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Published on: January 10, 2025
Individualizing Care and Setting Realistic Expectations: How Clinicians Support Lactation Induction in Transgender,
Caitlin Botkin1, Drew B A Clark1, Helen Brown1
1The University of British Columbia, Vancouver, BC, Canada.
Background:
People who induce lactation may be of any sex or gender and may pursue lactation induction to feed an infant, to develop their breast tissue, or for gender affirmation. Existing research focuses on cisgender women and research into lactation induction for transgender, Two-Spirit, and non-binary (TTNB) people is limited to experiences of transgender women.
Research Aim:
The aim was to explore how clinicians support TTNB people with lactation induction.
Methods:
An online qualitative survey was distributed internationally to clinicians providing lactation induction support to TTNB people. The responses of 14 participants were analyzed using qualitative directed content analysis.
Results:
Participants supported TTNB people inducing lactation by individualizing care, modifying expectations, and building a support team. Care was individualized by adjusting lactation induction protocols according to each client's goals and gender health. Clinicians modified expectations by encouraging clients to set achievable goals and focus on the experience of infant feeding rather than the amount of milk produced. Finally, recognizing that TTNB clients often experience anti-trans bias when accessing healthcare, the participants emphasized the critical need for clinical and social support when inducing lactation and for gender-affirming infant feeding care. Recommendations are provided for clinicians supporting TTNB clients to induce lactation.
Conclusion:
The research findings indicate the importance of a flexible, holistic approach to provide gender-affirming support to TTNB clients who are inducing lactation.
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