimately canceling my interviews.
Do you accept insurance as a doula or CLC?
​I DO now accept some insurances for LACTATION Counseling. If you would like to check insurance coverage, please contact me!
​
I currently do NOT work directly with any insurances as a DOULA, even though more insurances are starting to cover doula support.
Do you only work with first-time parents?
I work with many different types of families who want support in the postpartum period. Often, my clients fall under the category of "first-time parents," but I do not exclusively work with first-time parents.
​
Doulas take pride in being able to care for, educate, and meet the needs of every genre of family dynamic. If you're wondering if a doula is the right fit for you, please contact me!
Have you worked with twins and premature newborns?
YES! I have experience working with twins and many newborns who were born prematurely.
​
- As a Certified Lactation Counselor, I also know to watch premature babies closely for efficiency during breast/chestfeeding, and refer to an IBCLC as necessary.
- Twins are often born before 40 weeks gestation, having unique needs like most premature babies. Tandem feeding and juggling two babies at one time is also something I can educate and help with!
