Joanna Koch, IBLC

I don’t think I would have made it BFeeding my little Eva if I hadn’t come see her. At our first baby checkup our doctor made sure we squeezed in a last minute appointment after seeing how much pain I was in when baby was feeding, and I’m so glad she did!

Joanna is awesome! I cannot recommend her enough — she really knows what she’s talking about and genuinely wants you to succeed.
FIRST — I love Joanna because she is super positive and encouraging. She says silly little things that may sound weird to a normal person, but when you’re a frustrated mother of a newborn who is having breastfeeding difficulties, it’s nice to hear anything positive about you or what you’re doing.
For example, my newborn was getting fussy while trying to latch, so Joanna showed me and my husband how we could use a bottle to help calm her. When we pulled out a bottle of my expressed breast milk to use, she held it up and said, «Oh, look at that beautiful milk!» It may sound totally stupid, but I swear I was so flipping flattered and it made me feel like I was actually getting something right even though I had no control about how my milk looked.
SECOND — Some may say that Joanna is hard to book an appointment with, but that is simply untrue; she is SUPER easy to get an appointment with.
While in recovery at LPCH, I was encouraged by the pediatrician to contact Joanna within the first few days I was home. A few people (nurses and lactation consultants) scoffed and told me it would be difficult to get an appointment, so I lagged on calling. When I saw my primary pediatrician at my newborn’s 2-​day appointment, she also encouraged me to call Joanna and said Joanna usually has availability.
When I finally called to make an appointment, I was able to snatch one up for the next day. I thought I was super lucky, but as it turns out, Joanna herself told me that if she fills up, she simply opens more slots so she’s accessible within a few day’s time.
THIRD — Joanna is awesome at responding to emails. For the most part, she has always answered my emails within 12 hours, including weekends!
FOURTH — Joanna is so flipping good at her job. I went into my first appointment within five days after coming home from the hospital and I was producing 0.5 oz total. Two of the LPCH lactation consultants, my primary pediatrician and Joanna said that was «slightly» low (the average for a mother at this stage was 2 ounces between both boobs). I felt inadequate.
Two of the three lactation consultants I saw in LPCH told me that I was going to need to take supplements and drink tea to get my supply up. After just LOOKING at my chest, Joanna quickly told me that supply would not be an issue. She said I was super sleep-​deprived and told me (and my husband) that I needed rest. She instructed me to sleep through that night and let my husband take care of the baby throughout the night. She told me to not even get up to pump. The next morning, I woke up, pumped, and — voila! — 2.5 oz. From then on, my supply steadily increased. I was ecstatic.
In my experience, all the PAMF pediatricians know Joanna by first name. I’ve used just her first name when speaking with three different pediatricians and all knew exactly who I was talking about. One even commended Joanna at being «so darn good at her job.» I couldn’t agree more!
PAMF charged me for the first three appointments (it was a package deal, no other option) and then said that any additional appointments would be $ 35/​appt. I thought I would for SURE need more than three, but within a day or two after my third appointment, my newborn finally latched and my world became so much brighter and happier!
Thank you, Joanna!!!

I saw Joanna when baby was 2 months old. Baby is now a year old as I write this review.
You will definitely get some excellent tips from Joanna however I’m going to have to deduct a star as she didn’t tell me the 1 tip that really really helped me increase my supply: pump twice a day! Morning and night! Maybe, as a mother of 2, she is just too sympathetic to say such a daunting thing to a new first time mother because pumping twice a day REALLY REALLY sucks. but hey, it worked for me!
She suggested the Playtex bottles with the disposable inserts and they have been a LIFE SAVER.
She also directed me to someone who took care of my baby’s tongue tie when I suggested to her that she might be having latch issues due to her tongue tie. She agreed and she had someone take care of it on the spot! It really helped with baby’s latch :)
J. is practical and isn’t solely focused on EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING. Why? Because EXCLUSIVE BREASTFEEDING IS OVERRATED. I recently found out that I’m deficient in vitamins A and D and have a very high vitamin B6 level! If I had exclusively breastfed my daughter throughout all her infancy, she might have gone blind (a little over dramatic but hey). I think formula is a good insurance policy and I always gave my daughter formula since day 1 here and there to make sure she was getting her vitamins in addition to her daily 400 IU supplementation of Vitamin D.
Honestly, don’t believe the hype of this EBF nonsense, it’s not realistic in this day and age unfortunately. If you want to EBF, I highly recommend that you test for all your vitamins and ensure you are in the healthy range. I did this, and I wasn’t. If you’re 100% healthy, then go for it. But either way, just relax… baby will be just fine with formula supplementation here and there. Joanna isn’t a fanatic, and this is a good thing but if you’re looking for a kick in your supply, do the twice a day pumping ;)

Joanna was professional and helped with latch issues which helped some. She is the first and only person who has told me that pumping is more effective than a baby at getting more milk out to help with low milk supply and suggested I pump until the milk supply goes up. My baby is almost 2 months now and my milk supply continues to be low. I can’t help but wonder if pumping to increase milk supply instead of nursing was the right advice as I’ve been told otherwise by pretty much everyone I know. The second time I came back for a follow up, she basically told me that some people just don’t make enough milk and that people who have formula fed their babies turn out ok. The follow up consultation had a what-​else-​can-​I-​do-​for-​you tone after she told me it’s ok to formula feed. Not the most supportive and I left feeling somewhat defeated.

