It’s Breastfeeding Awareness Month, and as more and more parents share their breastfeeding stories, we love covering them and sharing these universal, yet also very unique, stories of the challenges and triumphs of nursing children. But of course, breastfeeding isn’t the only way to feed a baby, and that deserves recognition, too — which is why we’re loving the latest Instagram post from Iskra Lawrence. The model and body-positivity activist, who is on a mission to make women feel better about themselves, shared a series of intimate photos and video clips of her own breastfeeding journey over the past year with her 15-month-old child with partner Philip Payne, and despite her 13-month breastfeeding journey, it’s not all about the boob. Lawrence is celebrating both breastfeeding and formula feeding.
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A post shared by Iskra ✨Mom✨Model✨Self Love (@iskra)
“They say 1 whole year of breastfeeding is equivalent to a full time job the with the amount of hours… well it was a job I didn’t want to end, as challenging as it was at times especially establishing a consistent milk supply I cherished every second of it,” Lawerence begins the caption. She also reveals that — as so many new moms do — she had high expectations for herself when it came to breastfeeding, as her own “incredible momma” nursed her for four years. “…so when I lost my supply a few weeks in I was confused and felt like a failure,” she shared.
Her solution: Add formula into the mix. “I’m beyond thankful for formula and not letting the pressure of ‘breast is best’ make me feel like a terrible mom, because I needed to supplement and that worked so well for us.”
So well, in fact, that Lawrence ultimately breastfed for 13 months — and still had pangs of longing after she stopped, although she totally rejects the pressure that society places on women who can’t or don’t want to breastfeed: She writes, “Never the less, even weeks after 13 month breast feeding journey came to an end I still started googling ‘can you restart your breast milk supply’ ‘what’s the over the counter you can take to boost your supply’ sometimes BF isn’t even about your baby it’s about you and the bond you fear to lose or for many are told you’ll never have, that’s such an awful pressure or expectation to place upon mother’s – your bond with your baby will be perfect no matter how you feed them, you are doing amazing no matter what that looks like for you❤️”
We adore that the British model and new mama is a champion of feeding your baby in a way that works best for you. “I feel like the more parents I meet it makes me realise all journeys are unique and you should never ever compare yours to someone else’s!,” she ended the post with an uplifting message.
Well said, Iskra, and thank you for continuing to keep it real and sharing your stories.
Celebrate the beauty of different breastfeeding journeys through these photographs.
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