Breastfeeding and PT:
What to do about Nipple Pain?

I graduated from University of Colorado Anschutz Medical Campus as a Doctor of Physical Therapy. Inspiration to pursue pelvic PT came from a friend. She had severe pelvic pain and a PT helped to guide her to wellness. After the birth of my first child, I became more passionate about working with women during their childbearing years. Women deserve access to evidence-based information about how their bodies work. I created an obstetric physical therapy program in the acute care section of my hospital in order to provide education and healing for common, but not normal, impairments that can impact a mother’s postpartum recovery. What I found was a gap in breastfeeding support after hospital or midwife discharge. There were many questions around lactation that mothers would ask, but I could not answer their questions with evidence-based information. To fill in the gap, I earned my certified lactation counselor (CLC) credentials with the help of the local breastfeeding coalition. I am now committed to bringing this information to other physical therapists in order to improve the care of mothers across the maternal care continuum and help mothers meet their breastfeeding goals.