A lot of focus on pumping. At the first appointment, she computer breastfeeding mothers to cattle — not exactly sensitive IMO. She also encouraged us to use formula and me pumping instead of trying to nurse my baby directly — the exact opposite of what i should have done too increase my milk supply (sadly i only learned this later when i visited another lactation consultant). She rushed us through the second appointment and discouraged us from coming in for the third. She was available via email but the advice wasn’t helpful. She only always repeated information from her handouts — as a first time sleep deprived mom, I didn’t need more papers to read in my first week home, I needed someone to help me latch my baby. At my third appointment (which I insisted on) she was downright rude and kept repeating that I should continue with formula — not something I wanted to hear.
I also had the exact same experience as m m!

Be clear about your breastfeeding goals if you want to make it work

Joanna was so wonderful during our early stages of breastfeeding! In addition to my crazy postpartum hormones, feeding was extremely difficult and I was ready to throw in the towel before we met Joanna.
After our meeting and her observing a feeding, she was able to assess our son’s latch and give us great advice moving forward.
Another bonus– we still email her with feeding questions now and then (our son is now three months old), and her response time is so fast, even on evenings and weekends. Thanks, Joanna!

I would not have lasted quite this long if not for Joanna. Honest. I’ve been breastfeeding 11 months now and largely due to her.
Lactation consultants are kind of everywhere, we saw maybe 4 of them but this lady knows her stuff. She immediately identified an issue that no one else saw that was the key reason why my supply was so low. After working with her on an action plan, my supply got up and I even started to over-​supply!!! She also gave me LOTS of tips to help make the experience much more enjoyable. Even if you think you have breastfeeding down, you should see her anyway! Lots to learn from!

I do not know what I would do without this woman! I would not be breast feeding that is for sure. I can not ever thank her for how helpful she has been. She really knows breastfeeding. And looks out for the best interest of the baby. I saw others and they did not help and I almost thought I would give up until she came to my rescue. Yes maybe she can be straight and too the point. But I am not looking for some one to kiss up to me. I want the best and most knowledgeable lactation consultant and that is what she is! I would recommend her full heartily. The appointment is well worth the price. And she also gives wonderful advice over the phone when questions or bumps in the road come up.

I also met another client of Joanna’s. That lady really liked Joanna’s services, especially her engaging manner. Ironically, that is the lady who was not able to resolve her breast feeding issues and gave up breastfeeding her baby at 1 month of age.

Joanna has made a huge difference in my life as a new breastfeeding mom. She reached out to me after my first pediatrician’s visit and then spent an hour and half with me at my first appointment, patiently diagnosing and explaining why my son’s tongue tie was likely responsible for trouble he was experiencing with latching. I never felt pressured to have the procedure done, but instead felt like I was presented with the facts in a calm, professional way. She facilitated it with a pediatrician on-​site and it was over in a few seconds. Joanna was absolutely right that the procedure made all the difference! Since then, she has called to follow up again and responded quickly to my call about mastitis with the same patient, professional tone. Her initial consultation fee was absolutely worth it– especially since she doesn’t charge for second and third follow up visits, and is available by phone and email. She is a treasure trove of information and knowledge and is deeply committed to supporting breastfeeding mothers!

My wife was experiencing pain while breast feeding, based on her doctor’s recommendation, we took an appointment with Joanna, she charged us 140 $, it was a total waste of money, she spent about 20 mins with us. She was very impatient and the whole process was rushed.

I took Joanna’s class «Breastfeeding — Secrets for Success» at PAMF and it was my favorite birth prep class that I took. She was a very engaging speaker even though it was a Saturday morning class. I learned more than I expected to in the class and left feeling well prepared. I highly recommend this class.

This woman is the bomb. She helped me with so many different aspects of breastfeeding and if it weren’t for her, I don’t think I would have been able to nurse my daughter for the 10 months that I lasted.

Joanna is an amazing lactation consultant. My daughter wasn’t latching on correctly and within a few days after birth, I was in a lot of pain from letting her nurse incorrectly. We saw Joanna and she had me pump for a few days to let my body heal. Then we came back for a second visit where she diagnosed what was going wrong very quickly and gave me practical tips on how to get our daughter to latch correctly. I was really nervous, but within a week we were breastfeeding successfully. I was so happy to be able to nurse our daughter for 2−½ years. I know I couldn’t have done it without the sage advice from Joanna and support from my husband.

When Joanna first called, I have to say I was very pleased to have this follow up a week after coming home from the hospital. She helped us realize that we were underfeeding our son and what measures to take to help me increase my milk supply.
Several weeks later, I was still having nursing issues and decided to have a consultation with Joanna at PAMF. I must say I very displeased and upset after my appointment. While she is fairly knowledgeable, I found her bedside manner to be somewhat blunt and stuck up. She questioned the number of layers of clothing I dressed my son in. When I showed her the technique I’d been taught at the hospital, she said it was all wrong. That’s fine, but it just came out in a very condescending manner. I felt like her way was the only way I should nurse. Even worse, when I asked her about my pump, I did not get very good information from her. She insisted I was wrong about the dials and buttons on current Medela pumps. I double checked on the Internet and at the store and found she had no idea what she was talking about. Shouldn’t a lactation consultant know something about pumps?
When I returned one week later for a follow-​up appointment, I politely told her some of the techniques she taught me weren’t working and asked what I could do to adjust. She basically ignored me, saying that we should just focus on what works. It seemed like she was unwilling to address me if I challenged her methods. Personally, I just need someone more supportive than this and someone who will explain things to me rather than tell me not to worry about it or ignore me.

Several weeks down the road and I can now say that yes indeed Joanna Koch completely alleviated my breastfeeding woes.