Lo’s Lactation Lab

Are you worried about when to introduce a bottle to your nursing baby? Have you received mixed messages about timing, bottle type, and how to go about doing this? Are you worried that you will forever be the person tethered to your baby for every feed? This episode is for you! This week Lactation Consultant Lo Nigrosh gives easy to follow tips on how to introduce a bottle in a way that also protec...

When you found out you were expecting and then shared you were planning to feed human milk from your own body to your baby, did people respond with both the positive stories and the horror stories? If you did have positive experiences, did you feel like you needed to keep this to yourself for fear someone else would feel judged? This week’s guest Heather Magill is a postpartum doula and knows all...

Have you ever heard that giving birth via c-section can impede feeding human milk to your baby? Have you wondered why? On this week’s quick hit episode, IBCLC Lo NIgrosh breaks down the research about lactating after cesarean birth, AND gives her top tips about how to set yourself up for success should you find  yourself in this situation. To hear Lindsay Castiglione’s twin c-section and NICU stor...

Did you struggle with doubt that you could feed your babies in the way that you hoped? Did you worry about stating your goals out loud for fear they wouldn’t happen. Imagine being a lactation consultant before attempting to breastfeed! Molly Peterson opens up on this episode about the pressure she felt to know exactly how to breastfeed her daughter after helping so many other people do the same. S...

Are you thinking of getting pregnant while nursing an older baby? Have you already found out you are pregnant but aren’t quite sure if you want to wean? The only person who should decide if you should wean or not is YOU!This episode discusses: The factors that go into deciding to wean or tandem nurse A couple of resources to educate yourself about tandem feeding How to set boundaries for an older...

Have you heard that it is not possible to make enough milk for twins? Have you heard horror stories about human milk making for NICU babies? What about feeding a set of twins with two older children? This week’s guest Lindsay Castiglione has breastfed not one but two sets of twins, and she learned so much along the way that she became an IBCLC and now specializes in helping others to feel confiden...

Has anyone ever told you that nipple damage or nipple pain is normal? Well– just because it is common, does not make it normal. Nipple damage and nipple pain are both signs that something with baby feeding or milk removal is amiss. This episode discusses nipple damage that occurs as a result of directly feeding your baby from your body, such as: Positioning Latch Tongue movements Outside influence...

Have you ever felt either too stubborn to reach out for help when you had difficulty while feeding your baby? Unaware of who you could call or mistrustful of those who are available to you when you did mention a concern. My guest, Shelly Taft shares her experiences navigating a landscape with, which eventually led her to become a peer supporter and an IBCLC herself! In this story that highlights s...

What’s all the hype about IBCLCs anyway? Don’t they just help babies latch? We IBCLCs know so much more than just latching and positioning. Our education and training is extensive, and although I wish that culturally we were not necessary because people fed their babies from their bodies anywhere and everywhere all the time, and from our earliest moments we picked up on how to do it– that is not t...

Lizbeth endured so much to become a mother. By the time she was able to hold her daughter Gianna in her arms, she had prepared so much for caring for her that she felt very secure in her decision to breastfeed and knew how to ensure her milk came in. This is a story which perfectly displays Lizbeth both standing up for herself and seeking out the help of supportive lactation professionals, despite...

Have you ever worried that your milk doesn’t taste right? Has it smelled or tasted soapy, or “off”? Does your baby take fresh milk directly from the source just fine, or from a bottle even– but if it’s been stored for any amount of time, the milk gets rejected? Then you may be dealing with high lipase in your milk. Listen to know what you can do about the milk you have already saved, and what you...

So many of us have been in the position of managing baby feeding and working. Making milk while working is such a huge source of stress for so many people. Lori tells her story of returning to work, creating boundaries in a male dominated office, and working to improve workplaces for others that came behind her. Some topics included: Cracked nipples in the early weeks Perceived low milk supply Hig...

If you are worried about your milk stash and think your baby might take too much at the bottle, this is the episode for you. If your baby coughs and sputters when taking a bottle, this episode is also for you. If you are looking for a resource to share with care providers, your partner, or grandparents about how to approach bottle feeding in a way that best supports your baby (and your milk supply...

