Today we’d like to introduce you to Jarrah Foster.
Hi Jarrah, can you start by introducing yourself? We’d love to learn more about how you got to where you are today?
I am a native Californian. My family was born and raised in San Diego and Huntington Beach. I am the youngest of three and when my older brothers were in college, my parents and I moved Rochester, NY. So I spent most of my childhood and early adulthood on the east coast.
In school, I loved learning about biology and chemistry, and my h.s. Counselor suggested looking into Georgetown University’s School of Nursing and Health Studies for their Health Studies Program. I never really considered myself pre-med or interested in nursing, but I loved learning about health and wellness, so the program was a perfect fit for me. I didn’t really know what I would do upon graduation, but I figured a health policy or health business focus would set me up for success in the job market. I had the opportunity to take many different classes but my favorite was a course I took my senior year in women’s health taught by a midwife. I learned so much in that class and my final paper was on breastfeeding and I was really struck by how low the rates were in the US for something that was so beneficial to babies. At the time, I didn’t know they were even worse for Black women. I had a feeling that would be an area of focus once I found myself at that stage of life. But at the time, I didn’t think that was my path. So I put that on hold, and after a stint in health care policy, I realized a career in research meant I would be spending a lot of time in front of the computer rather than being with people. I thought health law might be a good choice, and I took the LSATS but my scores were not high enough to go to the schools I wanted to attend. I was still motivated to continue my education, and business organization and management were interesting to me, so the next logical step was to go to Business School.
Over the 12 years that came after college, I held corporate positions with some type of connection to healthcare or the health industry, but to be honest, it kept pushing me further and further away from my dream job, which was to be helping moms and babies in either the field of birth or breastfeeding. Eventually in 2016, I was effectively burned out from working the corporate game, I wasn’t sure if I needed a break or to just do something else. I was in a position where I could take a couple of months off and figure it out and in that time, I decided it was time to start going into the career I always wanted to have.
Alright, so let’s dig a little deeper into the story – has it been an easy path overall and if not, what were the challenges you’ve had to overcome?
I’m not sure starting a business has ever been a smooth road. But honestly I think starting a family later in life while becoming an entrepreneur has been the hardest. It essentially means juggling two jobs and two babies. I always knew I wanted to be in this line of work specifically helping new mothers and infants, but it just was never the right time. Financially, becoming a lactation consultant is not easy. There are virtually no scholarships; you might be lucky like I was that your college coursework included the necessary requisites; to complete the lactation education and non-paid internship hours in the recommended amount of time is a financial strain because it basically takes you out of the workforce for 1-2 years. Additionally here in San Diego, there are limited opportunities for jobs, our hospital systems do not hire non-RN IBCLCs for Lactation Consultant roles. Eventually, I was able to make the career shift when I could support the financial strain, but that put me at an intersection of changing careers, growing a business, and starting a family.
I often feel like I should be doing so much more, but then I remind myself, having a child in your late 30’s, during a pandemic, with limited childcare means I need to acknowledge I’ve done quite a bit! And really, it’s given me a valued perspective when it comes to Lactation Care–it needs to be a balanced approach tailored to each family because we are all juggling a lot of competing priorities.
Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know?
Jarrah Foster Lactation & Wellness is a health practice focused on breastfeeding/chestfeeding/bodyfeeding support services for women, parents, and families. As an IBCLC, I specialize in more complicated cases such as slow weight gain, painful latching, tongue and lip tie assessment, and management of lactation issues like engorgement, mastitis, and oversupply. Having worked in a tongue tie practice for over two years, assessment of feeding and potential impact of tethered oral restrictions is my main specialty. I am also a trauma-informed provider. I take great care to build rapport and meet my clients where ever they are at so they feel they have a partner helping them on their way. I also offer babywearing consultations for infants. Babywearing is an excellent source of physiological, biological, and emotional support to infant and caregiver and I really enjoy helping parents wear their babies comfortably and safely.
I believe I am the first and only private practice lactation clinic run by a Black IBCLC in San Diego. I have been fortunate to partner with several community groups who serve the black populations in San Diego which has enabled these women and families to have access a provider who has shared life experiences which is a significant piece of building trust and improving the low breastfeeding rates of black mothers. However, it is also a problem that I am the only one. As I mentioned this career is not an easy one to get into. In order to transform the landscape of care for our black parents and babies, there needs to be more opportunities and money invested in scholarships for IBCLCs of color. The San Diego Breastfeeding Center Foundation is a model of how other businesses can help. Much of their fundraising dollars goes to providing care for families as well as scholarships for aspiring Black IBCLCs.
If we knew you growing up, how would we have described you?
Growing up, I was a creative child who loved dance, music, art and science. I was a shy extrovert who enjoyed being around people. Once I felt comfortable around them. I was drawn to performance as I found it simultaneously exhilarating and very moving. Science, specifically human biology really interested me. You could find me sprawled out on the living room floor thumbing through World Book Encyclopedia’s The Human Body on any given day. When I wasn’t practicing or on stage, I was on the volleyball court. I started playing club ball in middle school and really fell in love with it. In high school, our club team traveled to Nationals. It was one of the most memorable experiences of my high school years. In general, I was a kid who just loved new experiences.
Contact Info:
- Email: Jarrah@lactwell.com
- Website: Lactwell.com
- Instagram: @lact_well
Image Credits
Kristine Marie Photography (Personal Photo)
