Written by: Lauren – Guest Blogger sharing her perspective as a VA employee and patient during her second pregnancy.
Baby Hunter and I are doing very well. I am entering my third trimester so I am getting very excited! My four year old is getting very excited as well, and has even asked me if the baby could sleep in his room.
I had to explain to him why he would not want a newborn sleeping in his room, and I also explained that the baby will be sleeping in a bassinet next to Mommy and Daddy for a few weeks.
This will help baby Hunter and I work on breastfeeding. Breastfeeding is proven to be best for babies and mommies, but it does take a lot of work and requires a lot of support. I was honestly very surprised to learn that VA highly supports women Veterans breastfeeding their babies.
I had a hard time breastfeeding my first son. My husband left on deployment when our baby was 2 weeks old and I had a really hard time finding the support I needed to continue after he left. I want this time to be different. This time I don’t have any deployment stress, I have more family in the area and I know more about the support organizations in the community.
I am very lucky to be a part of an organization, both as an employee and as a Veteran, that promotes and supports breastfeeding. It is unfortunate that not all women receive the same type of support.
August 1 kicks off World Breastfeeding Week. To learn more about how VA supports breastfeeding, please click here.
About Lauren
Lauren is a Navy Veteran and current Public Affairs Specialist at the Martinsburg VA Medical Center in West Virginia. Throughout her second pregnancy, she will be sharing her thoughts and experiences as a patient at VA. We are all excited to follow her on this healthcare journey!
Topics in this story
More Stories
Bring your administrative expertise to VA and earn great benefits while supporting our Veterans.
Through programs like the Employee Incentive Scholarship Program (EISP), VA employees like Dr. Kenyuatia L. Gash have received financial support in pursuit of their education.
Providing better outcomes for diverse Veterans means finding ways to reach them, whether on a personal level or on a geographic level.