On today's podcast, to celebrate IBCLC Day, we're going to highlight and talk with IBCLC Nichelle Clark about supporting pumping parents in lactation.

Nichelle Clark (she/her) is an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, or IBCLC, wife, and mother of two residing in Chesapeake, Virginia. She is the owner of SonShine & Rainbows Lactation Services. Born and raised in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, Nichelle joined the United States Navy in 2010 and served honorably for 7.5 years. In 2020, she founded Black Breastfeeding 365, an organization that seeks to bridge the gap between Black parents and the lactation professionals who serve them. When she's not spending time with her husband and children, she serves as a United States Lactation Consultant Association, or USLCA, advisory board member, and Clinical Lactation Journal social media editor. In her spare time, she admins multiple online support groups for people of color, providing breastfeeding support and lactation education to her community. As an exclusive pumping mom herself, Nichelle is a champion for breastfeeding parents to write down their own rules and breastfeed their way.

We talk about Nichelle's personal experience with being an exclusive pumping parent and the barriers she faced when advocating her choice to exclusively pump and re-lactate. We also talk about debunking pumping myths in lactation and how Nichelle serves parents of color in her community as an IBCLC to encourage making informed choices during one's lactation journey.

Content warning: We mention COVID, trauma, and infant loss.

RESOURCES:

Learn more about Nichelle Clark here. Follow Nichelle on Facebook and on Instagram.

Listen to EBB 189 here.

Learn more about the Academy of Breastfeeding Medicine here.

Learn more about Black Breastfeeding Mamas Circle here.

Learn more about Breast Milk Donation for Black Moms here.

Learn more about Lactation Education Resources here.

Learn more about the United States of Lactation Consultants Association (USLCA) here.

Learn about the Black Birth Healer here.

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