I’m 21 years old and my beautiful son is 8 months old. He’s my first. Before I got pregnant I weighed 118-120 lbs. and now I weigh 140 lbs. When I was pregnant the last time i weighed myself was about a week before I gave birth and I was 154 lbs. and about a week after my son was born I got down to 132. I thought wow this is great i’ll be back to my pre-pregnancy weight in no time! But I had to stop breast feeding at about 3 months because I wasn’t producing enough for my little toad! Now i’m back up to 140 or more I guess i’ve been too afraid to weigh myself the past month or so. I went from a small C to a DD while I was breast feeding and now i’m back down to a small C and my breasts are covered in stretch marks and so saggy I feel like an old woman at 21. My stomach doesn’t have bad stretch marks just some under my belly button but i’m still very self conscious about them and I think I look like i’m still pregnant. I hate wearing anything but hanes t-shirts because I feel like someone’s going to ask me when i’m due. I have family that makes fun of my stomach which I know they don’t mean it to be mean but it kills me inside everytime anyone says anything. My husband loves me more than anything and doesn’t care what I look like and I know that but he hasn’t told me i’m beautiful since I was first pregnant which makes me feel so much worse. Today was the first day i’ve let him see me completely naked since I was breast feeding. He told me “You don’t look that bad.” I know he didn’t mean it the way it sounds but my heart dropped to the ground when he said that. I’ve tried excercising but I have something wrong with my hips and if I do anything physical I can barely walk the next day because i’m in so much pain. This started when I was in my second trimester and I would literally have to crawl to the bathroom in the middle of the night to pee because I was in so much pain. The doctor told me it was just my hips moving to prepare for child birth but its been 8 months since my son was born and the pain is still there so I don’t know what to do. It seems like everytime I go to the doctor for anything they look at me and see that yes i’m skinny besides my stomach and i’m young so whatever pain i’m feeling is nothing serious. Well I think if I can barely walk because of dibilitating hip pain something is wrong regardless of my age and physique!! But anyway that’s not why i’m posting on here. I just want to know that i’m not alone and that someone else is going through what I am because I see girls the same age as me or even older looking like they’ve never had kids walking around in bikinis with no stretch marks and beautiful bodies and I feel like a fat freak. And yes I know people are a lot worse off than me but i’m not used to this feeling I have always loved my body and felt very lucky because I come from a family that has a lot of over weight people and i’ve always been so thankful to be able to look like I do but now that I look like this I just feel horrible and feel like everyone is comparing me to how I used to look and thinking i’m fat. I also feel like my husband isn’t attracted to me anymore even though he says he is. Well i’ll stop babbling now and I look forward to your comments! <3 1st picture- my husband and I at our first prom together 2nd picture- 4 weeks pregnant 3rd picture- 31 weeks pregnant 4th-7th picture- me today 8 months postpartum [gallery]
Before Pregnancy
7 Months PP & HATING Myself! (Sarah)
Age: 21
7 months PP
1 pregnancy
Pre-pregnancy weight: 150
Current weight: About 190
Let me start off by saying that I’ve never liked my body! Before I got pregnant I weighed 150 lbs. About a year before I was pregnant I weighed around 180 and after working as housekeeping I lost 30 lbs. When I found out I was pregnant I was scared for my body! My family has a curse, I swear!, and once us women get pregnant we seem to grow larger and larger by the years. During my pregnancy I got A LOT of stretch marks, which are still bad today. I look like I was attacked by a bear! Anyway, a little over a month before my due date I found out my blood pressure was going up. I ended up going into labor 3 weeks before my due date. The problem was preeclampsia It made since the more I got about it! I gained 10 lbs in 1 week! I remember almost crying when the doctor told me that! I stayed within the 25 lb limit during my pregnancy up until that point. Well, I ended up gaining 60 lbs when I went into labor. After the preeclampsia was gone I did lose 20 lbs the first month my daughter was born because I was so busy and tired that I had no urge to eat. Once I got use to the no sleeping I got my appetite back – which was the worst thing that could have happened!
