Carrie Caillouette is an IBCLC (International Board Certified Lactation Consultant) living in West County Sonoma. After the birth of her second baby she felt called to transition her career to helping other parents meet their infant feeding goals. She believe that education and small tweaks are usually all it takes to have a long and successful breastfeeding journey. She offers home visits and virtual sessions to help parents develop a plan to meet their goals and feed their little one. She's especially proud of her volunteer work with a local non-profit called Better Beginnings and is the co-host of a fun local postpartum support group. She believes that surrounding yourself with community is one of the secrets to a more connected and supported motherhood.
The female form is wild and amazing and sometimes full of steep learning curves. Breastfeeding is definitely all of those things. What was your own journey like?
Isn’t that the truth. Actually, my first baby is now 7 years old and if you can imagine (of course) we know more now than we did then about breastfeeding. When she was born she went to the NICU due to birth complications and began feeding on a bottle first, as I was pumping. We did not get a “golden hour” of skin on skin time after birth and she struggled to breathe and thrive in that first week, so over that time period I was pumping and trying to latch her in NICU. It’s hard to describe how that went but initially there was a tongue tie and we had to use a nipple shield to latch as well as a lot of pillows and support from nurses. I realize this is not everyone’s initial journey it is sort of an outlier but the bottom line is that it was not a textbook optimal breastfeeding situation and yet eventually we found our way and we breastfed for 18 months. With this baby I would say my biggest learning was that time and patience as well as trying to be easeful with a slow transition to breastfeeding is something to try to harness.
My second baby is nearly 5 now and it was a completely different experience. But I was more confident in my body and hers to learn than I was the first time. We got the hang of it a bit quicker than the first go-around because at birth she was healthy so we were "off to the races” a bit quicker.
What is the scoop on colostrum?
Colostrum is a small quantity, protein rich "first milk" which is golden in color and super salty. It is really the baby's true first vaccines. It is loaded with immune factors and it functions to seal the gut and also as a laxative to pass the meconium (early black tar like stool). Colostrum is in your breasts at 16 weeks gestation so it’s chilling in there and waiting too nourish your baby once they are born. Recently some folks have been hand expressing it a few weeks before birth (37 weeks) and saving that colostrum to nourish the baby and supplement after birth if necessary. That early hand expression has been proven to increase milk supply more long term as well.
What is the best way to promote healthy breasts and milk supply?
The best way is to drain the breasts fully every 2-3 hours all day (24 hours around the clock). If you feel any lumps or bumps just relax, feed normally, use ice on the tender area, gently massage and take NSAIDS as you normally would from inflammation (Tylenol or Advil etc). Other things that can help are breast lymphatic massage, moving the breasts gently, healthy diet and hydration and working with an IBCLC like me to assist in breastfeeding education and check that baby has an optimal latch and oral-motor function. Mastitis is just inflammation of the breast tissue so we can treat it as such if it comes up and I work with folks virtually on this all the time. We try to root out the source of the problem (too tight fitting bra, seatbelt, baby carrier, missed feeding sessions, funky positioning, poor latch, tongue tie etc).
Who is your biggest inspiration and why?
Oh wow, so many people are inspiring to me, but right now I would say that all of my mamas inspire me. I have a sizable postpartum support group in Sebastopol, CA and these mamas have all individually been through so many things that together they are such a beautiful support system for each other. I love all of the raw sharing that women can do with one another and I’m into the idea of bringing back the village, sourcing our strength from our community.
What is your dream for modern motherhood in our ever shifting society?
So many dreams! With regard to breastfeeding - I would love for every family to have the right to breastfeeding education and support covered by insurance. And I would also love to see our US government offer a longer paid family leave for families after birth to support bonding, infant feeding and maternal mental health. In my support of postpartum families I also see a huge desire for in person connection and a forum for checking in with others about our feelings and whatever is going on in our families. I would love to see community centers offer space for families to connect weekly and not just in the initial year postpartum but for all of parenthood. Connecting with other families in our same stage is so healthy for not just breastfeeding efficacy but also for basic stability and support.
What practices ground you in motherhood?
As with all of us I wish I had more mindfulness around grounding - especially now that I have school aged kids and our life feels more fast paced. But I would say going outside grounds me, and going to the beach. I grew up in Southern California in a beach town so fresh salt air cleanses me and I notice a change in my kids when they are in nature as well. We now live in the redwoods and a hike in a familiar place does wonders for me and my family as well. Also I would say that when I’m feeling a little out of control, or buzzy I try to move away from caffeine, sugar and too many things on the calendar and I root down in more time at home, less time on devices and less time driving and transitioning and more unscheduled time with my family.
What is something that's been on your mind lately that you want to put out there?
Something that has been on my mind is ease-fullness and also positivity. I already spoke about positivity earlier and the concept that we can manifest things and be curbing our ideas and our self talk so that it will promote a better outcome. To the idea of ease fullness it is the concept that we can move with the flow of traffic and try to harness some natural flow and ease with new things we are doing. If it is mothering or breastfeeding we can try not to force things but instead to tap into our instinct and see if that creates a sensation of calm and grounding. If that means that for some period of time you are working in a mix of bottle and breast feeding that is okay. It’s also okay to spend a lot of time just hanging around the house bra-less as you get to know your baby and surrender to your new flow. It might also mean letting yourself off the hook if you really need to regulate yourself by say … going for a surf or a walk and I love helping clients plan for taking themselves on a little short date that will fill up their cup and let them soften into their new role with more ease.
