About The Owner
Lauryn Ulam, IBCLC, and all the other titles.
I am a wife and mother of five children (yes, we know how that happens). My husband and I live in Northwest Indiana with our four girls and one boy. My family is the inspiration behind my career - I desperately needed good lactation support with my children and it simply wasn’t available.
With my first three babies, I chugged along and made it work even though it wasn’t really working. I successfully breastfed each of them until they chose to wean, and I was incredibly happy to make it. I spent hours upon hours of my time educating myself on lactation and breastfeeding, and felt very drawn to becoming a lactation consultant. I thought it would be best to wait until my babies weren’t babies anymore to begin down that career path.
Then my fourth child was born in 2018 and my world was turned upside down. By day 3, I had bilateral mastitis and my care provider didn’t think that was even possible. By 4 weeks, I thought I was going to go insane. My baby was never settled. My nipples were bleeding and constantly sore. I dreaded every feeding. No one was getting any sleep. I had plenty of milk but my baby was not gaining weight as expected. And no one could tell me what was wrong. By 7 weeks, I had done even more research on my own to find an answer. I was on the verge of exclusively pumping even though I really didn’t want to stop feeding at the breast. I dug for answers and realized my child most likely had a tongue tie and a lip tie. It took SEVEN WEEKS of pure misery for both of us, exhaustion, declining mental health, and my own personal research. I found the help I needed but it was over an hour away.
And thus, the fire was lit. Waiting was over. I enrolled at Ivy Tech Community College and completed the remaining health science courses I needed to become board certified. I enrolled in Lactation Education Resources’ 90 hour course to become a Certified Breastfeeding Specialist on my way to becoming an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant. I set out on a mission to finish my 1000 clinical hours in time for the April 2020 IBCLC Exam - and I did it!
But then the pandemic hit. All IBCLC Exams were postponed, which ultimately ended up quite lucky - I delivered my fifth baby at 41 weeks, on the day I would have been scheduled for the exam. In September of 2020, I sat the exam and after 12 long weeks, received news that I could add IBCLC to my list of titles and roles.
As a mother who has personally struggled with breastfeeding and lactation and parenthood in general, I embarked on a mission to provide the support that I should have received with my first child. My goal is to give you the compassionate, comprehensive care that you and your family deserve. I love what I do and I hope to continue for many years to come.
Now, I am joined by Jessica Fox, IBCLC, Rachel Campbell, RN, IBCLC, and Krystal Kouder, RN, IBCLC as members of the Hoosier Breast Friend team. Each of us brings a unique approach to lactation support from our own personal histories and experiences.