Sam Frost’s breastfeeding experience was “harder than giving birth”
The TV star found that many other mums felt like failures
On 7 March, 2023, Home & Away actress Sam Frost and Jordie Hansen became parents to their first baby, a son they named Theodore – or, Ted. When asked by her followers how early parenthood was going, the new mama revealed that she found breastfeeding “emotionally, mentally and physically” really difficult.
Sam admitted finding the pregnancy itself difficult. She endured a pregnancy scare at 22 weeks and revealed that the journey impacted her mental health. The media star told Confidential that she was worried that her the pregnancy was an indication of what being a mum would be like, but that wasn’t the case.
She did, however, find breastfeeding a big challenge.
The Bachelor contestant opened up about her fourth trimester and found that many new mums identified with her, thanking her for sharing her story. She was inundated with stories from “…Women who are, or had been, in a similar situation, who felt like failures…” the 34yo wrote on her blog, Believe by Frost.
Watch Sam Frost’s sweet birth announcement video below
Things turned sour after a few days…
“When Teddy was born, he latched on perfectly,” she wrote. “I remember looking at him thinking how amazing this experience is, how primal and special breastfeeding your newborn is.”
But things turned sour after a few days… “…my nipples were chapped, raw and bleeding. I was in so much pain. A girlfriend had said she found breastfeeding harder than labour – I had an epidural, so I wholeheartedly agreed.”
Unsolicited advice can be harmful
The advice Sam received will be familiar to many new mums, and that is to push through. While this does work for many mums who are learning to breastfeed their newborn, “it seemed to be getting worse” for this new mama. “Every feed, I was crying … I was sobbing.”
‘Pushing through’ was upsetting baby Ted too and he started to get “distressed and frustrated”, and it was this that encouraged Sam to consider other options. “Ever since, we have been expressing what we can…”, she posted. “Teddy is a very happy and healthy little boy. He is a little chunky monkey, who has a smile so big and bright.”
As someone who has shared their personal journey with mental health, Sam went on say “I think what we need to remember is that everyone is just trying to do their best…” and that unasked for advice, even when it comes from a good place, can have a negative impact on new parents.
“It makes me hesitant to share my parenting journey because I really can’t be bothered dealing with the opinions that do not serve me,” she wrote. “But I wanted to share this part of our story because I know there are people that need to hear it.”
Sam went public with her partner, Survivor contestant 27yo Jordie Hansen in March 2022 and posted hilarious video clips on her social media throughout the pregnancy, which they revealed in September that year.
The new mum shared PANDA – support that’s always there for you and your family – at the end of her blog.
