"Inducing lactation"

I just wanted to say thank you to Shaughn from the Breastfeeding center WA. I am a woman in a same sex relationship, my wife and I decided to have a baby. During the pregnancy I thought that I wanted to induce lactation so I could also feed our baby. It really wasn't easy to find information but Shaughn reassured me and guided me as best she could throughout the whole experience. It wasn't an easy journey starting medications 6 months before birth and then hand expressing and pumping 6 weeks before the baby was born including through the night. I felt supported and provided with excellent support even by telehealth as I live in the country. It was surprising how easy telehealth was and it meant I could access a service I ordinarily would have had no option to receive. Learning to hand express was a completely new experience and I don't think I would have been successful without the guidance.

I can certainly say that I don't think I could have had the amazing experience of being the first to feed our son and breastfeeding for the first 3 months of his life without the support of the Breastfeeding center. I hope that other same sex women are able to know this is an option if it's something they want to pursue as I didn't even know it was possible before! My hope is the breastfeeding center if more known to women including what support they can provide. Thank you so much!