Daily Inspiration: Meet Courtney Miller

Today we’d like to introduce you to Courtney Miller. They and their team shared their story with us below:

Courtney M. Miller, RN, BSN, IBCLC, Founder of The Better Boob Lactation, Co-Owner of Piney Town Playhouse in Fuquay-Varina North Carolina. 

Courtney earned her Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing from the University of Kentucky in Lexington Kentucky in 2015. She worked as a registered nurse in the adult ICU for 2.5 years before making the switch to Mother-Baby and Labor and Delivery where she spent another 2 years. 

Her passion for breastfeeding began after giving birth to her son in March 2019, and quickly realizing there wasn’t enough readily-available breastfeeding education and support. She became an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant in 2020 and worked as an LC on a postpartum unit in a hospital. Courtney then founded The Better Boob Lactation. Now she says she has found her calling of helping moms and their families along their breastfeeding journey! Courtney regularly uses her personal breastfeeding experience, along with evidence-based research, to help educate and support the families she works alongside. 

Courtney enjoys hiking and traveling with her husband, two boys, and dog. In January of 2023, Courtney and her husband purchased a children’s indoor playground, Piney Town Playhouse. She also enjoys doing Barre workouts, and you can always find her at Target with a Starbucks in hand! 

We all face challenges, but looking back, would you describe it as a relatively smooth road?
Definitely wasn’t a smooth road. I started out as an Adult ICU nurse, and although I learned a ton, I quickly found out it wasn’t for me. I started working with mamas 3 years ago, working in Mother Baby as well as Labor and Delivery. After working closely with mamas as well as having my son, I found an overwhelming passion for breastfeeding. Enter lactation consultant! 

Alright, so let’s switch gears a bit and talk business. What should we know about your work?
I became a lactation consultant in 2020 after I was struggling with breastfeeding challenges with my first. As previously answered, I became a registered nurse is 2016, and although I loved being a nurse, I felt the calling to do something “more”. After struggling so much with my son, I answered that calling and decided to become an International Board-Certified Lactation Consultant to IBCLC for short. 

A little about IBCLCs… IBCLC is the highest level of lactation certifications. It requires 90 hours of lactation-specific continuing education courses, 15 hours of college courses like biology, nutrition & anatomy as well as 1000 hours of hands-on experience before you can even sit for the 3-hour exam. 

It took me a few years to achieve all of this, but I could not be happier! I absolutely love my job and love being able to help other mamas achieve their breastfeeding goals. Whether you need help with latching, pumping, or just a little cheerleader, I am your gal. I also love sharing newborn and general baby tips too (because who doesn’t need help navigating the newborn life??) 

I find that this is such a vulnerable time in a mother’s life, and often they do not get the care they need and DESERVE. I just met with a mother yesterday during a virtual consult in a completely other state. She came to me desperate to be heard and listened to as she sought out other professionals in her area and came back empty-handed and defeated. After talking with her for over 1.5hr I believe I have found the answers she has been searching for – and although I hate that she struggled, I love the fact that I was able to give her answers and most importantly a sense of relief that she was finally heard and found the solution! 

What sort of changes are you expecting over the next 5-10 years?
I believe Lactation and breastfeeding education has come a long way, even in the 4 years since I began this journey with my son and, ultimately my career, but we still have a WAYS to go. The most frustrating thing about my career is that health insurance do not typically cover consults with Lactation Consultants and therefore mothers are left to either pay out of pocket (after having a baby which is expensive enough plus the financial burden of being out of work) or they struggle to find the answers by themselves. My hope is that insurances will start seeing the need for consults to be covered and possibly even cover prenatal education as well to better prepare the parents BEFORE they begin their journey. 

I also have seen breastfeeding (especially in public) become more of a norm, but the stereotype around breastfeeding very much exists still. Mothers feel they HAVE to breastfeed or they are failing. I hope that that stereotype will fade away. 

Contact Info:

• Website: www.betterboob.com
• Instagram: www.instagram.com/thebetterboob
• Facebook: www.facebook.com/thebetterboob
• Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/in/courtney-miller-1263b810b/

Image Credits
Sarah Mickens