Log in

goodpods headphones icon

To access all our features

Open the Goodpods app
Close icon
headphones
Breastfeeding Outside the Box

Breastfeeding Outside the Box

Alyssa Schnell and Hope Lien

We are proud to present a series of podcasts for parents Breastfeeding Outside the Box, where we aim to support the nourishing and nurturing of babies in exceptional families - families who historically have not received the help and support they need and deserve. Our exceptional families include adoptive, intended, and foster families; gender and sexual minorities; families with special needs babies; parents who have had breast surgery; mothers with IGT or low milk production for other reasons; exclusively pumping mothers; and more.
Share icon

All episodes

Best episodes

Seasons

Top 10 Breastfeeding Outside the Box Episodes

Goodpods has curated a list of the 10 best Breastfeeding Outside the Box episodes, ranked by the number of listens and likes each episode have garnered from our listeners. If you are listening to Breastfeeding Outside the Box for the first time, there's no better place to start than with one of these standout episodes. If you are a fan of the show, vote for your favorite Breastfeeding Outside the Box episode by adding your comments to the episode page.

Breastfeeding Outside the Box - 018 Low Milk Production and More with Kristin Cavuto IBCLC
play

09/14/16 • 42 min

This podcast episode is so absolutely rich with information and ideas, no matter what your breastfeeding outside the box situation, you won't want to pass this one up. Starting with her own "lactastrophe", Kristen shares with us how to find help, causes of low milk production such as insufficient glandular tissue (IGT) and insulin resistance, herbs and medications that can help increase milk production, sources of milk donations, LGBTQ breastfeeding, and more.

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Alyssa shared with Hope the breastfeeding story that inspired Breastfeeding Without Birthing. It has been 10 years since Alyssa became an adoptive parent who nursed her baby, and she has been working hard ever since to grow information and support around breastfeeding without pregnancy and birth. Alyssa's passion for breastfeeding grew out of her experience nursing her first two (biological) children. When she and her husband planned to adopt, she knew that breastfeeding would be a very important part of that plan. Building a Full Milk Supply when Inducing LactationWhile many mothers who induce lactation hope to build a fully supply, few of them do. Alyssa was one of the fortunate ones. Why are some mothers able to produce a full supply and others much less? We really don't have all the answers, just as we don't have all the answers why some mothers by birth cannot produce a full supply. But we do have some inclinations:
  • Mothers who've birthed and breastfed before tend to make more milk.
  • Mothers who work with an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) tend to make more milk.
  • Mothers who effectively and frequently empty their breasts make more milk, usually either by pumping with a hospital-grade breast pump or by breastfeeding with an at-breast supplementer.
  • Mothers who take the medication domperidone tend to make more milk.
  • Mothers who have experienced infertility due to hormonal reasons tend to make less milk.

Alyssa emphasized that nursing very frequently (up to 14 times per day) was a challenge, yet she believes it was an important factor in why she was able to breastfeed her adopted daughter without supplementation. She explained that frequently nursing her baby allowed her to get enough milk over the course of the day, even though her breasts probably didn't produce very much milk at each feeding. Producing a small amount of milk each time the breasts are emptied is referred to as "small breast storage capacity" and is typical of mothers whose bodies haven't just undergone pregnancy.

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Breastfeeding Outside the Box - 003: Meet Hope Lien, adoptive breastfeeding mother and CLC
play

