We caught up with the brilliant and insightful Cleo Marchese a few weeks ago and have shared our conversation below.

Cleo, thanks for taking the time to share your stories with us today We’d love to hear about how you went about setting up your own practice and if you have any advice for professionals who might be considering starting their own?

When I first decided to be a private practice lactation consultant, the main thing I needed to decide was how I should get started. The type of paperwork I would need for new patients. How I would handle filing, paper files or online charting service. How would I advertise. In the end, I was invited to an already established lactation practice with three other IBCLCs who need a fourth person to handle patient load. This was a good option for me. They already had brand recognition and needed someone in rapidly growing Collin county. My office and practice were my own, but I could use their name and logo. Be on the website and have ready to use forms they used for years.

It was also nice, my colleagues sent any over flow clients they had my way. So I had steady business the first year and turned a profit.

Cleo, love having you share your insights with us. Before we ask you more questions, maybe you can take a moment to introduce yourself to our readers who might have missed our earlier conversations?

I am a board-certified lactation consultant. That means I didn’t take a weekend class in lactation. I went back to school to learn my craft. Being Board Certified means my training goes far beyond positioning and sore nipples. Most of my clients have complex problems like preterm infants, endocrine issue causing supply problems, babies with oral dysfunction and congenital anatomical problems. I feel like what sets me apart from others is I am open to my clients contacting me anytime they need. I don’t believe in setting up structured barriers between me and a mother I am helping. Some of my colleagues feel they are keeping a healthy work/life balance by making mothers submit a question on their website so they can keep a distance between them and clients. I don’t do that; mother’s get my work cell number and are free to text and call me all they like. The thing I’m most proud of is when I see my name pop up in random mother’s groups I didn’t even knew existed and a new client say, I found you there. It shows my work speaks for itself and moms feel so cared for after a visit. That they freely recommend me to others.

Other than training/knowledge, what do you think is most helpful for succeeding in your field?

I feel the key components to being a successful Lactation consultant is empathy and listening skills. Most mothers come to me because they have had a very traumatic birth experience. After multiple interventions in the hospital, they left with a baby who is not nursing and will not try. These women are traumatized, within hours or days, their dreams of breastfeeding were crushed. By listening to what happened at the hospital, you get a broader picture of what is going on with this mother and baby dyad. Why there is breastfeeding dysfunction. Plus, once a woman talk about everything in detail with a non-biased person who is not a friend or family member. It heals their trauma. I don’t know them so there is no judgement. Just a mother relating what happened and where she felt things went wrong.

It also gives me many clues on how to proceed with treatment because I’m getting the whole story not the last 48 hours.

Learning and unlearning are both critical parts of growth – can you share a story of a time when you had to unlearn a lesson?

I had to learn not everyone can breast feed for a variety of reasons. A lot of women have significant barriers to breastfeeding. Formula is a necessary tool. I entered this feel believing 99% of women can breastfeed and in reality. The number is lower for many reasons, Infertility is a big one, more women are able to afford infertility treatment because insurance will pay for it but the science of supporting healthy lactation in women with infertility is not there. So many doctors assume, if the artificial hormones supported the pregnancy for nine months worked then this woman should be able to lactate. Unfortunately, the breast tissue and structures you use to produce copious amounts of milk start in puberty and years of hormonal dysfunction causing inadequate milk ducts/ breast tissue cannot be undone in one pregnancy.

Contact Info:

• Website: https://www.naturalbeginningsonline.com/
• Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/Naturalbeginningsonline
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/cleolactationconsultant/