Q and A with Kelsey from Ohio, USA

“We can grow, birth, and nurture children so they can grow up to be healthy adults.”

Q: Tell us about yourself.

A: My name is Kelsey Gilliland. Born and raised in Ohio, but I have been blessed to travel to many different countries and learn about other cultures and ways of life. My husband, Jonathan, and I have been married for 5 years now, and we are blessed with two radiant little girls that give us purpose for each day. 

I am a follower of Jesus Christ and love sharing His love to those around me. First to my family and second to the rest of you! 

I am a Liberty University alumni and certified health education specialist. I love educating mothers on breastfeeding and postpartum health. Additionally, I am a blogger and course creator! Passions of mine include raising my children well, having fun with my husband, helping those around me, getting outdoors for walks, hiking, or playing with my kids, horseback riding, and educating women on breastfeeding and postpartum health. 

How did I get to where I am now? Long story short, my husband and I were going to be missionaries. We started support raising right before COVID, but couldn’t get above 25% support. We had been living with family for a year and a half and had our first daughter at the time. For the health and stability of our family, we decided to step down from missions and get settled in the USA. 

During COVID, I started my blog, Motherhood, Baby & Me. The purpose of the blog is to educate mothers on breastfeeding and postpartum health. Everything I learned about breastfeeding and being a mother was learned through trial and error, which caused me a lot of stress. To spare mothers what I went through and to give them a foot up in the right direction, I created Motherhood, Baby & Me. 

After we bought our own home and started getting settled in life, I created The Breastfeeding Accelerator Course. It is designed to give mothers answers to common breastfeeding challenges. No mother needs to spend her precious time and energy stressing over finding answers to milk supply, engorgement, colic, baby’s growth, weaning, etc. She needs to have clear answers at her fingertips so she can be placed in a position to succeed in her breastfeeding journey! One of the number one struggles I see mothers dealing with is milk supply. I’ve also struggled with this and was able to boost my milk supply from 1oz to 4oz! 

To help mothers overcome this challenge, I’ve created a free class to educate mothers on how to naturally boost milk production! Take advantage of my free class “3 Secrets To Naturally Boosting Milk Supply!” Click here to take advantage of this free class on naturally boosting your milk supply.

Q: What were your younger years like?

A: What did my “younger years” look like? Well, I’m only 29, so I’m not old…yet! But past experiences that have shaped me into who I am today have definitely been my loving parents, supportive church, and tight friends in college (or lack of them in high school). 

Two experiences stand out to me that I think are good to mention here. I studied abroad in Kenya, Africa, for 5 months while in college. So much of that trip I LOVED! The people, food, adventures of safari, riding elephants, walking with lions, seeing Victoria Falls (in Zimbabwe), and more! 

However, during my time in Kenya, my teammate and I were robbed by six men with machetes. Thankfully, they only wanted our stuff and didn’t harm us physically, but I truly thought I was going to die at that moment. One of them yelled at me that he would kill me…but the Lord gave me the grace to think clearly and quickly. He even gave me an incredible amount of comfort during that whole ordeal. This happened in 2015, and to this day, I still have some PTSD from it. I cannot handle loud noises or lots of stress very well, but God is still my comfort and ROCK! 

When I returned from Africa to college, I met Jonathan. I believe God used him to help me heal. Now, as my husband, he understands more of who I am, which I think is pretty cool. 

A second life experience that has brought me to this point is becoming a mother! My babies are the light of my life! However, both of them were screaming devils when they were infants! Both of my babies screamed for 8 hours a day every day for months! With my first, I was about to go over the edge. I took her to the ER because I thought something was seriously wrong (yes! It’s NOT normal for an infant to cry for 8 hours a day every day!). They told me she was fine and told me to nurse in different positions.

I called the pediatric nurse on call and begged for something to help my baby to stop screaming. After hearing what I did to help soothe the colic she said, “You’re doing everything right…” 

I even talked to a lactation consultant who didn’t notice my baby’s tongue tie or poor latch or knew how to help with the colic. 

Fast forward three years and my firstborn is failing to thrive while my second is starting down the same road of screaming for eight hours a day. Her pediatrician (a different one than before) suspected Celiac Disease, a gluten allergy. So, I went home and cut out all gluten before we even had time to run any tests. Within two days my infant stopped screaming 100%! Yes! My infant completely stopped screaming! Within two months, my oldest was gaining weight, gaining energy, her stomach pain was going away, her appetite was back, and my heart was so relieved!

Q: What is something valuable you’d like others to know?

A: My motherhood started out SO rough! You know about the colic and only some of the breastfeeding challenges we faced. I haven’t told you about my 4th-degree tear, diastasis recti, hemorrhoids, or possible PPD! But those experiences happened to me so that I could use them to benefit you! My blog is a source of knowledge I’ve learned through these painful experiences. The Breastfeeding Accelerator Course was birthed out of my extremely difficult journey with breastfeeding so that other mothers wouldn’t have to be placed down that road. 

Now, serving those overseas is still a passion of mine and my husband. To fulfill that longing, when someone purchases the Breastfeeding Accelerator Course, a part of the purchase goes towards helping educate women in India on pregnancy health! 

This is done through Crosspoint Of India. The woman who runs the pregnancy center I have personally met and worked with in India. 

So, if you or someone you know is searching for answers to breastfeeding challenges, take advantage of the Breastfeeding Accelerator Course! You will be a blessing not only to yourself and your baby but also to a mother and her baby in India!

Q: What does feminism mean to you?
A: True femininity displays compassion, love, kindness, and strength to those around her. Females compliment males. We are able to help guide and support the men in our lives in an affirming, gentle way. To be female means we create and sustain life! We can grow, birth, and nurture children so they can grow up to be healthy adults.  

Links:

Blog: Motherhood, Baby and Me – www.motherhoodbabyandme.com

Click here to take advantage of this free class on naturally boosting your milk supply.

The Breastfeeding Accelerator Course: – https://kelseys-health-education-center.teachable.com/p/home

Crosspoint Of India – www.crosspointofindia.org