My husband works nights and he works 7 nights straight, so it’s just me and the baby most of the time. I’m a stay at home mom so it’s very lonely! So lonely that I got bad PP depression, which made me eat away my feelings. At that point I realized how much I did not like myself! I was disgusted at looking in the mirror or putting on clothes! 4 months PP and my depression seemed to go down a lot and I stopped eating when I was bored and lonely. I lost 5 lbs Not a huge deal but it showed I was making progress! Now here I am 7 months PP and I don’t know if my depression has came back but I noticed I eat when I’m bored again! I can not break this cycle! I am soon getting my CNA and I am so excited because I know it will help me get my butt back into shape!
I wouldn’t be so hateful towards myself but I’d had several friends who have babies and they barely gained any baby weight and they lost it within 3 months. I also feel like I’ve let my husband down by not controlling myself and getting so big. Summer’s here and all I want to do is take my little girl swimming for the first time, but I’m terrified of what I’m going to wear and I’m going to be paranoid that people are staring at me. I have to find clothing that covers my stretch marks on my stomach and thighs, which is hard!
I want to learn to love myself. I hate being naked and I hate when my husband sees me naked! I’m in constant fear of my husband leaving me for a better looking women, who is real thin and has no stretch marks, that it stupidly makes me eat even more. He calls me sexy and beautiful everyday but I shrug it off. I don’t believe him. Does anyone else have this problem? How can I ignore all these thoughts in my head? I want to actually feel beautiful. I feel like I went through an amazing journey being pregnant and giving birth that I should have something to show for it besides a huge pouch!
The 3 belly photos are from now. Pregnant belly is of course during pregnancy lol & the one with the pink shirt is my pre-pregnancy weight.
Will I Ever Be Sexy Again? (Anonymous)
Age: 23
Number Of Births: 1
I married the love of my life in May of 2011, and we conceived our baby boy on our honeymoon. At that time I weighed 145 lbs at 5′ 4″. I’d never been a skinny girl, but pretty athletic and active. Over the nine months I carried my baby, I gained 40 pounds. 20 more than I’d hoped for. I had beautiful skin and not a single stretch mark… Until I hit my 35th week. Then they spread like wildfire. I was devastated. I did everything I possibly could to prevent them, cocoa butter, massage, body brushing.. but in the end they took over. I had planned for a home water birth, but after 36 hours of labor, and being stuck at 6 cm dilated for 12 hours, I had to go to the hospital. Got an epidural, then 4 hours later with no progress, led to a c-section. Everything went as well as major abdominal surgury could go.. I recovered well and my boy latched on and breastfed wonderfully. My precious baby is the best thing, by far, that has ever happened to me. But the body that I was left with has been really hard for me to deal with.
My stomach, love handles, thighs, and around my breasts were covered in stretch marks, and I felt saggy, floppy, and unattractive. I’ve cried to my husband many times saying how afraid I am that I’ll never be sexy again. Of course he reassures me that he thinks I’m the most beautiful woman ever, but it’s hard to believe that when I see my reflection in the mirror. I hear everyone say stretch marks are a badge of mother-honor.. but that’s no comfort to me. I want my pretty, flawless skin back, and I know it’ll most likely never happen. My breasts have grown 3 cup sizes and with breastfeeding they’re extremely heavy. They feel like they’re sagging like crazy and that makes it hard to be topless during intimate moments with my husband. My legs and butt used to be very tight and toned, but now when I run they jiggle like jello. I know that if I stick with exercising, the jiggle can be fixed, but I’m so afraid that my mid-section and breasts are a lost cause.
I’m not exactly sure why I’m telling everyone my sob story, but I felt like I could relate to alot of women on this site. I realize that almost every mom has issues with her post-baby body, and I’m no exception. Still, I thought this would be good for me to share my experience and show that difference of what I had, and what I have now. My precious baby boy is the best thing in my life and he’s worth every sacrifice and hardship that I’ve gone through . But I just hope someday I can get my body somewhat back so he can have a pretty, fit, and healthy looking mommy that he’s proud of. I want to be a good example to my babies.
