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Take the assumption thatbreastfeedingis the right choice for everyone.
Slaven Vlasic/Contributor/Getty Images
is often one of the first things people ask Tisdale about herparenting, she says.
And I’m like, Why is that the first question?
Like many new parents, Tisdale hadplannedonbreastfeeding, but Jupiter wouldnt latch after nearly two weeks of trying.
The experience was hard on both of them.
She was really frustrated, I was frustrated.
She also got that hangry situation, which she probably got from me, Tisdale says.
So it was building up all of this stress around feeding.
At some point, a lightbulb went on for Tisdale:It doesnt have to be this hard.
I feel like there’s a lot of negativity around her feeding experience.
And I felt intuitively like that’s not okay, it’s not right.
She was clearly trying to tell me it’s just not happening.
The switch to formula was both a huge relief and a milestone for thefirst-time parent.
When we decided to formula-feed, it was the best thing I could have done.
It was really pressure-lifting, and a great moment as a mom.
I think it’s a very trendy thing to be showing your baby breastfeeding, she says.
Okay, well, what about the people who don’t do that?
Or it didn’t work out for them?
We’re not really listening to our baby, Tisdale explains.
We’re like, This is what we’re supposed to do.
This is what my friend does.
She wants other new parents to remember, There are other options, and they’re just as good.
Tisdale finds formula-feedingto be a very bonding time for her and Jupiter.
Along with formula-feeding, Tisdale would like to normalize the fact that people’s bodies lookdifferent after giving birth.
There was that expectation because I had heard it from other people.
I was like, Oh, that’s just not my experience.
Because it literally just made this human being and just the most beautiful thing.
And that’s so awesome.
While the actor isnourishing her bodyand exercising, her approach to fitness has shifted.
Tisdale questions whyreturning to the bodyyou had before pregnancy is even something to strive for in the first place.
We have to stop thinking about getting back to our older bodies, or our other bodies before.
That’s part of the problem, thinking that we should be bouncing back,' Tisdale says.
Why are we saying bounce back?"
“Because it’s really about the future that’s going to be so amazing.
It’s not about what we were before.
It’s really about who we are now.