About Melissa Parizeau BSc(N), MHS, IBCLC
I’m a nurse clinician with over 20 years of critical care experience working in a Level 3 Neonatal Intensive Care Unit (NICU) since 2015. At birth, my first child was admitted briefly to the NICU and this experience spurred a career change. I was so grateful to the team that helped my child, I wanted to be able to do the same for others. Breastfeeding in the NICU has its own particular set of challenges which led me to expand on my lactation education by studying and becoming an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC). It has been my pleasure to assist families on their breastfeeding journeys in the hospital setting and look forward to more opportunities working with families in my community to reach their own feeding goals.
I graduated from McGill University in 2001 with a Bachelor’s of Science in Nursing and from Athabasca University in 2016 with a Master of Health Studies. In 2016 I began volunteering with Nourri-Source as a breastfeeding support mother providing peer support over the telephone. I became an IBCLC in 2022. I had always planned to breastfeed my children and had a very “easy” breastfeeding experience with my first child. When my second was born there were challenges due to a posterior tongue tie and his inability to transfer enough milk at the breast. Thankfully I was able to get the help we needed and while our start was far from easy, we continued our breastfeeding journey for many years.
I live in the West Island of Montreal with my husband and children. I enjoy swimming, listening to audiobooks, knitting, and scuba diving.
