Sondra Rodocker
Director of Supportive Services, Arkansas Doulas
International Board Certified Lactation Consultant, Arkansas Breastfeeding Clinic
About me: Over the past 12 years, I have had the honor of helping thousands of families in Arkansas reach their personal goals and feel empowered in their parenting choices. I opened up my doula practice to help support other doulas, educators and lactation professionals in the state. Arkansas Doulas has over a dozen affiliated doulas who share in the vision of serving all of Arkansas. In the middle of the 2020 pandemic, I opened the Arkansas Breastfeeding Clinic, Arkansas’ first stand-alone outpatient lactation clinic. I have always worked hard in our community to collaborate with medical providers, health care workers and hospitals to help bridge the gap between growing families and those they trust to care for them on this journey.
Lives/Works in: Little Rock
Best Career Advice: Don’t take advice from anyone who is not where you want to be in life. Sometimes the advice others give may not apply to your goals. Surround yourself with like-minded individuals who are walking through this journey with you and who will always be honest with you.
Lesson Learned the Hard Way: Don’t expect you out of other people. This will save you from a lot of disappointment and frustration. Others mean well, and you have to realize they cannot be you. Focus on their strengths, help them understand your needs and map out a plan.
Call to Action: I wish more people would acknowledge the challenges new parents experience. We often think that because something was hard for us, it should be hard for others, too. That’s not how it should be. New parents need a village, but the village no longer exists. It’s up to us to help rebuild the village so families can thrive and not just survive.
What Keeps Me Motivated: Knowing that I will have a part in the history of doulas and lactation consultants in Arkansas. It’s part of the legacy I want to leave when my time on earth is done. I want my sons to be able to look back and proudly say, “Sondra Rodocker is my mom.”
TOP 100 WOMEN OF IMPACT IN ARKANSAS 2023
A Women’s Foundation of Arkansas Initiative