Ethel,
Your questions are good ones. This may be boring for other readers so
feel free to skip.
Since I went into this with a background in Physical Therapy and as an
accredited LLLLeader for 7 years before I sat the exam, they are not questions
I asked. I was already on the path I needed without knowing it. I also did
not ask "can I make a living" following this calling, oops. :) At the
time, and for a while, it was not a big issue as my family was in a state of
stability, two children in public schools locally and a partner with a solid
job and salary. Now, things have changed radically. One child post-college,
working full-time but needing help with college loans, one child entering
college ( who got rejected by every public college she applied to,
saturation of students + poor SAT scores), a partner with a job who hasn't had even
a cost-of-living raise in 10 years, and whose allied healthcare
professional company may fail any second as insurance companies kill off small ones
like the one he works for (his is the only one left in the area that has not
been eaten by a giant conglomerate due to the crushing effects of
insurance companies restricting, denying, and taking back legitimate payments.) I
have been IBCLC for 13 years now, helping moms and babies in their own
homes, and frankly can't imagine doing anything else but if he loses his job, I
will probably have to find something else to do. The amount of money I
make for the hours I put in, in homes, traveling to and from on public
transit, on the phone, available six days a week most of the time, helps us stay
afloat and keep up so far with bill payments but it's close to the bone
with two of us working at what we are currently doing. Working in a hospital
or other place where income is steadier, or reentering the PT profession (
I still have my license and did some PT work over the years) are
possibilities we have talked about. I LOVED my work as a PT but have felt that as an
IBCLC, the community needed that more. That also may be changing, : I know
that there are 4 qualified women who sat the IBCLC exam yesterday near me,
who will all probably want to work in private practice, so I'm not sure
whether I will even get enough calls next year. I also live where a local CLC
with very little experience and a store with breastfeeding paraphernalia
to run, is billing like an IBCLC and sometimes undermining the hard work
moms working with me have put in. It may be just me, but it seems a tricky
time to be a private practice IBCLC where I live. For now, I just keep doing
what I do, just trying my best to help local families recover or establish
or maintain normal breastfeeding and nurturing.
I hope my honesty is what you were asking for. My situation may not be
yours in terms of location and community resources,etc. I beg everyone's pardon
if you kept reading and are now sorry!
Peace,
Judy
Judy LeVan Fram, PT, IBCLC, LLLL
Brooklyn, NY, USA
**************An Excellent Credit Score is 750. See Yours in Just 2 Easy
Steps!
(http://pr.atwola.com/promoclk/100126575x1222377107x1201454434/aol?redir=http://www.freecreditreport.com/pm/default.aspx?sc=668072&hmpgID=62&bcd=Jul
yExcfooterNO62)
***********************************************
Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html
To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]
Mail all list management commands to: [log in to unmask]
COMMANDS:
1. To temporarily stop your subscription write in the body of an email: set lactnet nomail
2. To start it again: set lactnet mail
3. To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet
4. To get a comprehensive list of rules and directions: get lactnet welcome
|