Angelina Jolie Has Weaned Twins Vivienne and Knox
 Angelina Jolie John Shearer / Getty Images |
I know what people are going to say. That she gave up too soon. She should have gotten help. That they breastfed twins for so much longer. She could have tried harder.
I, for one, am happy for the coverage that she's brought to breastfeeding. And I hope that not too many bash her for choosing to wean. She's got four other children and what I imagine is a pretty full life, so I'm not going to judge at all. In fact, I applaud her coming out and describing her own very valid, legitimate experience with breastfeeding.
I do have to wonder, though, if her decision will affect other people's perception of breastfeeding or if it will figure in to the decision making process for some, either on a conscious or subconscious level. On one gossip blog, the author says,
"Look, if Angelina can’t do it, it is officially impossible. Because we all know that she is better at everything than anyone else."
Tongue-in-cheek as that comment may be, I still have to wonder.
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Comments
You would think with her bazillions of dollars, she could afford a lactation consultant? How about LLL? Oh well, at least they got *some* breastmilk. I suppose breastfeeding should appreciate the crumb of positive exposure it got.
Amy
Way to go Ms. Jolie, glad to see you put breastfeeding in a positive light….
As for those who mock her decision… Why does it matter how long she nursed for? For all we know she could have a valid MEDICAL reason for stopping,at one point I didn’t produce enough for my single born son… Whatever her reason is I’m sure she made the BEST decision she could. I stopped nursing my first for medical reasons, and I had a LLL consultant. She made a decision, she’s an intelligent woman, why not support her choice?
Kudos to her for actually breastfeeding them at all! So many wouldn’t even TRY to breastfeed twins and she did.
I just had twins 12 months after i gave birth to my second child and let me tell you ….it ain’t easy.I nursed them for 3 months and then I was done. I nursed my other children for a year. Am I selfish? Maybe. Bad idea? Perhaps. I was exhausted and I couldn’t give my other two children the attention they deserved. Now my husband and other family members can feed the babies. They are healthy and are already walking and starting to talk (9 months!). Everyone’s situation is different and unless you walk in their shoes you have no room to talk. We mothers need to support each other not condemn each other.
I am with Tai. I have an 8 week old and an 18 month old and I breastfed him with the intention of doing if for 6 months, but he had terrible reflux and no position gave him relief and milk came out his nose every time. I pumped for as long as I could but it was just too hard with a toddler as well. Everyone has there own reasons for stopping and the good thing is she tried.
I tried my best to breastfeed my daughter, who was born 3 months early. I returned to work 2 weeks after giving birth so I could be with her when she came out of the NICU. I pumped as much as I could but once they released her, I just couldn’t do it. It was too much dealing with a baby, period. Some mothers know their limitations and choose to stop breastfeeding and go with formula in order to give their babies more attention, whether they have one or more kids. I think my baby benefited more from the preemie formula than from any amount of breastmilk I would have been able to give her. She caught up to other infants her age by the time she was 12-months old. I did give breastfeeding my best try, but knowing that my best was not going to be good enough for my baby, I decided it was time to try something else.
All the excuses, all the excuses, all the excuses! It’s AMAZING to me that woman in “under developed” countries can give birth one day and strap their babies to their chests the next; back in the fields (or whatever) working to support their families and we, “highly developed” Americans, with ALL our advances, can’t manage to breastfeed our children for 3 or even 6 months, let ALONE the 2 YEARS recommended by the World Health Organization! Chaps my hide, big time!
Layfa what you are unaware of is that American girls are not raised watching mothers nurse like other cultures do. In fact we are taught to turn away when you see a mother nursing. When you are brought up in a culture that you see mothers give birth on a regular basis and see mothers nursing since you are a child of course it’s going to be easier for you. The support and knowledge of these women has been there in these cultures for centuries. What is your experience? Did you nurse your children for two years? If you did than good for you. Please don’t judge. It’s not fair and don’t think that women that can’t nurse feel bad about it. It’s a horrible feeling that something so natural can be so difficult.
I nursed my twins for a year. It’s possible, just really effing hard. I hope twin moms don’t get discouraged from this.
I think it is ridiculous that this actually made news. Such a private thing.
I agree that this is silly that it even made the news. It is a personal and private thing. To any mother on here judging other mothers for not bf or not bf long enough, etc,to put it frankly, I think you suck. I think you need to get off your high horse and worry about yourself. Everyone knows bf is best and every mother with half a brain would prefer to bf for many reasons. That being said, everyone has their own reasons for stopping, not being able to, etc, and these reasons are valid to them. So stop being judgemental because by the grace of God that could have been you!!! And by the way, I breastfed my kids because it was easy for me. I got lucky. But I am sick and tired of you snooty mothers coming down on other moms for this and for that. Get over yourselves and try be supportive for a change!!!
My experience is that I am currently nursing my 2-1/2 year old and, like all things with parenting, it has had it’s ups and downs. Much of the first 6 months, I was plagued with plugged ducts and, around 18 months, a round of mastitis that caused searing pain. The joy of nursing my little one has definitely made the hard times worth it and, from the very beginning, I approached nursing as THE ONLY choice. If I had allowed myself to think “If this doesn’t work for me, there’s always formula!” then I doubt I would have had the same success. Of course there are legitimate reasons for a woman to stop nursing before her child is ready but, like with c-section, I think the legitimate reasons are actually very rare. I totally agree that support, as well as positive roll-modeling, are completely necessary (I had literally hands-on help from a wonderful woman within my first few weeks of nursing). But the support we provide needs to come WHILE each mother is nursing; not in the form of “good for you; you gave it your best” after she’s already quit.
