Awhile back, I posted a link to a facebook group my friends have created in the hopes that Oprah will take notice of the site and feature it on her show. My friends and others have written letters to this effect and I felt it was time that I do the same. I wanted to share it with you all:
Dear Miss Winfrey,
My name is Bonnie Crowder and I am a mother. Having struggled with body image issues my whole life (as so many women do) and being completely unprepared for the effects of pregnancy upon my body, I lived in shame for a long time about how my body looked. One day, I happened to see another mother’s belly and I realized that it was not my fault for looking this way and that I am certainly not the only one whose body was forever changed. I felt that if I was so very relieved to know this truth, then there must be many other moms who are hungry for reality, too. And so I began TheShapeofaMother.com where women submit photos of themselves before, during and after pregnancy – where we find others who are like us in body and mind.
By the end of its first month, the site was featured in media outlets around the world, including the London Guardian. It has since been in magazines, articles, and was recently featured in a UK documentary by Louise Redknapp. We get over 3,000,000 hits monthly. I have received letters from women in many countries thanking me for the opportunity to ease their minds and see some real bodies. Clearly, this is something that has been very good for women across the globe.
Recently, some of my friends have written to you in the hopes that you would consider featuring the website on your show – I am eternally grateful to these women for supporting me so wonderfully. But it’s not fair to make them do all the work, is it? At first I felt uncomfortable for promoting myself in this way, but then it occurred to me, that this is not about me at all, but about Womanhood. I hope you consider this – your show could make such a wonderful impact on the self-esteem of American women. If we could change the shape of women in the media, we could do worlds of good for this and following generations.
Thank you,
Bonnie
If you feel moved to participate, you can join the group here and submit a letter here.
I already sent my email to the show!
Thanks for putting this fabulous website together. I’ve struggled with body image issues since puberty! Now after having my 1st baby, I see now that my body image issue has continued on with a louder inner critic! Thank you for sharing images of real women to counter the magazine culture of “Body After Baby” headlines.
What you are contributing is powerful & I thank you.
Johanna
Its not just american woman bonnie, its worldwide women. I’m in Australia and your website has impacted me, I’m not alone, my body is a part of your mission. Its a part of the movement towards the change and empowerment in women and their self image.
Thankyou.
Megan, I am blessed to have reached women all over the globe. In fact I know I have lots of readers in the UK in particular. I think I must have mentioned America specifically in this case because I assume Oprah is mainly an American resource. My laptop needs a new power cord so I can’t read the link easily on my phone to see what exactly I wrote, but I did want to make it clear I know women worldwide are a part of this site. Thank you SO much for being a prt of this. You cannot guess how special it is to me.