15 Times Celebs Got Real About Life as a New Mom

Amy Schumer is known for being super blunt in her comedy, and that carries over to sharing her feelings about the challenges of breastfeeding and pumping as a new mom. She talked about why she switched to formula while appearing on the podcast Informed Pregnancy Project in 2019. "Some people just absolutely love [breastfeeding] and I'm so happy for them, and it was just bumming me out," she said, explaining why she decided to start tapering off after about a month. "It is not for me and I didn't want to do it."

Singer Halsey has written movingly about the pressures of having to "bounce back" after having a baby, which is always an important conversation to have. We also appreciate that they've been open about another challenge of new parenthood: the struggle of balancing work and mom life. "It's definitely difficult to find balance. I think that's a common thing working moms share, no matter what your job is," they told Extra in December 2021. "I want to work really hard so he's proud of me, but I also want to spend every single second cuddling him."

Actress Hilary Duff is a mother to three kids and she's kept it real that even experienced moms can get overwhelmed being home with a new baby. "I have help, but babies just want their mom," she told People in May 2021. "It's a learning curve to throw a newborn into the mix. A lot of people have been like, 'That third kid really gets you.' And they're right!"

Kim Kardashian might have all the money in the world and (probably) an army of nannies, but even with all that, she still relates to the common new mom challenge of just feeling overwhelmed enough to want to call it quits. In her cover story for the 2022 Sports Illustrated swimsuit edition, she said non-parents don't understand how "challenging" motherhood can be.

"There are nights where you just are like, 'I don't want to do this; I don't want to adult anymore," she admitted. "This is really hard. Every kid is crying, and no one will go to bed.'" That may be the most relatable thing she's ever said!

In her 2019 MTV Movie & TV Awards acceptance speech, Sandra Bullock talked about her love for her children and about the core feeling of protectiveness that new moms often feel for their babies. In a shout-out to her kids, she said, "You are my first thought in the morning. You are my last thought at night. I was put on this earth to protect you."

Chrissy Teigen sometimes gets called out for oversharing on social media, but we appreciate that she's always been honest about her feelings about her body as a new mom. That includes the fact that for her, losing weight after birth wasn't always a good thing, especially when it came as a result of postpartum depression.

Many of us are often in awe of Beyoncé, so we kind of love that the person she was in awe of after becoming a new mom for the first time was, well, herself! "Right now, after giving birth, I really understand the power of my body. I just feel my body means something completely different. I feel a lot more confident about it," she told Vogue in 2013.

Yes, new mom life is challenging, but we hope that all of us can have that moment of feeling like a damn superhero for going through pregnancy and birth.

New motherhood can be a time of feeling body shame or even just body weirdness, as it isn't always a guarantee that our bodies will ever be the same as before. Anne Hathaway dealt with her own new mom body feelings by taking a pair of scissors to the situtation! "There is no shame in gaining weight during pregnancy (or ever)," she wrote on Instagram, alongside a photo of a pair of her jeans that she'd just cut into shorts.

"There is no shame if it takes longer than you think it will to lose the weight (if you want to lose it at all). There is no shame in finally breaking down and making your own jean shorts because last summer's are just too dang short for this summer's thighs. Bodies change. Bodies grow. Bodies shrink. It's all love
(don't let anyone tell you otherwise)." Amen to that!

Cardi B is famous for her amazing curves and confidence, but that doesn't mean she didn't struggle with the physical recovery that needs to happen after childbirth, which can be challenging combined with lack of sleep and dealing with the care of a new human! In a 2019 Vogue interview, she shared that she was surprised by how hard it all was.

"I didn't think it would take my body so long to heal. I thought six weeks was gonna be good enough. No, bro, my ass is broken, this baby broke my ass," she said. "Doing a tour with Bruno Mars in the biggest arenas, and I didn't want to go on tour and not be able to dance or perform properly, not be able to get choreography right, because my body is extremely weak right now. Like, so weak. That postpartum s— is really real, y'all."

Is it really new motherhood if there isn't poop somewhere unexpected? Blake Lively kept it real that even celeb new moms get pooped on. In 2015, she very matter of factly told the Los Angeles Times, "Having a baby is just living in the constant unexpected. You never know when you're gonna get crapped on or when you're gonna get a big smile or when that smile immediately turns into hysterics. It might be like living with a drug addict."

Another inevitable feeling, sadly, that appears to be par for the course with new parenthood is the dreaded mom guilt. Even Serena Williams isn't immune, as she revealed in a 2018 Instagram post:

"Last week was not easy for me. Not only was I accepting some tough personal stuff, but I just was in a funk. Mostly, I felt like I was not a good mom. I read several articles that said postpartum emotions can last up to 3 years if not dealt with. I like communication best. Talking things through with my mom, my sisters, my friends let me know that my feelings are totally normal. It's totally normal to feel like I'm not doing enough for my baby."

Let's keep it honest: Every new mom has a moment when they just want to escape to Target for some precious alone time. That's what comedian Ali Wong did when she hit her breaking point. "I didn't expect to be so comfortable handing my child off to a nanny without getting any of her information. As soon as she arrived at my house, I threw my baby in her arms and went to Target," she recounted to Paste magazine in 2016. "She gave me her driver's license a week after. She was like, 'Uh, you should probably have my address since you gave me the keys to your house and your child.' And we were like, 'Oh, yeah, that's probably a good idea.'"

Even the most beautiful and polished celebs are in awe of how pulled together royal moms can be when they have their first public outings after a baby. As Don't Worry Darling star Olivia Wilde shared on Twitter in 2019, seeing Meghan Markle introducing son Archie to the world reminded her of her own new mom days in an ice diaper and all the crusty milk!

One of the hardest challenges of new motherhood can be dealing with feelings of sadness, disappointment, or even shame when breastfeeding doesn't go according to plan. Ashley Tisdale opened up about that in her personal blog, Frenshe. "I wish someone would've told me how hard breastfeeding really was," she wrote. "You see your friends who are new moms feeding their babies make it look so easy. But no one tells you how hard it really is. I think there's this pressure around the subject of breastfeeding, and that those who do it are the best moms, but that's not true."

Gwyneth Paltrow has kept it real that the new mom experience can be totally different with each child. During a 2018 episode of her Goop podcast, she shared that she struggled with postpartum depression after the birth of her son, Moses — something she didn't experience after having her daughter. "I had terrible postnatal depression, which I think was really shocking to me because I never thought I would be a person who got postnatal depression," she explained. "I was so euphoric when Apple was born, and I assumed it would happen with Mosey and it took a while. I went to a dark place."