Breastfeeding isn’t as easy as it’s portrayed in TV shows and movies. That’s something Ally Tsitsuashvili learned when she had her first child nearly five years ago.
“I did all this preparation to get ready for labor and delivery,” she said. “I had no idea that so much of my life was going to revolve around feeding her. I had no preparation for that whatsoever.”
Luckily, Tsitsuashvili didn’t have any trouble breastfeeding her daughter. But when she gave birth to her son two years ago, she had a totally different experience.
“It was painful,” she said. “I was struggling and didn’t know why I had a low supply.”
The young mother asked around for help and found that there was only one lactation counselor — someone who assists mothers with breastfeeding — in her Pico-Robertson community. She was surprised.
“How could there be all these women in my community having babies and there isn’t more support?”- Ally Tsitsuashvili
“How could there be all these women in my community having babies and there wasn’t more support?” she said. “I decided then that I wanted to become that support.”
Tsitsuashvili became a certificated lactation counselor through The Academy of Lactation Policy and Practice and started her own lactation counseling company, Soul Food.
“My husband named the company, and it’s such a spiritually powerful name,” she said. “If I can help women nurse in any capacity, then I’ll feel so grateful.”
Through her work, Tsitsuashvili meets with mothers, gives advice to them and dispels myths about breastfeeding. For instance, she finds that mothers think it’s normal for breastfeeding to hurt, or that babies should be on a very specific feeding schedule, like every 2.5 hours — but these are just myths. Additionally, many mothers believe that they have a low supply because of stress or issues with their bodies.
“The vast majority of cases where a woman has a low supply it’s because there is an inefficient latch,” she said. “That means there is no signal for her body to create the supply.”
That’s what happened with Tsitsuashvili’s second child.
“My counselor came in and showed me that I had a latching problem,” she said. “We made a small change with the latch, and it worked.”
Tsitsuashvili, who does pre- or post-natal visits at the home or hospital, aims to educate expecting mothers, especially those who are having their first child, about how to be successful with breastfeeding. She teaches about the nursing journey, which she said starts two hours after giving birth, how long to go in between feedings and recognizing the signs that a baby is hungry or when they are just sucking for comfort.
One client she helped had a lumpectomy in her breast and wasn’t sure if she would be able to nurse from that side — or at all.
“After we worked together, my client was able to nurse almost exclusively, even from that breast,” Tsitsuashvili said. “It was very emotional. It had a huge impact on her and her family.”
If a mother is having too much difficulty breastfeeding or doesn’t want to breastfeed, Tsitsuashvili is grateful that they have formula as an option. She also recommends that mothers look into the Human Milk Banking Association of North America, which creates milk banks. Women can purchase breast milk there, or, if they’re in the Jewish community, there are free kosher breast milk options.
“Thank God we have all these options for women who are unable to nurse or don’t want to nurse,” she said. “Their babies can still be fully thriving and healthy.”
Need help with breastfeeding? Contact Ally Tsitsuashvili at Soulfoodclc@gmail.com or (818) 554-7850.
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