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Frida's Realistic Advert Promoting Postpartum Breast Care

This New Advert Promoting Postpartum Breast Care Is, Er, Painfully Accurate

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There are two types of new mums: those who naturally take to breastfeeding and use the term "joyful" when describing their baby's latch, and those who muffle screams while they attempt to massage out clogged ducts in the shower with their electric toothbrush.

For those in the latter camp, Frida — a female wellness brand in the US —wants you to know that although lactation can be a wonderful experience, it can also be f*cking painful.

"No one tells you breastfeeding can be as painful as your vaginal recovery. It's all part of the postpartum physical experience, but it never gets any air time because the end supposedly justifies the means."

A new ad exposes the untold yet ubiquitous inner monologue most postpartum women – and their on-display breasts – struggle with during this transformational time, and it depicts, unfiltered, how much new mums have had to endure. From leaky breasts, cabbage-stuffed nursing bras, and chatty breast pumps to unfortunate new uses for vibrators, the message to mamas is clear: it's time to care for your breasts, not just your baby.

"The expectation that women prioritise milk-making above their own physical comfort is antithetical to the expectation that women continue for six months or more," Chelsea Hisrchhorn, Frida's mom-of-three CEO, said in a statement. "The reality is that women are blindsided by the physicality of breastfeeding — raw nipples, uterine contractions, painful clogs — no one tells you that it can be as painful as your vaginal recovery. It's all part of the postpartum physical experience, but it never gets any air time because the end supposedly justifies the means. The two don't have to be mutually exclusive."

In addition to Frida's longstanding baby product line and its 2019 launch of general "new mum" care products, the brand's newest collection aims to help women navigate another neglected aspect of birth recovery. This comprehensive Breast Care line provides support at whatever stage of the breastfeeding journey they are on – whether she's nursing, pumping, weaning, or choosing to never start at all.

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