29Dec 2023 by Sarah Glenn
IBCLC VS LC: What’s the Difference?

IBCLC VS LC: What’s the Difference?

Breastfeeding, Health, Work
Historically, women would look to their mom, sister, aunt, friend or grandma for support through pregnancy, birth, breastfeeding and child rearing.  Since formula made its debut in the mid to late 1800s, less and less women have been breastfeeding.   By the 1970’s only 1 in 5 women were attempting to breastfeed.  Sadly, those who did breastfeed were outcast by their peers and doctors.  These mothers would hide their parenting style as if it were a “bad” thing to do.  Finally, a feminist group in Chicago, Illinois noticed the need to support mothers who wish to breastfeed in 1956.  The seven founders began private meetings for mother to mother support, open to anyone who wished for breastfeeding information.   This group is still in existence today and is called La Leche League;…
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20Dec 2023 by Sarah Glenn
So, You’ve Decided to Exclusively Pump

So, You’ve Decided to Exclusively Pump

Breastfeeding, Infants, Life, Parenting, Pregnancy, Work
So, you've decided to exclusively pump because you know that it is healthiest for you and baby. Exclusive pumping means the mother has decided to put her breastmilk into a bottle and feed it to her baby, exclusively. For one reason or another, she decided not to put the baby to the breast for his feedings. Exclusively pumping or "eping", is a full-time commitment and takes good planning. For some moms, this is not how she pictured breastfeeding to happen and pumping is her last resort after many days/weeks of trying to latch her baby properly.  For other moms, this is a choice and she always imagined herself only pumping and bottle-feeding breastmilk.  Or maybe the choice was made for the mom, for example, her or the baby have been…
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19Dec 2023 by Sarah Glenn
The Many Uses of Breastmilk

The Many Uses of Breastmilk

Breastfeeding, Health, Infants, Pregnancy
The many uses of breastmilk may surprise you! It was eye-opening for my family. My then 14-year-old daughter worked in a pizza parlor and dropped a whole pie on her hand, cheese side down! FYI, the oven temperature was 500 degrees. This was bad, VERY bad but we managed to heal her burn with breastmilk swabs on her hand for a week--nothing else! She is 27 now and there is no evidence of this fiasco. Thankfully, she did not need skin grafts or other medication, breastmilk did the trick. The proof is in the pudding (or milk). We were sold and have been ever since. The many uses of breastmilk are likely to help alleviate the dilemma of throwing away any forgotten bags in the freezer. Or help a mom…
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09Dec 2023 by Sarah Glenn
Help My Young Baby Won’t Take a Bottle

Help My Young Baby Won’t Take a Bottle

Breastfeeding, Infants, Parenting, Work
Help my young baby won't take a bottle and I have to go back to work! Or I need to go somewhere! Or my husband wants to feed him! Or I need surgery! Or you want to exclusively pump. You get the idea! These situations can be stressful, but it's ok. Just follow these tips to get even the most stubborn baby on board. Babies can be picky creatures from the beginning of life. Just as some older humans have individual quirks, so can a newborn. You probably know people who can be very strict with a schedule or need lists of everything, or maybe she doesn't like change. As well, perhaps you are the "go with the flow gal"? The person who may seem undisciplined or messy or can…
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07Dec 2023 by Sarah Glenn
You Don’t Need Milk. Here’s Why.

You Don’t Need Milk. Here’s Why.

All, Breastfeeding, Cooking, Health
Really, I was just as surprised to learn you don't need milk, so here's why... Anyone else feel duped by the dairy farmers? I grew up believing that drinking milk (from cows) was the most wholesome food, and I was allowed to ingest as much as I wanted. I'm quite sure my mother spent more money on milk than any other food group when I was young. It was a quick, easy, cheap way to get vitamins, calories, and minerals into her growing daughter every day. The best part was how much I liked it and could easily down 1/2 a gallon per day. Some of the slogans I heard growing up: Drink milk to get big and strong- quickly makes children interested.Milk does a body good- sold me!Got milk?-famous people…
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17Nov 2023 by Sarah Glenn

