The Evolve Lactation Podcast

In this conversation with Gretchen Becker Crabb, I asked her what she believes is the opportunity we have when we first meet someone who is really struggling with breastfeeding. Gretchen, who is an OTR/L and CLC, shares in this episode about how she thinks of the dyad and the breastfeeding relationship and applies her expertise in sensory integration to her work with families. Keep this Conversation GoingGretchen - on IG at @gretchencrabbtherapywebsite:  gretchencrabbtherapy.comFacebook:  Gretchen Becker CrabbAnd here is the link to NBO trainings:https://www.brazeltontouchpoints.org/Christine - https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinestaricka/Olena - https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-dobczansky-msn-rnc-mnn-ibclc-c-onqs-lcce-878b8263/If you liked this podcast, please subscribe in your favorite podcast player and give it a 5-star rating!Check out The Breastfeeding Literacy Project here: The Breastfeeding Literacy Project This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ibclcinca.substack.com

Evolve Lactation Media is an independent platform for lactation knowledge — rigorous, accessible, and free of commercial influence. We publish, we teach, and we examine the forces that shape lactation care — for clinicians, public health professionals, and families.We connect breastfeeding to its full context — scientific, cultural, political — because the conditions that determine whether an individual breastfeeds are never purely clinical.What Happened?“Boutique” formula manufacturer Bobbie made 2 major announcements this week:* they published their own code of ethics in marketing; it starts by minimizing the WHO Code and contains multiple lies* they announced the rollout of their AI chatbot and “three-layer support system”Understand What This MeansAs explained by Len the RN, IBCLC, “That means the company manufactures the product, builds the AI, employs the clinicians, creates the educational content and defines the pathways through which parents receive support. Regardless of the quality or integrity of the people involved, this represents a fundamental shift in how infant feeding guidance has been organized.”Why Now?Check your calendar. That’s right, it’s just in time for World Breastfeeding Week and National Breastfeeding Month.That’s not a coincidence.Don’t keep this a secret - share this with someone else who needs this updateIf you spend any amount of time on Bobbie’s website, which is linked above in the What Happened section, you will notice that they make many claims about what they offer moms, which is strikingly similar to what YOU offer the dyads you serve.The implication is strong: that THEY offer this support and that no one else is doing that.Are you not providing wraparound feeding support? Do you not teach formula feeding to moms who want to or need to use formula?Are you not building community for the parents you serve?Have you not been working your whole career on this, only to have a commercial entity swoop in with their venture capital cash to market their products right over the top of you?That’s where we are.Please tell me what we are going to do next because I honestly do not know.Love Us or Fight UsSend us your feedback, argue with us about what we’re sharing on the podcast, tell us your ideas or request for things we should cover.Evolve Lactation Media is for YOU. And for our listeners who are outside the US, your feedback is most welcome here!!Our global credential deserves a global conversation as much as it deserves a national one. We’re here for it all. Hit Reply to this email to tell us what you need to say, and find us both on LinkedIn!Olena - https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-dobczansky-msn-rnc-mnn-ibclc-c-onqs-lcce-878b8263/Christine - https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinestaricka/Thanks for reading Evolve Lactation Media! Subscribe for free right here www.EvolveLactation.org This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ibclcinca.substack.com

When I asked my friend and colleague Fleur Bickford to come on the podcast, I should have known she would arrive with an outline and a comprehensive plan for teaching.Fleur’s expertise in trauma-informed care is deep on so many levels.Fleur Bickford is a Registered Nurse and International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) with a background in labour and delivery, postpartum care and healthcare education. She currently serves as Director of Educational Programming for GOLD Learning. Drawing on her years of clinical experience and a deep commitment to evidence-based, person centred and trauma‑informed education, Fleur designs unique and impactful learning experiences for a global audience of maternal child health care professionals. Her personal areas of interest and expertise are the nervous system, trauma and post traumatic growth. She can be found on Instagram and Threads under the handle @nurturinghealing.To get the whole guide and companion workbook, click and subscribe here: https://ibclcinca.substack.com/p/emerginglactationconsultant1Keep this Conversation Going on LinkedInOlena - https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-dobczansky-msn-rnc-mnn-ibclc-c-onqs-lcce-878b8263/Christine - https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinestaricka/If you liked this podcast, please subscribe in your favorite podcast player and give it a 5-star rating!Check out The Breastfeeding Literacy Project here: The Breastfeeding Literacy Project This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ibclcinca.substack.com

I made a whole thing and I wanted to tell you about it. That’s the Episode in a nutshell.What you’re hearing is Section 12 of my 12-part series The Guide for The Emerging Lactation Consultant. To get the whole guide and companion workbook, click and subscribe here: https://ibclcinca.substack.com/p/emerginglactationconsultant1Keep this Conversation Going on LinkedInOlena - https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-dobczansky-msn-rnc-mnn-ibclc-c-onqs-lcce-878b8263/Christine - https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinestaricka/If you liked this podcast, please subscribe in your favorite podcast player and give it a 5-star rating!Check out The Breastfeeding Literacy Project here: The Breastfeeding Literacy Project This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ibclcinca.substack.com

Things We Talked About in the EpisodeThe movie Christine & her husband were watchingEvolve Lactation Guide for Emerging Lactation Consultants - https://evolvelactation.orgAnnie Frisbee's Email and Resources - https://paperlesslactation.com/about/Understanding Insurance Policies in Healthcare - https://www.healthaffairs.orgNestle/Helaina Partnership Momcozy Education EventKeep this Conversation Going on LinkedInOlena - https://www.linkedin.com/in/olena-dobczansky-msn-rnc-mnn-ibclc-c-onqs-lcce-878b8263/Christine - https://www.linkedin.com/in/christinestaricka/If you liked this podcast, please subscribe in your favorite podcast player and give it a 5-star rating!Check out The Breastfeeding Literacy Project here: The Breastfeeding Literacy Project This is a public episode. If you would like to discuss this with other subscribers or get access to bonus episodes, visit ibclcinca.substack.com