Driven Lactation

12/22/2025

Our house doesn’t have an Elf, but if we did…

Breastfeeding elf. Let's see what adventures your elves have been on.

12/19/2025

SEASON OF WEANING

🎄New Bog out! Read it here:
https://www.drivenlactation.com/post/season-of-weaning

I saw a story book at in Blackfalds called B***y Moon. If you are in the Season of Weaning a toddler or older child, this may be a special way to support your child and yourself in the journey.

Weaning doesn’t have to be all tears, tantrums and heart ache. It can be an exciting, heartwarming, and beautiful experience to treasure. A chance to celebrate a milestone reached, honour the journey thus far and acknowledge this special time for both mother and child.

12/15/2025

✨Nighttime parenting is tough but keeping them close can help you and baby get back to sleep easier✨

If you’re awake right now holding a sleeping baby
know that your body is helping theirs feel safe
steady
and regulated
You are not doing too much. You are doing enough.

12/12/2025

❎ Managing Unwanted Advice👶✨

As you tackle holiday parties and family get togethers, criticism is somewhat expected and that sucks. People often feel they can give "advice"--"Oh, just pump so you can go out", " He's too old to breastfeed at night", "Give a little rice cereal in a bottle and she will sleep", "Just give formula, that's what I did."😏

WAYS TO PROTECT YOUR BOUNDARIES:

✨Shift focus to something they can contribute to. Ask for help with food, household tasks, baby cuddles, or stories about when your partner was a baby. This lets them feel involved without having input on breastfeeding.

✨Have you or your partner respond: “We appreciate the concern, but we’re happy with what we’re doing.”

✨Protect your emotional energy by: Limiting visit length, step out for feeds or for some quiet time, babywear to keep baby close, and only attend gatherings when it works for you.

✨Validate yourself❤- YOU ARE DOING A WONDERFUL JOB! Surround yourself with likeminded people who support your breastfeeding goals. Attend La Leche League Meetings.🤱

https://www.lllc.ca/talking-grandparents

If you need someone to talk/vent to, please know that I offer TEXT support. If you need me, book online www.drivenlactation.com

12/07/2025

🩷 it’s the best feeling. Embrace it.

12/06/2025

✨Prenatally through to weaning, IBCLCs :
🩷Reassure parents when feeding feels overwhelming
❤️Normalize newborn behaviour
🧡Build confidence and reduce anxiety
💛Personalize care to meet your breastfeeding goals

I offer text-based lactation consults as well as in-home consults.
Book online www.DrivenLactation.com

12/05/2025

Been there. This is your reminder to check your diaper bag!

11/22/2025

🤯 1️⃣3️⃣0️⃣0️⃣0️⃣ extra hours 💛

Research tells us that babies who co-sleep in infancy, especially in those early years get around 13,000 extra hours of touch.

Thirteen thousand.

Because when you keep your baby close, day and night, they’re getting 10 to 12 extra hours a day of your skin, your warmth, your presence.

That’s not spoiling.
That’s wiring.

Touch is brain food.
It releases oxytocin, serotonin…
It lowers cortisol.

It teaches your baby’s body how to feel safe.
How to come back to calm.

We actually have studies showing
co -sleeping babies have lower stress reactivity meaning their little bodies bounce back from stress faster.

That’s not dependence.
That’s coregulation.
That’s safety being built from the inside out.

So the next time you’re contact napping,
bed sharing, doing whatever gets you both some rest and someone tells you you’re creating bad habits, remember this ~

You’re not creating a clingy baby.
You’re creating a resilient one 🖤

The Breastmilk Queen - Amy McGlade 🥰

11/14/2025

Influence comes from so many things. How are we influencing our daughters to trust their body now so when they become mothers, they will trust their body to breastfeed?

Read my new blog post: https://www.drivenlactation.com/post/sport-and-breastfeeding

11/14/2025

You aren’t doing anything wrong by responding to your childs needs at night. Keep them close. Keep them fed. 💕

Pushing to night wean too soon and get baby sleeping through the night early can lead to low milk supply even when it happens naturally.

It won't always be an issue but it can be, particularly if it happens with a very young baby.

Nursing at night helps protect a robust milk supply.

Night weaning is fine if your little one and you are both ready for it. You DO need your sleep and so does your child. If you want our checklist on night weaning readiness to safely night wean, let us know in the comments and we'll hook you up.

11/04/2025

Early play and modelling behaviors can influence future attitudes toward caregiving and feeding choices.

🧠The girl on the left: Children who babywear (pretend to carry or "wear" their dolls close to their bodies) are engaging in nurturing behaviors that emphasize physical closeness and responsiveness — both of which align closely with the experiences and values associated with breastfeeding.

🍼The little one on the right: Children who are encouraged to bottle-feed their dolls may associate infant care primarily with bottle feeding, which can normalize that method as the default way to feed a baby.

So, a child who babywears is generally more likely to have positive attitudes toward breastfeeding later on, compared with a child whose play mainly centers around bottle-feeding dolls.
To be clear, this isn’t deterministic — a child’s eventual feeding choices (or attitudes toward them) are shaped by many factors: family norms, cultural context, exposure to breastfeeding in real life, and parental modeling. But play patterns do reflect and reinforce what children see as “normal,” so babywearing tends to align more with behaviors and values associated with breastfeeding.

💁‍♀️PRO TIP: Throw out the bottle! Encourage your child to model mothering through breastfeeding.

📸Have a picture of your little one nursing a toy? Share it!
🤱Has your little one asked you to nurse one of their toys? They get the importance. Your milk feeds and heals.

09/10/2025

Wetaskiwin Families — Free Car Seat Clinic!

We’re coming to Wetaskiwin with a special car seat safety event where newly trained Child Passenger Safety Technicians (CPSTs) will be performing free car seat checks as part of their final step toward certification. Each check will be completed under the supervision of certified CPST Instructors, so you’ll receive safe, reliable guidance while supporting new technicians in training.

🔹 At This Clinic, You’ll Get:
✔️ A full car seat check and installation support
✔️ Personalized recommendations for your child and vehicle
✔️ Education on proper harnessing and positioning
✔️ Instructor oversight to ensure accuracy and quality

📅 Date: Tuesday, September 17th
📍 Location: 5940 40 Ave, Wetaskiwin AB
⏰ Time: 2:00 – 5:00 PM
🚗 Book your spot: www.carseatconnection.as.me/wetaskiwin

This clinic is free of charge. Appointments are encouraged to save your spot, but walk-ins are welcome as time allows. Please bring your child (if possible), your car seat, your vehicle, and both manuals.

Your visit not only ensures your child is riding as safely as possible—it also helps new CPSTs gain valuable real-world experience.