I am an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC) since 2016, and mum of three children aged 15, 13 and 10. I currently see clients at my office at 3 Landscape Road (above Fiacla Dental) in Churchtown.

In 2023 I graduated with an MSc in research at the School of Nursing, Midwifery and Health Systems in UCD. I undertook qualitative research on the experiences of women breastfeeding with primary low milk supply. I am an occasional lecturer on breastfeeding and lactation-related modules in UCD. I also teach breastfeeding/lactation seminars for GP-training schemes and other 3rd-level healthcare-related courses and I am available as a conference speaker.

I am passionate about supporting and empowering women in the early days of new motherhood, and helping them to have an experience of breastfeeding that they are happy with. Breastfeeding has been a big part of my life since I had my first baby in 2008 – feeding him, training as a Cuidiu breastfeeding counsellor (I was a volunteer with Cuidiu for 10 years), having two more babies and then finally qualifying as an IBCLC! I am also a fully qualified yoga and pregnancy yoga teacher with 13 years teaching experience.

Here are some articles I have written:

Mother’s Emotional Experiences of Breastfeeding with Primary Low Milk Supply in the First Four Months Postpartum: An Interpretative Phenomenological Analysis  https://www.liebertpub.com/doi/10.1089/bfm.2023.0231

Severe HSV-1 Mastitis in a Breastfeeding Mother Severe HSV-1 Mastitis in a Breastfeeding Mother (elacta-magazine.eu) (if you email me I can send you a PDF of this article)

Infant Feeding with Insufficient Glandular Tissue Infant Feeding With Insufficient Glandular Tissue | All4Maternity

Breastfeeding and Angelman Syndrome Case Study http://www.alcireland.ie/case-study-breastfeeding-and-angelman-syndrome/

LGBTQ+ and You http://www.alcireland.ie/lgbtq-and-you-write-up-of-lcinpp-talk-by-stephanie-wagner/

Breastfeeding and Hyperemesis https://www.hyperemesis.ie/get-help/hg-and-breastfeeding/

The First Hours After Birth http://yogadublin.com/blog/2017/03/10/the-first-hours-after-birth-and-why-they-matter

Becoming an IBCLC http://www.alcireland.ie/the-voluntary-counsellor-route-towards-ibclc-certification/

Previous Conference Presentations:

  • GOLD Learning April 2024 – “The All-Consuming Journey: Lived Experiences of Mothers with Primary Low Milk Production”
  • iLactation March 2024 – “The Good, the Bad, and the Ugly: Being an IBCLC in the Age of Social Media”
  • ILCA 2023 Conference in Las Vegas – “Instagram and the IBCLC: Ethics, Misinformation, Privacy and Maternal Mental Health”
  • IABLE Online Abstract Presentation Day August 2023 – Overview of qualitative research on women’s experiences of breastfeeding with Primary Low Milk Supply
  • iLactation 2022 Online Conference – “Providing sensitive and person-centred support to mothers with Primary Low Milk Supply.”
  • ALCI In-Person Conference 2022 – “The Purple Hearts Breastfeeding Support Group”
  • ALCI Online Conference 2020 – “The How, the Why and the What of At-the-breast Supplementation”
  • ALCI In-person Conference 2019 – “Getting Started in Private Practice” Workshop
  • ALCI In-person Conference 2017 – “Bodywork and Breastfeeding”

I am available to present at conferences on the following topics:

  1. Changing Perspectives on Breastfeeding and Lactation through the Four Waves of Feminism.
  2. Instagram and the IBCLC: Ethics, Misinformation, Privacy and Maternal Mental Health
  3. The Devious and Underhand Tactics Employed by Infant Formula and other Non-Code Compliant Companies on Social Media Platforms
  4. The Three Pillars of Effective Breastfeeding Support: Establishing Rapport, Supporting Breastfeeding Self-efficacy and Providing Individualised Care
  5. Getting Started in Private Practice
  6. Understanding how Breastfeeding Difficulties can impact Maternal Mental Health
  7. Providing Skilled and Sensitive Lactation Support to parents who have Primary Low Milk Supply
  8. Breastfeeding with Insufficient Glandular Tissue: Understanding the Practical and Emotional Challenges
  9. Investigating Low Milk Supply: Is it Perceived, Secondary or Primary?
  10. Becoming a Mother in the Shadow of Primary Low Milk Supply
  11. The What, the Why and the How of At-the-Breast-Supplementation
  12. Breastfeeding Twins
  13. Helping Parents with Comfortable Positioning in a way that supports Breastfeeding Self-Efficacy.
  14. Why an Understanding of the Embodied Dimensions of Breastfeeding and Lactation should inform Lactation Care and Support.