01/26/16 • 29 min

It was great to hear from our show's co-host, Hope, about her inspiring journey to nursing her daughter by adoption. Hope originally learned that breastfeeding in adoption was possible during her doula training. Armed with the knowledge that breastfeeding would be possible for her even though she was unable to conceive, Hope found resources on adoptive breastfeeding to be pretty scarce at first. Fortunately, more information and support continued to emerge. Here are some of the top resources that Hope found:
  • The asklenore website* got her started with a step-by-step approach for inducing lactation, called the Newman-Goldfarb Protocol. The Newman-Goldfarb Protocol primarily consists of pumping and the use of pharmaceutical medications to induce lactation.
  • Several months later, Hope discovered additional options for inducing lactation in the newly released book, Breastfeeding Without Birthing. Using some ideas she read about, she choose to enhance the steps in the Newman-Goldfarb protocol by adding some natural techniques, such as herbs and acupuncture
  • Hope also discovered an amazingly supportive and informative Facebook group called Adoptive Breastfeeding.
  • Hope consulted with a local International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) to help guide and support her as she induced lactation, and then with nursing once her baby arrived. To find an IBCLC in your area who works with mothers through adoption or surrogacy, see the Find a Lactation Consultant page on the Breastfeeding Without Birthing website.
*Note: Updates to increase the simplicity and safety of the Newman-Goldfarb protocol were published in Breastfeeding Without Birthing. Details regarding these updates can be found on the Breastfeeding Without Birthing blog. SupplementationWhen Hope started the process of inducing lactation, she was hoping to achieve a full milk supply. But, like most mothers who induce lactation, she did produce a significant amount of milk but not a full supply. Knowing how much to supplement can be tricky - not enough supplemental milk or formula means baby won't have enough to eat, but too much supplemental milk or formula can mean less breastfeeding. Looking back, Hope wonders if she supplemented too much too early. Her pediatrician recommended supplementing 3 ounces per feeding within her daughter's first few days of life, but this recommendation was way more milk/formula than a baby needs in total at that age:
  • At 3 days, normal intake during a feeding is 1 ounce.
  • At 1 week, normal intake during a feeding is 1.5 ounces.
  • At 2 weeks, normal intake during a feeding is 2-2.5 ounces.
  • At 1-6 months, normal intake during a feeding is 3-4 ounces
[Mohrbacher & Kendall-Tackett, 2010]If a mother has induced lactation with pumping before her baby arrives, she will have a pretty good idea how much milk she is producing at a feeding, and can use the difference between her milk production and the normal intake numbers above as a starting point on how much to supplement.
bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Breastfeeding Outside the Box - 042 Getting Started with Inducing Lactation/ Relactation
play

02/10/19 • 43 min

Cathy, like so many other non-birthing parents wanting to induce lactation or relactate, is trying to unravel all of the varying information she has received. So she emailed us for help. When I suggested we might share her email on the podcast so that we could help others in her shoes, Cathy agreed. This podcast episode is devoted to addressing Cathy's questions, concerns, and confusion around the basics of how to induce lactation/relactate -- and you might find it addresses some of yours as well! Below is the email that is the inspiration for today's episode:

I am 38 and have an almost 3-year-old son whom I nursed from birth-22 months. We are in the process of adoption. We are in process of our homestudy and imagine we'll be bringing an infant home within 9-12 months. I am eager to relactate for this baby. I have spoken with two of our local IBCLC's. One suggested the Newman-Goldfarb protocol, and the second suggested I contact you. My GP suggested I talk to my ob/gyn for the prescriptions and my ob/gyn said the only way to relactate is via pumping. As you can imagine, I am a bit frustrated.
bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Breastfeeding Outside the Box - 052:  At-Breast/Chest Supplementation Tips and More
play

06/06/18 • 52 min

For as long as I've known my podcast co-host Hope Lien, she has been my go-to person for questions about at-breast/chest supplementation. When nursing her daughter by adoption (pictured here), at-breast supplementation was a key to her success - as it is for most parents who need to provide long-term supplementation. She understands first-hand how frustrating at-breast/chest supplementation can be at the beginning and how invaluable it can be in the long run. Getting from frustration to long-term success is the key and Hope tells us how!

View full show notes Here: http://sweetpeabreastfeeding.com/podcast/52-at-breastchest-supplementation-tips-and-more

bookmark
plus icon
share episode

It's a case study! Something a little bit different in our discussion with Dr. Nice, our pharmacist expert. Alyssa had connected with a mom-to-be Courtni who was inducing lactation with very quick and abundant milk production. She wanted to figure out what Courtni was doing so that she could learn from Courtni's experience to help other parents. (We at Sweet Pea are always trying to learn more about how to support the nursing success of non-birthing parents!) ... but Alyssa could not find anything in Courtni's approach that was different than other parents she had worked with. She did observe, however, that Courtni was taking several medications for her own health issues. Alyssa wondered if these medications or the health conditions underlying them could be the secret to Courtni's outcomes. She went to her friend, Dr. Nice for the answers...

