American Actor And Dad-Of-5, James Van Der Beek’s Short But Sweet Message To Breastfeeding Moms Is Everything
James Van Der Beek is using Instagram to offer a tribute to breastfeeding moms. The Dawson’s Creek alum and his wife, Kimberly Brook, announced the birth of their fifth child in June.
James David Van Der Beek is an American actor best known for his portrayal of Dawson Leery in the WB series Dawson’s Creek
Van Der Beek went from living the single life to married with five kids real quick. Just one month after marrying Brook in August 2010, Van Der Beek welcomed his first daughter, Olivia into the world.
Next in line was Joshua, 6, followed by Annabel, 4, and Emilia, 2 and lastly a little girl named Gwendolyn joined the family on June 15, 2018.
This has made the couple busy as expected but it hasn’t stopped Van Der Beek from speaking out on important postpartum issues like breastfeeding.
In a selfie he shared on social media, the 41-year-old actor poses next to his wife as she nurses their daughter, Gwendolyn.
Van Der Beek captioned the image, “#Breastfeeding moms everywhere … we salute you.”
In a comment on his post, the star wrote,
“Non-breastfeeding moms … we salute you, too,” adding a red-heart emoji. “Just trying to do our part to normalize a natural, beautiful human behavior that has been, at times, absurdly stigmatized.”
Besides the fact that the picture is absolutely breath-taking, it deserves attention because it’s rare to see a father highlighting breastfeeding on a public platform. It’s incredibly important more dads speak out on breastfeeding in order to normalize it.
Following Van Der Beek’s sweet post, many parents took to the comments section to applaud his transparency.
“Love both of you for using your platform to normalize home birth and breastfeeding keep that going!!” one fan gushed.
“What a incredible husband and support system you are! Having a supportive partner during the trials and tribulations of that 4th trimester are exactly what gets you through it all,” someone else said. “Thanks for being you!”
“What a beautiful pic!!! I will never understand how feeding our children has become a controversy,” one commenter added. “Way to use your voice for the great good! @vanderkimberly so cool to see the Husband support! You are so blessed!”
Another fan chimed in: “This makes me love and respect you so much! What a great partner you are!”
READ ALSO: TV Personality Whitney Port Opens Up About Her Breastfeeding Struggles | WATCH
After Gwendolyn’s birth, Van Der Beek said in a statement,
“Every child awakens a different energy in you … and this one has been bringing up the truth ever since we found out she was on her way. I’ve been in bliss these last few days, but I’ve also been feeling the pain of parents who have been separated from their kids, and the terror those poor kids must be in right now.
“I live an incredibly privileged life … and the last thing I want would be to politicize a birth … but this is human rights abuse. It just didn’t seem right to bask in my privilege and blessings and not bring attention to it.”
Photo credit: Instagram