Meet Dr. Renno

I knew I wanted to be a doctor at the age of four. By age seven, I decided I wanted to have four kids. My childhood was filled with gymnastics, dolls, sibling disputes, plenty of chores, five out-of-state moves, and a couple hundred ostriches, all of which had a substantial impact on the person I am today, and none of which deterred me from the path I had chosen early on.

I attended the University of Arkansas and competed on the Razorback Gymnastics Team while I earned a degree in Biology. For medical school, I went to the University of Arizona College of Medicine, where I met my husband. We found out our first son was on the way during my final year of medical school, so I decided to take a “gap year” before residency, and enrolled in the College of Public Health to study Maternal and Child Health. This would allow me to match into residency at the same time as my husband, who was one year behind me in school.

That year, though not initially in my life plan, was life-changing. Medical school teaches us to identify and treat disease, but the curriculum does little to consider preventive measures at the community level. With my newborn accompanying me to nearly every lecture, oral presentation, and field trip, I soaked in this “other side of medicine,” while also soaking in new motherhood. My classmates and professors were unwaveringly supportive through cluster feeds, spit-ups, diaper blowouts, and doing the Mom Sway in the back of the classroom when he was feeling particularly irritable. They were dedicated to my success as both a mother and a student, which was a profound blessing, and this experience absolutely influenced how I feel about supporting new mothers in our communities.

I completed my pediatric residency training at the University of Florida and gave birth to two more sons during that time. Meanwhile, I was also finishing up requirements for my Masters in Public Health, so for the internship project I created a prenatal breastfeeding education program at our hospital. I was simultaneously working through some of the woes of nursing as a busy working-mom, all of which led me to an emerging clinical interest in Breastfeeding Medicine. I was so fortunate to be mentored in this field during my pediatric residency.

Over the next 4 years as a general pediatrician near Nashville, Tennessee, I saw increasingly more patients who were referred to me specifically for problems with breastfeeding. Around the time I weaned my fourth child, a daughter, I decided to formalize my credentials by becoming licensed as an International Board Certified Lactation Consultant (IBCLC).

In the summer of 2018, our family moved to Little Rock, where my husband and I started jobs at Arkansas Children’s Hospital. Half of my job was working as a general pediatrician, and the other half was spent creating a Breastfeeding Medicine Clinic to serve Central Arkansas. This was a richly rewarding experience, and I am grateful to say that I was very well-supported by the leadership and my peers at ACH.

Though I enjoyed my work and loved my patients, in the fall of 2019 I began to feel a tugging at my heart to set aside my stethoscope and come home to be with my children full-time. By January 2020 I had solidified this decision, completely unaware that a global pandemic would change ALL our lives just two months later. I stepped down from my job at Arkansas Children’s Hospital in May 2020, and started a new life as a stay-at-home-homeschooling-mom-of-four.

Mothering my four children is unquestionably the most fulfilling job I will ever have. While no day is flawless, every day that I’m home with them brings joy, contentment, growth, and gratitude.

But I did miss my breastfeeding mamas and babies!

I resolved to find a way to pursue both of these goals, and thus, Lactation Conversations and this Breastfeeding Medicine practice were born. It is an honor to walk alongside mothers during this exciting but vulnerable season of life, empowering them to achieve their goals, and witnessing them nurture and nourish their babies.

I welcome you to explore this site, and please don’t hesitate to ask for help if you need it.

Blessings to you and your growing family!

Warmly,

Dr. Renno