Celebrating Breastfeeding at Beginnings Birth Center

Celebrating Breastfeeding #1 Mom

Celebrating Breastfeeding - Feeding and nourishing our babies We would like to give a nod to Breastfeeding! Hoorah for the labor of love! Of lactating, chestfeeding, pumping and hand expressing (just to name a few ways) that goes into feeding and nourishing our babies.  At Beginnings Birth Center we encourage and support chestfeeding for all newborns. But resolutely believe in each family’s feeding choices. Also breastfeeding burns between 500-600 calories a day. That means some moms might end up losing weight without any additional exercise.

Breastfeeding is amazing in so many ways. From the intense bond it can help you form with your baby in the first hours after birth, to the benefits it has on your baby’s health even into adulthood, there’s a reason breast milk is called “liquid gold.”

Mama – how you choose / need to feed and nourish your baby is beautiful. We see you, We hear you, We respect you.

Breastfeeding Journey

We have helped support women in their breastfeeding journey for many decades combined between us, and have seen and felt the deep sacrifice, frustrations, pain, beauty, and connection of what chestfeeding can be (often all these emotions all at the same time!).

Midwives are experienced in breastfeeding support

All the midwives at Beginnings have experience in breastfeeding support. And many of our nurses and birth assistants have varying degrees of experience and training. We believe that preparation, education, and continued support is key in any successful chestfeeding journey. We require all first-time birthing families to attend a chestfeeding class. And strongly encourage anyone else who desires that information to attend a breastfeeding class as well. Some great chestfeeding classes in the community are Westside Birth Connection and Enso.  

Weekly postpartum breastfeeding support visit

Additionally, all our Beginnings clients are invited to attend a weekly postpartum feeding support visit at the birth center. Led by our staff lactation consultants/counselors/educators. Reach out to the front desk to see when the next one is scheduled! La Leche League is also a great resource/support group, and Enso also hosts groups and lactation clinics. We work closely with and refer to many International Board Certified Lactation Consultants (IBCLCs) in the community when families need this additional level of support via a home visit.

breastfeeding - feeding and nourishing our babies

Breastfeeding Q&A

For general breastfeeding Q&A and a host of solutions check out the excellent KellyMom site. We reference / recommend this site at least once every clinic day! A fantastic app to use is the My Medela App to help track baby’s intake and output and read all about feeding and lactation!

Breast Pumps

There are many reasons you might want to pump, hand express breast milk, or feed your baby pumped breast milk. Having expressed breast milk can allow your baby to drink your breast milk from a bottle. Breast pumps are also an important piece in the feeding puzzle. Whether you are building up a home supply of milk, returning to work, etc., they can be invaluable resources. Many commercial insurance companies will cover a new breast pump for each pregnancy.

Talk to a midwife at your next prenatal visit to ask for information about companies that may help you find out if you qualify. And for families that qualify for WIC, check out your local WIC office to see if you can borrow a pump.

Additionally, in these uncertain times of COVID-19, there have been many questions regarding how to best approach feeding. With the best information we have right now, mothers should absolutely continue to breastfeed. The CDC has provided safety guidelines and recommendations about breastfeeding as COVID-19 continues to evolve.

Happy lactating my friends,

Midwife Lizzi

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