View full show notes here:

http://sweetpeabreastfeeding.com/podcast/51-ask-dr-nice-a-case-study-on-the-impact-of-parents-medications-on-milk-production-when-inducing-lactation

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
As it turns out, breastfeeding is not just "A Womanly Art." Steph shares an incredible story about a same-sex male couple she worked with who both nursed their baby, exclusively providing human milk for baby's first 6 months. How does this work? Creativity, support, milk expressed by baby's gestational carrier, and a tiny feeding tube at the father's nipple. Steph gives us the details of this amazing nursing relationship and how to support any LGBTQIA family interested in breastfeeding/chestfeeding/nursing.

Check out the full show notes here:

http://sweetpeabreastfeeding.com/podcast/50-stephanie-wagner-ibclc-on-chestfeeding-and-supporting-the-lgbtqia-community

bookmark
plus icon
share episode
With the FDA warning against domperidone, we have noticed an increasing number of U.S. parents who choose to induce lactation or relactate without using the pharmaceutical medication domperidone. While we have spent many episodes discussing the safety and effectiveness of domperidone, our ultimate goal is to meet each parent with a plan for inducing lactation or relactation that is consistent with their preferences. In this episode Alyssa and Hope discuss alternatives to domperidone and how milk production may be impacted by a lactation plan that does not include dom. Full Shownotes available at: http://sweetpeabreastfeeding.com/podcast/49-ditching-the-dom-inducing-lactation-or-relactating-without-domperidone
bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Breastfeeding Outside the Box - 048: Ask Dr. Nice:  Safety of Medications While Breastfeeding
play

02/27/18 • 33 min

For breastfeeding parents, safely taking medications - whether they are for the parent's health or for increasing milk production - can be complex. It is a delicate balance between the parent's health, the safety of the milk for the baby, and the importance of breastfeeding. It involves communication between the parent's health care providers, the baby's health care providers, and the pharmacist who can help to put it all together. Here our friend and pharmacist with a ton of experience with lactation, Dr. Frank Nice has more answers. ​On today's episode, we asked Dr. Nice questions such as:
  • ​How to understand safety of medications when a parent is taking several of them. Can we simply look at each one individually or is there a combined impact?
  • ​What if both parent and baby are taking medications - do we need to consider the safety of how those medications interact in combination?
  • ​When a parent is making less than a full milk supply, will the amount of the parent's medication in the milk be more concentrated or will the baby get less medication because there is less milk?​
...and more!
bookmark
plus icon
share episode
Breastfeeding Outside the Box - 023 Adoptive Breastfeeding with Sally Parrott, IBCLC
play

12/14/16 • 35 min

Sally is an adoptive mom gone lactation consultant, and she uses her personal experiences to guide her professional role with abundant wisdom and compassion. In this interview, Sally does a beautiful job helping adoptive parents and the professionals who support them to navigate through the particular emotional and logistical challenges adoptive parents may face with breastfeeding.

bookmark
plus icon
share episode

Show more best episodes

Toggle view more icon

FAQ

How many episodes does Breastfeeding Outside the Box have?

Breastfeeding Outside the Box currently has 53 episodes available.

What topics does Breastfeeding Outside the Box cover?

The podcast is about Breastfeeding, Health & Fitness, Parenting, Kids & Family, Alternative Health and Podcasts.

What is the most popular episode on Breastfeeding Outside the Box?

The episode title '052: At-Breast/Chest Supplementation Tips and More' is the most popular.

What is the average episode length on Breastfeeding Outside the Box?

The average episode length on Breastfeeding Outside the Box is 44 minutes.

How often are episodes of Breastfeeding Outside the Box released?

Episodes of Breastfeeding Outside the Box are typically released every 14 days, 2 hours.

When was the first episode of Breastfeeding Outside the Box?

The first episode of Breastfeeding Outside the Box was released on Jan 26, 2016.

Show more FAQ

Toggle view more icon

Comments