Every breastfeeding journey is different. Every story has value. 

In recognition of National Breastfeeding Month, our Parent, Child, and Family Health program invited parents to share their lactation and infant feeding experiences. 

This year’s theme is RISE:

• Resilience.
• Interdependence.
• Self Determination.
• Empowerment.

It reminds us families thrive when they have access to support, trusted information, and communities where they feel seen and respected. 

Throughout August, we will elevate the voices of Pierce County families and help normalize the many ways parents experience lactation and infant feeding. Some stories reflect joy and confidence. Others share challenges, unexpected changes, or the need to adapt.

Every experience helps us understand what families need to meet their feeding goals. And every story reminds us we’re not alone in our challenges—or our joy.

Join us on social media all month as we recognize the strength of local families. We hope it will foster understanding, connection, and support.

Thank you to everyone who shared their story. When we listen to one another, we can help create a community where every parent feels supported, informed, and empowered in their infant feeding journey. 

This week’s lactation story: Two kids, two very different journeys

For our first National Breastfeeding Month story, we talked to a Pierce County mom who asked to remain anonymous. Her journey is a great reminder of the many possible paths breastfeeding can lead you down.

No matter your path, we’re here for you! Programs like the Nurse Family Partnership and Black Infant Health are here if you’re expecting a baby and want support with breastfeeding and so much more.

Infant feeding can be joyful and challenging. It can also cause grief and resilience. What did you face? What helped you reach your goals?

Breastfeeding was challenging and empowering for me. My breastfeeding journeys were significantly different from each other.

With my son, I over-produced milk and latching was somewhat difficult to grasp at first. But I felt that was normal since I was a first-time mom and this was a new skill that I had to learn. Once we were able to figure it out, I felt empowered that I was able to provide the nutrients that my baby needed to thrive straight from my body.

With my daughter, I felt confident that I would be able to breastfeed again, especially since I was able to breastfeed my son to the age of 3. Boy was I wrong! Latching was difficult, pumping at work was hard, and I started to suffer from anxiety and depression heavily.

That almost impacted my ability to breastfeed my daughter. If I had to take medication, my doctor said that I would need to stop breastfeeding. That made me even more sad because I felt like a failure and that I was not going to be able to do for my daughter what I was able to do for my son.

With the help of a lactation specialist and my partner and friends, I was able to accomplish my goal of breastfeeding my daughter. The journey was challenging, but with a good support system I was able to reach my goal of breastfeeding my daughter to the age of 2.

What advice or support would you share with future families embarking on their feeding journey?

The piece of advice that I would share is find your support person. Whether that person is your doctor, lactation specialist, partner, friend or family. Make sure you have that person to be there for you when you need to cry, vent or even just sit there with you while you try to breastfeed. Also, it’s okay if it doesn’t work right out the gate. It is a skill, and you’re not meant to be perfect at it. Trust your body, it typically knows what to do.