Find a Lactation Consultant Near Me in Altoona, PA

Congratulations on this next journey of life! My name is Alex and I’m here to help with your infant’s feeding journey, no matter how that may look for you. Whether it’s exclusively breastfeeding, pumping and offering breastmilk, formula feeding or a combination of them all, I am happy to help. I have fed all four of my babies a bit differently than the last. I’m currently feeding my fifth baby! With the right education and support, we can work together to make your goals a reality!

As a Certified Labor Doula working in the Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania area since 2020, I offer personalized birthing, lactation, and postpartum support as well as childbirth & postpartum education. My goal is to give you and your family the attention and knowledge you need to make informed decisions about pregnancy, delivery, feeding, and parenting. ​ I am inspired by women's strength and the miracle of birth. This inspiration is why I became a Certified Labor Doula through Maternity Wise and am proud to serve women and families throughout South Western Pennsylvania. I first became interested in becoming a doula in 2017 when I became inspired by a supportive doula I hired for my second and third pregnancies. I was later encouraged to become a doula by a close friend, who then was the first mother I could serve as an educator and doula. ​ I have three little boys of my own, and have had a hospital OBGYN, midwife center, and homebirth experience. I know what it is like to give birth and navigate both within and outside the industrial birth complex. I have personal experience with low-risk and high-risk pregnancies and what it is like to be concerned about the unknowns on the other side of delivery. In addition, I have experienced the benefits and relief of having a doula present to guide me through the portal of birth into the role of motherhood. ​ Every woman deserves to have someone there to guide and assist them in making educated choices about their pregnancy, delivery, and parenting. It is good to have someone to remind them that they can persevere during this time of newness. I'm here to provide evidence-based education, and emotional, physical, and personalized support, along with advocacy for your rights. ​ Mothers and couples who work with me will find I highly value their maintained autonomy, including mother-led labor and delivery. I recognize birth as a non-medical event that occasionally needs medical attention. High-risk pregnancies need significantly more care than healthy pregnancies- but that high-risk model of care should not be used to care for all expectant mothers. In this vein, I acknowledge that women do not need to be empowered to give birth well or ecstatically. Instead, their autonomy, human rights, and dignity must be protected and remain intact. Under these aforementioned parameters, birth will naturally lead toward positive and non-traumatic perspectives of its' outcome. ​ Lastly, and perhaps most importantly, as a Christian, I am confident there is much truth to be ascertained in the metaphor of birth used throughout the Bible.

After 36 years as an RN & IBCLC Lactation Consultant in the hospital in Maternal Child units I retired to focus on the mothers and babies in my community & my family. I have received TOTs certification (Tethered oral tissues) Tongue and lip ties have become my specialty. Mastitis and clogged ducts treatment, breastfeeding multiples & pumping care is also very important. I do in home and virtual consultations. I work with The Lactation Network to assist patients in getting their consultation covered by the patient’s insurance. Also, a private pay scale is available.