On December 23, (which was a holiday) I gave birth to a beautiful baby boy and was admitted to 4Wiser after delivery. I asked to see the lactation specialist because I wanted to breastfeed. I had already been nursing my new baby but wanted to know if I was doing things correctly. Cheryl Lloyd had already left her number in my room so I called her. When she came in my room, she worked for a long time in educating me on breastfeeding. She was very knowledgeable and very helpful. She brought me many handouts and educational materials that were very helpful. She came to my room every time I called her and was always patient and understanding. The doctors let us go home the next day due to it being Christmas Eve. Cheryl was there the entire time. She probably spent 1 to 2 hours with me that day educating me not only on breastfeeding but on the care of my newborn and myself. I do understand that this is her job, but she went above and beyond educating me. It was Christmas and she took all the time in the world and never rushed to get home. When I started to leave, she gave me her personal cell phone and told me to call her anytime I needed to. Not many people would do that.

We were told to come back on Monday for a weight check. I had a really hard time breastfeeding once we got home. While I was sitting in the waiting room on Monday waiting to see the doctor, Cheryl passed by and saw us and came in to see how things were going. I told her how stressed I had been because the baby was not feeding like he should. I was almost in tears. She took us to a room and worked with us for over an hour helping me nurse my new baby. She told me that she had a class in 15 minutes. I am not sure who ended up teaching the class because she stayed with us for a long time. She showed me many ways to help the baby nurse. She told me that she would be off for the next 2 days and was having outpatient surgery on Thursday but that if I needed her to please feel free to call her. The next day she called me at home to check on me and see how things were going. That meant a lot to me. She was always very encouraging. I told her that I was still struggling and she offered to meet me at the hospital if I wanted (even though it was her day off). Thursday came around and I knew that Cheryl was having surgery but I had a question and I called and spoke to one of the other nurses. That afternoon I received a call from Cheryl. I couldn't believe it. I do not know of anyone who loves their job more than she does. I am a nurse as well and I can't say that I would be calling my patients on the day I had surgery.

To me, Cheryl is the epitome of what a great nurse truly is. She truly went above and beyond in her job. I can tell that she really does love her job. I told her that and she told me that she does love her job. She told me that I could call for anything because she is not only a lactation specialist but also a maternal/fetal educator. She said to please feel free to call her anytime if I ever had questions.
I understand what the DAISY awards means and I think that Cheryl surely deserves the award. She is one of the most dedicated people in our profession that I have ever met.