It's hard to believe that in 2022, some topics surrounding breastfeeding are still a bit taboo, but it's true — and that's something that plenty of celebrity moms have had to deal with too. Still, the "controversy" surrounding nursing hasn't stopped many of them from sharing some breastfeeding confessions and photos of their own that, of course, turned heads. Like any part of motherhood, there's a lot of potential for things to go wrong, and even when things go right, breastfeeding and pumping are two areas in the parenting arena where the tales can take a turn for the, well, unexpected.
Obviously, any time a mom — whether she's a celebrity or not — opens up about breastfeeding in any capacity, we want to stand up and cheer, because that's one more step closer to normalizing something in society that should have been normalized a very long time ago. But there are some stories celebrities have shared that have definitely gone against the norm. Some are so bizarre that they've raised an eyebrow or two — even if they are, in their own way, a little bit relatable.
But just because the details are a little WTF, that doesn't mean we don't want to hear about them. Celebrities have their own breastfeeding stories to share that border on the outrageous side, and if nothing else, they're getting the word out that even though it's not always pretty, it's just another natural part of life.
Here are some of the breastfeeding confessions from celebrity moms that had people talking and are actually kinda relatable if we're being honest. If anything, these confessions are quite refreshing, as we're guilty of doing the same — so it's good to be among some moms who will do what's necessary because the struggle is too real.
'Unclogging' Milk Ducts
On an episode of Very Cavallari, Kristin Cavallari admitted that her now ex-husband Jay Cutler once had to help her out when her milk ducts were "major clogged."
"Jay had to get them out for me," Kristin said in the clip. "Sucking harder than he's ever sucked."
Later, Kristin said that Jay saved her life, so although it's unconventional, hey, he got the job done!
'Nursing' the Husband
Kristin Cavallari isn't the only one whose husband had to rise to the occasion. In an episode of her Momsplaining YouTube show, Kristen Bell shared that when she had mastitis, husband Dax Shepard had to help her, and he totally stepped up to the plate. Their baby wasn't nursing anymore, so it was up to him to get it done.
"So I said to my husband, 'I really need you to suck this out. We could talk about it, we could be weird about it, or you could just go ahead and nurse," she revealed. "He pulled it out. He had a cup next to him. He was pulling out and spitting into this cup, and I've never been more in love."
Breastfeeding a Baby Doll
To be totally fair, this one wasn't just because Chrissy Teigen wanted to — it was because her daughter, Luna, told her to. When baby brothers come into the equation, sometimes things like this have to happen, but the photo still got people talking.
"Luna making me feed her baby doll so I guess I have twins now," Chrissy wrote in her caption.
Never a dull moment!
Wine While Breastfeeding
When Jessie James Decker shared this photo of herself breastfeeding her son Forrest with wine in hand, she definitely turned heads. Fans had a lot of opinions about her drinking while feeding her little one, but ultimately, what Jessie does when feeding her child is her business.
BYOB
Some people prefer wine while breastfeeding, and others prefer beer. Bethenny Frankel was ready for a beer after having a baby in 2011 — an understandable craving after going nine months without alcohol. According to what she told Hollywood Life at the time via InTouch, she didn't hold back from drinking while breastfeeding either.
"I was excited that I was allowed to have a beer," the former Real Housewives of New York City star said. "I don't think that it produced more milk. I don't believe in any of the gimmicks."
Drinking a Sibling's Breast Milk
When Tamera Mowry wasn't feeling well, she hit up her twin sister, Tia, for some of her breast milk. The Real star was more than willing to give this a shot as it wasn't the first time she's tried her sister's breast milk. What?!
As Tia explained in an Instagram post of her own, she gave her sister some of her breast milk because she was sick and the milk has healing properties. Tamera was totally cool with giving this a shot, and she drank the milk because (get ready for this) she'd tried it before.
According to Tamera, Tia's breast milk is the best milk she's ever had. Alrighty then!
Pumping During a Gala
In 2018, Nicole Phelps definitely turned heads when she pumped during a gala for husband Michael Phelps' foundation. She shared a photo of herself showing off her pump paired with her evening gown (not the most glamorous, but it's just a part of life). Unfortunately, she got a ton of backlash — so much so that she ended up defending herself, which shouldn't even have been necessary.
"Breastfeeding is NATURAL," Nicole wrote. "I have to admit there were times at the Olympics I was feeding Boomer in the stands. I want it to be known women don't have to hide in a bathroom to take a moment to provide our babies with food."
