Millie Mackintosh has decided to stop breastfeeding her daughter at three months old after suffering continued and agonising mastitis.
The Made in Chelsea star shared the news on her Instagram page in a heartfelt post as she opened up on the struggles she's faced since giving birth to baby Aurelia in December.
Millie, 32, shared a powerful selection of snaps that showed the reality of her journey, including a selfie of her wincing as she was struggling with the pain coursing through her blocked milk ducts.
In other images, the reality TV star smiled contentedly as her adorable little tot fed from her breast.
While in another photo the heir to the Quality Street dynasty posed in a white, ribbed cropped top with the buttons open and packs of frozen Waitrose peas resting against her bosom inside her bra.
Millie also posted a sweet image of her in her hospital bed with newborn baby Aurelia feeding in the early days after her birth, but her caption showed that after a rollercoaster several weeks, things had changed.
"My breastfeeding journey with Aurelia recently came to an end, at first I had mixed feelings about stopping but now a few weeks have passed I know that for us it was the right time," the star began. "I really felt the pressure during my first round of mastitis to continue feeding.
"After mentioning it on social media I was flooded with messages and although there was a lot of support with people sharing different remedies that could help, I really felt the pressure to just keep going even though I was literally crying in pain every time I needed to feed.
"There was one comment that really stuck with me, ‘it’s ok to stop too, it doesn’t make you a bad mum’ at the time I really needed to hear that."
Millie, who is married to Hugo Taylor, and was finally able to enjoy a post-baby date night out with her husband recently, went on to say that at first she tried to do a mixture of both breastfeeding and formula milk through a bottle, but while she "loved the bonding time," it ultimately wasn't the right method.
"When I got mastitis again I decided breastfeeding wasn’t working for me anymore and I knew it was time to stop," she said. "I was in a lot of pain, I really wanted my body back, my time back and Aurelia was really unsettled which I found upsetting and frustrating.
"Now Aurelia is purely on formula, at first there was a bit of resistance whilst we found the right bottle and teat size, but now she is feeding well and we’re getting into a good routine.
"I still love the time spent feeding her, she clutches my fingers, pulls me close and stares into my eyes, I still feel just as important to her," Millie shared, telling her followers she was determined to show the truth about the good and hard moments of breastfeeding.
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Insisting she was "so glad" she got to do it for a period of time with both babies, Millie said she took "her hat off" to the mums that "keep fighting and making it work".
"When you’re a new mum it’s easy to feel the pressure and get swept up in what everyone else thinks is the best thing for you to do," the TV personality added. "But ultimately the most important thing is that your baby is fed, and you’re both happy!"
Millie and Hugo, 35, married in July 2018 and announced they were expecting their first baby, Sienna, just over a year later.
The couple welcomed their first daughter into the world in May 2020, and now 18 month old Sienna has a little sister.
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