Aisha Lope de Haro-Salleh

(SHE/HER) IBCLC

Aisha Lope de Haro-Salleh completed her training to become an IBCLC through the University of California, San Diego in May of 2022. Aisha was born in Brooklyn, NY but spent many years living and working in the DC area. She holds a BA in Sociology from Ithaca College and completed two tours with the Peace Corps. She taught English to primary school teachers in the small northern town of Thakurgaon, Bangladesh and she worked with local NGOs in Togo, West Africa working on HIV/AIDS prevention. Aisha fell in love with a union organizer and moved to San Diego in 2013. She is a mother to a daughter and son that take pride in keeping mommy and daddy on their toes.

Aisha's Story:

I had no idea breastfeeding could be so challenging and painful until I gave birth to my first born. I had always seen women breastfeeding with ease and they never once mentioned or spoke of the many challenges that can come with breastfeeding. I vividly remember awkwardly trying to latch my baby for the fist time and was shocked at the amount of pain it caused me. In addition to not knowing how to properly hold or latch my baby, my body severely delayed milk production. I had to supplement my daughter with formula for 6 weeks until I was able to exclusively breastfeed her when my milk FINALLY came in. My husband and I jumped for joy the day we did a weighted feed and saw that my daughter had taken in over 3oz from a single breastfeeding session. It was quite a journey that I could not have done alone. It was the lactation consultants in my support group that made all of this bearable. They supported me exactly how I needed to be supported and they met me where I needed to be met. I had a desire to offer this same support and encouragement to my new mommy friends in any way they needed. It was such an honor to have friends and family seek out breastfeeding advice from me. I knew I had found my new calling in life. It was scary transitioning to a new career so late in life after being a stay-at-home mom for so long. But I know now that I’m where I’m supposed to be. Being able to give back to my community in this capacity as a lactation consultant is a dream and an honor.