Services
Initial sessions are typically 2 hours in length. I review your medical, pregnancy and birth history with a HIPAA secure online form. After each session I will provide a written summary via email that contains lots of detailed information, along with website and video links that are relevant to your current needs. In addition, as a member of your health care team, I send reports to your health care provider and/or your baby’s pediatric care provider as well (with your permission).
Follow up support via email, text or phone is included as part of any appointment.
I recommend booking a follow up appointment if it has been a few weeks since our last contact, so that I can fully understand your current challenges and provide you with the right advice and support. Follow up appointments may be tailored to your needs and range from Telehealth 30-90 minute options, to a full in home session 90 -120 minutes, or office visits of 60 -120 minutes.
Though fully vaccinated since February 2021, I will wear a KN95 mask to our in-person sessions and ask you and your family members to do the same for all of our safety given the unknowns of this pandemic. In my office visits, I also run a high-quality air purifier.
I am generally able to do home visits if you live within a 30-minute drive of Cambridge, and I routinely travel to Boston and surrounding towns. Reach out via email or phone if you have a question about your location.
I come to where you are and help you find the most comfortable options with the space and furnishings you have in order to breastfeed with ease. During the course of the visit, I will usually observe a feeding session, and check the baby’s milk intake using weighted pre and post feed measurements on a professional grade scale. The visit will be dictated by your needs, I can assist you with pumping, or trouble shooting a nursing strike, etc. Together we identify any issues, and agree on a plan, and I email you a written summary.
In the comfort and privacy of my in-home office, equipped with a lounge chair and a couch, I can also provide you with infant feeding support. Similar to a home visit, initial office sessions include a focused checkup of you and your baby as it relates to breastfeeding, observing a feeding session, and check pre and post feed weights on a professional grade scale.
Mothers often choose this option when they would like the quiet privacy of an office consult, particularly if their own home is quite busy with other children, guests, partner working from home, etc. Others come for an office visit when they live outside of my typical driving radius. I have parking available in my driveway.
For new clients, or existing clients, Telehealth sessions have been an extremely effective and safe option, which I have used and refined extensively over the course of the past year using a HIPAA secure, specialized Zoom platform. During most Telehealth sessions, I do a virtual exam of you and your baby as it relates to breastfeeding, and watch a feeding session. If needed, I can check pre and post feed weights on a professional grade scale, which I can drop off at your house if you live within 20 minutes of Cambridge. (Text or email me to confirm that your location allows me to arrange for scale use during our Telehealth session).
In the majority of cases I have been able to address most issues very well with Telehealth visits, even positioning help, sore nipples, latch, and supply challenges. Telehealth is also perfect for many follow up issues, as it can be easily booked to focus on a specific challenge, such as pumping, or planning for a return to work.
Telehealth has been the recommended option by public health officials (CDC and State of MA) during the pandemic and remains a great option for clients who live at a distance, or to minimize risks of illness transmission, when someone in the home is sick or immunocompromised. Telehealth sessions are also available for urgent issues when scheduling does not permit a home or office visit.
To get the best start with your breastfeeding journey, many mothers find it helpful to do a prenatal consult to get you prepared and to explore any issues that might interfere.
A typical session is about 2 hours long for a prenatal private consult/class, and I can tailor it to your needs, and include your partner if you would like. Ahead of the session, I ask you to prepare particular questions or concerns and share them with me to make the session more fully your own. Our time together is informal, a conversation, focused on giving you the information and tips needed to get off to the best start with breastfeeding.
Women also greatly benefit from these prenatal sessions when they have had a difficult experience breastfeeding in the past, or have a history of breast surgery, or other concerns that may present a challenge for breastfeeding. We review the concerns together and make a plan to help you define and reach your own goals in this new breastfeeding journey ahead.
‘Best Start’ sessions can be scheduled in your home, at my office, or Telehealth as per your preference.
