Hi Nanci, I have some ideas for you. Are you still working as an OB nurse? You could start a support group, or a brown bag lunch group for moms. You could volunteer, or even ask your manager if you could be paid to make followup phone calls to the bf moms, the first week or even longer. You could add some classes like a working moms class. A good friend of mine volunteered at her own pediatrician's office while she was taking a distance education LC course. He would call her when he had a bf patient that needed help, or you could offer your services on a day you were off, maybe a half day each week. When I was a NICU nurse in the 80's, some of us started a committee to make the unit more bf-friendly. We divided up all the bf moms, and each of us had a caseload of moms to follow (in addition to our nicu duties). We would help and inform them about pumping, help them rent a pump, keep them in supplies and labels, and help them get started when the baby was ready to go to breast. We had meetings, and our boss sent us to conferences when she could. In return, we presented several continuing education programs to the staff. If you know some of the OB docs or if there are midwives, you could volunteer to see antenatal patients or see them at the OB followup. You have to brainstorm. The best preparation, though, would be working with an experienced IBCLC who has recertified at least once. This is a process that can't really be rushed, just like becoming a nurse, or any other profession. It does take some time, and you may or may not be ready in July. You actually have to be ready before that, because you have to apply with all your documentation and references, and pay your fees some weeks or months prior to the exam date. Even if you take it the following year, do not despair, you will be spending alot more of your time working with bf moms (as suggestions above) and attending C.E. programs to get those hours in too. So you will feel more like an LC anyway, and then when you sit the exam you will be much more confident. I was a nurse for 13 yrs before becoming board certified in lactation in 1992, then morphed from nicu with IBCLC into just IBCLC work now for about 10 years. It is a journey. Good luck, Laurie Wheeler, RN, MN IBCLC Mississippi USA *********************************************** Archives: http://community.lsoft.com/archives/LACTNET.html Mail all commands to [log in to unmask] To temporarily stop your subscription: set lactnet nomail To start it again: set lactnet mail (or [log in to unmask]) To unsubscribe: unsubscribe lactnet or ([log in to unmask]) To reach list owners: [log in to unmask]