Tia Mowry is speaking candidly about how breastfeeding her children was not an easy feat.
The Sister, Sister alum, 45 — who shares son Cree, 12, and daughter Cairo, 5, with ex-husband Cory Hardrict, 43 — shared a post on Instagram Thursday, in which she spoke about her nursing and pumping journey alongside candid photos.
“Since it’s National Breastfeeding Awareness Month, I wanted to share a little bit about my breastfeeding journey with y’all,” Mowry began the caption of her post, which included a snap of her breastfeeding Cree when he was an infant, and another photo of her doing the same with Cairo. “When I had Cree, I was struggling to breastfeed him. I was only able to breastfeed for 3 months before having to switch to formula.”
“During my second pregnancy, Instagram was around and it was actually through here where I learned a lot more about breastfeeding, and also where I met a huge community of women who were all so supportive and encouraged me to continue on,” she continued. “And during the second time, I found that I was able to breastfeed Cairo for 13 months.”
“Nonetheless, the journey was difficult,” Mowry noted, adding she was “pumping every 3 hours at work while working 14 hour days on set, and at times I would have to breastfeed on set as well. And after those long days, I would return home and to breastfeed Cairo.”
Never miss a story — sign up for PEOPLE’s free daily newsletter to stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from celebrity news to compelling human interest stories
Tia Mowry Opens Up About Breastfeeding Her Two Kids: ‘The Journey was Difficult’.
Tia Mowry/Instagram
“Whenever I was traveling for work, I would pump extra milk so that she would have milk when I was away,” she then wrote, highlighting that she was “extremely fatigued and overworked” and that she also contracted mastitis — a swelling in the breast — at the time and was hospitalized.
But the actress explained that she “still didn’t give up” and “continued to breastfeed through the pain, and pushed through.”
Tia Mowry Says Her Kids Were ‘Part of My Decision’ to Divorce Cory Hardrict: ‘Greatest Lesson for Them’
Encouraging mothers who are “struggling with breastfeeding,” Mowry said, “It is more than okay to feed your children formula. As long as your children are fed, loved, happy, and supported that’s all that matters.”
“Sending my love and support all you superhero moms out there 🫶,” she concluded the post. “You got this!”
Categories: Trends
Source: HIS Education