Allison Stamm, MA, CCC-SLP

I began working in a level three Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) in Queens, NY at the beginning of my career as a speech pathologist in 2002 after receiving a Masters in Speech Pathology from New York University. I immediately fell in love with the intense bond parents have with their babies through feeding, as they performed one of the first duties expected of new parents, often without the knowledge of what to do or how to do it.

There are pressures new parents feel in regards to feeding their babies. Sometimes this pressure leads to feeding difficulties in the infant. When I discovered this, I knew immediately that I wanted to facilitate and nurture the bond that can be achieved through early feeding, even in the NICU.

I worked closely with the neonatologist and put myself through countless continuing education courses to not only support breastfeeding moms, but also bottle feeding parents. When I moved to Boulder, CO in 2007 and began working at the special care nursery, I decided to take a semester long course in breastfeeding with a lactation consultant at Metropolitan State College of Denver. My goal was to further my knowledge base and learn new skills and techniques to facilitate breastfeeding, specifically with preterm infants and/or those with difficulty feeding or swallowing.

In conjunction with my work at the hospital in 2011, I began teaching the Dysphagia course at University of Colorado to graduate students in Speech-Language Pathology. I created the content for this course with a focus on Feeding and Swallowing Throughout the Lifespan from the early weeks of gestation until the end of life. The focus of my work has always been with preterm to one-two year olds, facilitating feeding from breast/bottle feeding through the transition to solid foods.

When I became a mom in 2012, my practice was enhanced tremendously through the difficulties I had breast feeding. That struggle made me an even better clinician, as I was now able to speak as an educated clinician and a mom that’s been there and done that.

Throughout my career, I’ve heard from many parents things like: “I wish I knew that weeks/months ago” or “No one told me it was so hard” or “It’s ok to breast and bottle feed.” This has fueled my strong desire to offer feeding services to new parents/families in the home with the hope of empowering new parents to deepen their connection with their new baby or toddler through the joys of eating.