Lyfa, where did you get your information that WHO recommends breastfeeding for the first 2 years of life?? WHO recommends breastfeeding for the first 6 months of life.
D, Yes that’s a common misconception. WHO recommends EXCLUSIVE breastfeeding for the 1st 6 months; that means the baby only consumes breast milk during that time. I’ve included the statement from the WHO website; you can find more info under Infant Feeding Recommendation on their website:
“Breastfeeding is an unequalled way of providing ideal food for the healthy growth and development of infants; it is also an integral part of the reproductive process with important implications for the health of mothers. As a global public health recommendation, infants should be exclusively breastfed for the first six months of life to achieve optimal growth, development and health. Thereafter, to meet their evolving nutritional requirements, infants should receive nutritionally adequate and safe complementary foods while breastfeeding continues for up to two years of age or beyond. Exclusive breastfeeding from birth is possible except for a few medical conditions, and unrestricted exclusive breastfeeding results in ample milk production.”
I have 3 precious little girls who were all born via c-section, were all formula fed because of meds I am on, and they are all healthy, intelligent, beautiful children. My middle child was tested by our elem school and has been allowed to skip pre-k and go straight into the kindergarten. She just turned 4 last week. My oldest is at the top of her class and is healthy as can be-she rarley gets sick. Our youngest turned 2 in June and she is already reading. My point is not to brag but to prove that formula fed, c-section babies can be perfectly healthy and intelligent. My sister in law was determined to have a natural birth as it was the “only way” in her eyes. She refused a c-section and her baby was stuck in the b canal too long and now has permanent brain damage. My good friend felt bf was the ONLY option and she had a baby so underweight by the time he went for one of his nb checkups that he had to be admitted to nicu. The poor girl cried for days and felt like a failure for having to formula feed. NON SENSE! Yes bf is best, but formula is GREAT too. And myabe it is just me, but I LOVED having cesarian sections. I would much prefer a c-section over vaginal. And my wonderful female OBGYN told me that she thinks c-sections are ideal because it is easier on the baby and poses less complications for the baby. She also said that once a baby comes out of a woman’s vagina, her vagina is NEVER the same again. So I am so pleased with my husband and I’s decisions and I have 3 perfect little girls to prove it! To all you moms, do what you feel is right and to hell with anyone else’s opinions!
Ah, breast-feeding. Will the trend last? Who knows. Are formula-fed babies less healthy than breast-fed babies? No. It is sad to think that Ms. Jolie could influence the way that people decide to care for their children. She’s just an actor, not educated and not a medical professional.
I was in a very similar position to Angelina Jolie, minus the millions.
My twins were # 5 & 6 and I breastfed them. When I read your note I was shocked she stopped, not for the reasons that you stated, but because I found using bottles to be MUCH harder. I suppose the difference there is in the millions and that she doesn’t have to do her own dishes. LOL I do remember reading somewhere that she had ordered 300 Adiri bottles before they were born.
I would like to point out that the all or nothing attitude seems to be so prevalent. You *can* manage to nurse some and feed alternatives some. This can help really overwhelmed moms by giving them some space to nurse when they want and not to nurse when they don’t want to nurse. Even if they are only doing it for the bonding and not nutrition. It’s a viable option for many.
See, as a twin mom who breastfed I took major issue with this and I posted on my blog about it to criticize her. I do not criticize her for not succeeding in breastfeeding… I hate that she is perpetuating this ridiculous myth that mothers of twins cannot breastfeed. Also, she doesn’t say ANYTHING about the many resources available. A challenge as minor as holding position could have easily been fixed by hiring a lactation consultant, certainly available to her. She should have said what really happened, which is that she was not committed to it. There are many valid reasons to give up breastfeeding, but it’s an abomination that she probably will convince many twin moms to give upor not even bother trying to breastfeed. This is already such a myth that you can’t do it. And, as the blogger you quoted said (even in jest), MANY moms will in fact think of Super Mom Angelina can’t do it, no one can. Well, I’m here to tell you it can be done. I did it with twins in the NICU (one for three weeks and who I couldn’t pick up to nurse that whole time, but who never had a drop of formula). I did it after returning to work at 7 weeks! No, it wasn’t always easy. But it is definitely possible. Twin moms should hear THAT!
Of course it’s possible. I’ve known many women who did it.
Still I applaud Angelina for even attempting it. So many moms don’t even try. She did her best. 3 months of breastmilk is far better than none.
I hate seeing the criticism of this decision when again - so many moms don’t even attempt it at all.
I have 5 month old twins and an almost 2 year old. I tried nursing my twins for 3 weeks and then gave up.(I nursed my older son for 13 months.) It was either staying sane or nursing. I couldn’t do both. I give Angelina a lot of credit for nursing until now. Most twins are born a couple of weeks early and have a hard time latching on/ sucking properly. (That was the issue with mine)