One Baby, Please, Hold the Sugar: A Birth Story

All, Birth Stories, Breastfeeding, Health, Infants, Life, New Parenthood, Post Partum, Pregnancy, Relationships
One baby, please, hold the sugar is my daughter's birth story told from her perspective. These words are her own and don't necessarily express my personal views or opinions. I welcome all women to share their birth stories! Please contact me if you'd like to publish your birth story on The Incomplete Guide to Parenting. If you are interested in my doula or lactation services, please visit my website Disclaimer: No artificial sweeteners here I've gone back and forth about putting my story out into the world. I never wanted to scare anyone, and so when asked, I would come up with a glossed over, toned down version of my story, the "polite" version. But I recently read a birth story that was such a blatant bunch of sugar-coated bull****…
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16Nov 2023 by Sarah Glenn

Tips for Breastfeeding with Yeast

Breastfeeding, Health, Infants, Parenting
*If you click some of links I’ve added to this educational information, I may earn a few cents to help keep this operational. I’ve either used these products myself or trust the recommendations from the moms I serve and choose to pass on the great tips. Win-Win Tips for breastfeeding with yeast is not a replacement for medical advice. Determining the cause of candida albicans is most important when breastfeeding with yeast. Latch difficulties, tongue tie, nipple shields, breast pads, hormonal imbalance etc can cause sore nipples and may mimic yeast-like symptoms. Working with a professional to explore the potential problems before starting a plan, is the quickest way to relief. Diet: Lower your sugar, dairy, gluten, alcohol, high mold, artificial ingredients or anything you feel increases inflammation in your…
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10Nov 2023 by Sarah Glenn

10 Breastfeeding Positions to Master

Breastfeeding, Infants, Parenting, Pregnancy
These 10 breastfeeding positions to master will determine the path of your breastfeeding journey. Master these skills and you will be a pro. If this is your first baby, I’m sure you’re wondering what the “breastfeeding positions” hype is all about.  I mean really, what is the big deal about a specific position to hold and feed your baby at the breast?  Don’t you just put the kiddo there and he naturally knows what to do?  On the other hand, if you’re a seasoned successful nursing mom, you get it. You remember how integral the correct placement of hands could calm baby quickly and bring you comfortable tugging, not pinching.  If you’re not new to breastfeeding but didn’t have an easy go of it, maybe this blog is the perfect…
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24Oct 2023 by Sarah Glenn

7 Ways to Tell if Your Baby is Getting Enough

Breastfeeding, Infants
The number one reason women stop breastfeeding is “Misperceived low milk supply syndrome," in other words, over thinking.  The more information you have at your fingertips, the more you doubt your own instincts.  Before technology, women would ask friends, mother, sister, aunt, cousin, grandmother for guidance through pregnancy-birth-breastfeeding & parenting.  Putting that into numbers, she may have received advice from 30-40 women.  Fast forward to today’s techno savvy mothers who are soliciting feedback online and she would have 10x the amount of input.  So how does a new mother with sensory overload undoubtedly know her baby is thriving?? Here I will explore methods to help unravel the web of confusion.  Ask yourself these questions before turning to your online companions: Based on a baby in the first 4 months of…
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10Oct 2023 by Sarah Glenn
The Fourth Trimester

The Fourth Trimester

Breastfeeding, Infants, Life, Parenting, Pregnancy, Relationships
It's strange to hear the newborn period referenced as the "fourth trimester." You've spent 10 (not 9) long months on a countdown through days, weeks, months and trimesters patiently waiting until the end of the third trimester for "this" to be over so you can meet your little one. Emotionally, those first three months postpartum are a time of transformation for you, your baby, and your partner. Learning how to be a family is taxing. Physically your body is adjusting to the new spaciousness, milking breasts, and the crazy hormone acclimation. Let's not forget the exceptional changes a newborn phase through. The cerebellum alone triples in size during the first year. Those early experiences outside the womb are integral to optimize brain development. Newborns are born slightly immature at full…
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