Mom Who Struggled With Breastfeeding Thanks Strangers For Their Efforts to Normalize It
"This is a picture of a version of me," begins an honest and raw post that Crystal Johnson, a mom to five, shared with the Breastfeeding Mama Talk Facebook page. "Just like this picture of me, my breastfeeding journey has come a long way."
Although Johnson previously struggled with breastfeeding her first three children, seeing strangers open up about their experiences on social media during her fourth pregnancy gave her the support and information she needed to educate herself and press on within her own nursing journey. She wrote:
Some of my friends would share or repost information or encouragement about breastfeeding. Because of their posts I followed and joined my local La Leche League's Facebook page and then Breastfeeding Mama Talk. I became more and more empowered and informed. With the daily encouragement and stories or funny videos, I could suddenly laugh at the realness of the baby snatching the cover up off, I became empowered to unapologetically breastfeed in public and I knew that by doing so I was changing that new, young mom's experience.
My reposts and likes have definitely normalized my friends' attitudes toward the subject and I proudly identify as a breastfeeding advocate. With the daily support I breastfed my fourth child for 18 months before becoming pregnant with my fifth, and I continued to breastfeed him through my entire pregnancy and now tandem breastfeed him and his five-month-old sister.
Johnson attributes most of her success with breastfeeding to having the support of strangers and the encouragement of friends, and she is spreading that fact so that other moms can look to support groups and social media for help with challenges in their own journeys.
"So if you aren't convinced how much daily encouragement or seeing others breastfeed in public matters, I hope this is a testament for it," she wrote. "Breastfeeding can be tough . . . but the love and dedication it takes to give to our babies is beautiful. I want to encourage everyone to tag a friend or new mom, like someone's post or positive comment about breastfeeding, smile and give encouragement in public, do the little effort it can take to contribute to someone's experience in a positive way."
At the end of her post, Johnson addresses Maria — the photographer who captured the beautiful image of her breastfeeding that inspired this entire post — to thank her "for the opportunity to encourage others and for making me look on the outside the way my children see me in their hearts."