Avenging a Milk Mix-Up
In a 2017 interview with Marie Claire, Scarlett Johansson admitted to a major milk mix-up she had after pumping at the 2015 Oscars shortly after her daughter, Rose, was born. Like many nursing moms will understand, just because she was at the Oscars didn't mean she didn't have to pump, and her milk (and pump) ended up accidentally going home with Mark Consuelos and Kelly Ripa (LOL).
"Somehow, Mark got ahold of my breast pump — in a bag with all the milk, ice packs in there, and s—. Our cars got separated," Scarlett revealed. "Apparently, Kelly looked over, and she was like, 'Wait a minute, is that Scarlett's breast pump? We've got to get it back!' because she knew how panicked I would be."
Thank goodness for Kelly!
Breastfeeding Fake-Out
According to Kim Kardashian, North got so jealous of her little brother Saint breastfeeding that Kim had to pretend to nurse North to keep her happy.
"I had to get a little milk box and put it in the other bra with a straw so North would drink and he would drink," the reality star mom confessed in a since-deleted post in People. "She's so jealous. It's crazy. The things you do."
Sounds like a smart parenting hack to us!
Crying Over Spilled Milk
When Chrissy Teigen spilled her breast milk, she wasn't about to let it go. As she shared on Instagram, she desperately tried to scoop up the spilled milk with a tiny shovel and a syringe, saving every bit of it that she could. Some people would just call it a wash, but not Chrissy!
Breastfeeding Wardrobe Malfunction
Blake Lively was still a new mom when she shared this relatable breastfeeding story in 2015. While making a live TV appearance, Blake forgot to account for the fact that her breasts would be larger if she couldn't pump — and that almost led to an unfortunate wardrobe malfunction.
"With all the wardrobe changes, one thing I hadn't accounted for was that I didn't have time to pump, so my proportions definitely started to, shall we say, increase throughout the day," she revealed.
"I walked out onstage for one appearance in an outfit that had fit perfectly when I tried it on many hours earlier, but by the time it got on me, I thought, 'Oh, no! This isn't going to cover them up at all! I was very worried about a wardrobe malfunction."
Fortunately, it sounds like everything worked out just fine!
Mile-High (Pumping) Club
Leave it to Jenny Mollen to take the "mile-high club" to new levels! Back in 2017, the celeb mom shared a series of airplane bathroom pumping pics to show just how glamorous expressing milk can be thousands of miles in the air. (Spoiler alert: It's not!)
Drive-By Pumping
Sometimes, a mama has to do what a mama has to do. To celebrate World Breastfeeding Week in 2018, Ashley Williams took to Instagram to share a selfie of her pumping breast milk in the car (in the middle of traffic no less). "I appreciate all the cool people who saw what I was doing in traffic and gave me a thumbs up," she joked in her caption.
Hey, that breastfeeding schedule is real, so we definitely get the hustle!
Faking a Boob Job
When Kristen Bell starred in CHiPS, she was still breastfeeding, and at the time, her character was supposed to have a boob job. To make it more realistic, she didn't pump at all for a day to make her breasts look larger, all for her craft.
"So I didn't pump for a full day," Kristen told Seth Meyers when she stopped by his late-night show in 2017. "And I said to the kids, 'Daddy's making a movie. Go to the fridge — the food truck is closed.'"
Breastfeeding Backlash
Coco Austin got backlash in 2019 for breastfeeding her daughter, Chanel, well past her second birthday and close to her third year, but she wasn't worried about what people thought about her — she said she'd feed her daughter that way for comfort for as long as Chanel seems to need it. But that hasn't stopped people from raising an eyebrow — or 100 — at her.
"She's not really needing me to eat food at all, because she has teeth," Coco said in an interview with OK! magazine. "It's more of a comfort thing. She needs me more of those times when she wants mommy, or the nap times, or going to bed."
Breastfeeding in the Shower
Seriously, what nursing mama hasn't been here? Jenna Jameson's shower breastfeeding pic might have come with a ton of controversy, but it was so relatable on a number of levels. It's the best two-for-one: Baby is fed and clean — the end!
Addicted to Breastfeeding
Salma Hayek definitely had people listening when she claimed to be addicted to breastfeeding her daughter, Valentina, in an interview with The Times in 2008. She even compared her addiction to that of an alcoholic. (Maybe not the words we would've used.)
"I'm like an alcoholic," she confessed. "I don't care if I cry, I don't care if I'm fat. I'm just gonna do it one more week, one more month, and then, when I see how much good it's doing her, I can't stop."
Interesting.
