Chrissy Teigen Opens Up About the Shame She Felt as a Formula-Feeding Mom

If there’s one thing we know about Chrissy Teigen, it’s that she certainly did not earn her crown as social media queen over nothing. The model has always been open and honest about pivotal points in her life and is definitely not afraid to share her opinions, regardless of the potential backlash from trolls and critics. And now, Teigen has taken to Twitter to start an important conversation she believes needs to be had: normalizing formula-feeding.

Teigen’s Twitter thread began with her writing, “ok I’m gonna say something and you all are definitely gonna make it a thing but here goes: normalize formula.”

While acknowledging the stigma that comes with breastfeeding as well, Teigen explained that she felt “way more shame having to use formula because of lack of milk from depression and whatnot.” She pointed out that many people have trouble breastfeeding, but that as an anxious new mom, all you hear about is “breast is best” — and that pressure to breastfeed makes many new moms feel even worse.

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She ended her thread by saying, “the stress of it, combined with the guilt that you cannot do nature’s most natural thing for your own baby is too much. I dunno why this is my crusade now. I just remember the sadness I felt and want you to know you are doing it right if your baby is fed, mama.”

As Teigen herself predicted, it did indeed become a “thing.” There were plenty of positive comments (yay, Twitter!) including some from fellow celebrity mamas. Olivia Wilde replied, “Amen sister 👊” and Jenna Dewan retweeted and shared her own experience, writing, “A great thread for mother’s…I too had trouble producing milk the second time around with Callum and wasted too much time feeling unnecessary anxiety and guilt about it.”

We especially love this supportive comment from neonatologist, Stephen Patrick MD, who wrote, “Totally agree. The guilt & pressures felt by some new mothers is intense. Moms need to know it’s not a personal failure and your baby will be okay. We can still promote the benefits of breastfeeding without demonizing women who chose or have to use formula.”

And, hello, that is pretty much exactly what Teigen was saying. Predictably, loads of people felt compelled to chime is with their “but breast is best” comments, but no one — least of all Teigen — is suggesting that there’s anything wrong with breastfeeding, or that parents who are happily and successfully breastfeeding should switch to formula. So the Cravings author jumped back into Twitterverse one more time to (maybe?) end the discussion she started:

Look, there’s tons of research that new parents can use to decide the feeding option that’s best for them. Yes, there are benefits to breastfeeding for both mom and baby. But as Teigen points out, it’s not always the right choice for every mom, and we’re grateful that Teigen is using her platform to start these important conversations to end mom-shaming, regardless of how you feed your baby.

Chrissy Teigen has also been open about pregnancy loss — as have these celebrity parents who have shared their miscarriage stories.

Launch Gallery: Chrissy Teigen, Naya Rivera & More Celeb Moms Get Painfully Honest About Breastfeeding

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