05/01/2025
A patient reached out last week to ask if I’d be on post this week, and if I could swing by.
She gave me a thank you gift, along with this card. It brought me to tears when I read it.
Lactation Support is often a thankless job. Many medical providers find our profession pointless. The general community acts as if we are weird when we say what we do. When things don’t go as hoped, parents often blame us for the myriad of reasons why… but then when we see the true difference we make for some parents, it’s humbling, and all worthwhile. And sometimes, we are told we were the one and only person that sat and listened when no one else would.
I still remember Julie, the British Lactation Professional I saw when I had my first child, nearly 13 years ago. I only had to talk to her a few times, but she always assured me I was doing a wonderful job and provided me guidance that worked when everyone else just told me all the reasons I should quit breastfeeding.
As I close out this chapter at Fort Johnson, I really do hope I’ve made a difference here. I hope I’ve been that ear a new mom needed. I hope I’ve been the voice of compassion that no one else provided. I hope I provided them with knowledge and support in a sea of incorrect myths and detrimental advice. I hope that some of the women I’ve helped have felt educated and empowered enough to pay that forward to other moms that need help. I hope that in 13 years at least one of these families still thinks of me fondly.
I pray that future Fort Johnson parents get the help and support they need from whomever may come after me.
I hope I’ve left this installation better than I found it.