Each survivor of sexual abuse who then decides to breastfeed a baby will respond to those sensations differently. This week’s guest anonymously discusses both her personal experiences as a sexual abuse survivor and a breastfeeding mom, and tools that survivors can use while breastfeeding to help cope. This episode is a must listen for anyone who is a sexual abuse survivor or if you are a providor...

Have you talked to older generations of your family members about what birthing and baby feeding was like for them? Do you see the value of doing this? Have you ever wondered why feeding our babies has become SO difficult for so many of us, even though we are a member of the mammalian class of the animal kingdom? In this episode my Great Aunt by marriage Gina Fleming reaches into her treasure trov...

Do you feel the resentment of all the ways you are needed as the person who is keeping your baby alive with milk from your body? Does it feel like you can never get away or catch a break? Do you find yourself automatically pulling your shirt up every time your baby cries and feeling angry about it? In this episode Sarah Bivens of The Doing it at Home Podcast shares how she is constantly learning t...

Are you worried about the holidays and how it will impact baby feeding and your connection with your baby? So many of us have dealt with people asking us to cover up, go into a different room, or making off-handed comments about how frequently the baby needs to nurse. Are you a lactation supporter who would like to provide a dose of inspiration to those you support as they head into the busy holid...

Have you ever had anyone question your decision to breastfeed? Have you been asked to wear a cover or been made to feel bad for nursing in the open at family gatherings? My guest Olivia from the Be Loud About What Matters Podcast shared her experience of welcoming her daughter into the world and learning to breastfeed her with confidence despite the pushback of people around her. It is difficult t...

Do you feel like you are parenting on an island? When you became a parent did it feel like you lost many of your friends? Does it feel like you can’t bring up your baby feeding challenges to your family? I have heard time and again from friends, clients and guests of the podcasts that in person support made all the difference. In person support wil can make you feel like YOU’VE GOT THIS, like you...

Megan learned the hard way to be her own best advocate for both birth and breastfeeding, but she also learned that finding the right support is critical to meeting your birthing and baby feeding goals. Although Megan wanted to have an intervention free birth, her first baby was born via urgent c-section while she was under general anesthesia. She did not see her daughter until 2 hours after she wa...

Most breast pumps come with one or two standard sizes: a 24mm or a 28mm flange. Did you know there is no evidence to suggest that these are the standard sizes that most people use? These are the sizes that pump manufacturers provided, therefore that is what we used. Many Lactation professionals and those who help people pump, including host Lo Nigrosh, are now discovering that when they help peopl...

Rory gave birth in June of 2020 in New York City. As she prepared for labor she did not know from day to day if her partner would even be allowed to accompany her to the hospital, let alone if she would even receive the standard of care that we know isn’t enough in the best of times. Rory desperately wanted to breastfeed her son. But after having a c-section and then being released after 36 hours...

I’ve now recorded over 50 Episodes of The Milk Making Minutes. I’ve had the deep honor of being in the position to just listen and wonder as people tell their baby feeding stories. I don’t need to help them solve their breastfeeding difficulties or try to solve them, my only job is to hold space while I’m behind the mic. And this has given me a chance to reflect more deeply about breastfeeding and...

Did you want to breastfeed because somewhere along the way someone told you “It is so much easier than bottles!” You didn’t want to be cleaning bottles all the time, you didn’t want to be hooked to a machine, you wanted to roll over in the night, feed a baby, and go back to sleep with ease and confidence? Maybe that was the case for you– but for so many people I speak with– that is not how baby fe...

Are you breastfeeding a baby who you are concerned may have tongue tie? Did someone look in their mouth in the hospital at the pediatrician or in the hospital and tell you “your baby is fine. There is no tongue tie?”My guest episode this week featured Lisa Paladino who once was a labor and delivery nurse who knew nothing about breastfeeding, then was an IBCLC who did not believe that tongue tie wa...