Picture #1: Summer before marriage, weight 145
Picture #2: Belly 5 weeks before birth, right before stretch marks plagued me
Picture #3: 11 weeks after birth
Picture #4: 11 weeks after birth (side)
Picture #5: Stretch Mark Areas
My Struggle (Anonymous)
20 years old. 1 pregnancy, 1 birth.
I have struggled with my weight for years. My sister was always the tiny/petite one and I was always the chunky tomboy. At 15, my manager at American Eagle introduced me to adderall..I could take it and work hard all day without eating anything. I was losing weight and starting to feel good about myself for the first time in my whole life! In the summer of ’09 I was approached to model for Hollister..I started working there and befriended one of the managers right away! We bonded over our adderall use and it quickly turned into a stupid competition on who could lose more weight and look better in super low rise jeans and tiny tank tops. I was around 135lbs and a size 4 when I started working there and by the summer of 2010 I was 118lbs and a size 0 which was VERY thin for my 5ft 9in frame. On December 6th, two days before my 19th birthday…I found out I was pregnant! I stopped taking adderall immediately and started taking care of myself. My tiny sister had a 2 year old and was pregnant with her second child at the time, she had no stretch marks and went home from the hospital in her skinny jeans so, I was hoping I would get lucky like that too! At almost 30 weeks my very round belly started to itch CONSTANTLY and that’s when I noticed my stretch marks for the first time. I couldn’t stop crying..my husband tried to act like he didn’t see them and told me not to worry about it. I was almost 200lbs when I gave birth to our 7lb 14oz baby boy…my doctor never had any concern about my weight because of my build (I asked at every visit!) I was still hoping to shrink back down to normal when we got home but it didn’t happen..I was still huge and I had stretch marks on my stomach, sides, thighs, and legs. My sister kept telling me it wasn’t a big deal and I was depressed for no reason but hearing that from someone with two kids and no stretch marks just pissed me off more. A few girls that I went to school with had babies a couple of weeks after my son was born and it seemed like I was the only one with stretch marks…they were all back to their normal sizes just days after birth and I was still struggling.
My son is almost 10 months old now, I weigh about 145lbs and my stretch marks and saggy stomach still bother me every day. I truly believe that this little blonde haired blue eyed boy saved my life because if he hadn’t come along when he did, I wouldn’t have changed my unhealthy and very destructive lifestyle. This site made me realize that I’m not alone and I really enjoyed reading all of the inspirational stories. One day, I hope to be proud of my body and what it has endured.
Photos:
Summer of 2010
9 months post
9 months post
My handsome boy.
I’ve Earned my Tiger Stripes (Tara)
When i first discovered I was pregnant I searched everywhere for post baby bodies, terrified of what I was going to look like after. I didn’t find anything then but recently came across your site and loved it! Hopefully by sharing my story and images I can ease the fear of other soon to be moms!
I am 21 years old and the mother of 1. I am about 5ft10 and I have no idea what I weigh now nor what I weighed before I got pregnant, I did however, weigh 180 at the end of my pregnancy. If I look in a mirror and like what I see who cares what a scale will tell me :). I got pregnant 2 days after my 20th birthday and gave birth to my beautiful baby girl on November 11, 2011 weighing 8lb 4oz. Before I got pregnant I had been wearing the same jeans since grade ten, it took me three months postpartum to fit into my pre-pregnancy jeans and now six months later those jeans are to big on me! (I thank breast feeding for that). My shirts don’t fit me so well anymore though since I went from a 36B to a 36D :(. I miss my smaller boobs! These ones are always in the way! I have included three pictures of my stomach, one picture is before I got pregnant and two are 6 months postpartum. Thankfully my teddy bear tattoo still looks like a bear, I got it done with the intention of never having kids (decided that too soon I think). I still love my body and I’ll still be rocking a bikini this summer. I hope every mother out there finds the strength and ability to love the changes in her body after giving birth. I wear my stretch marks proudly because I earned them.
The Before, During, and After of My Belly (Anonymous)
age 28
number pregnancies: 1 pregnant 25 weeks with next
I have always been pretty active and fit, I was 26 when I got pregnant with my son, it was unexpected and my husband and I had only been together for 6 months at the time. I tried and tried to avoid the stretch marks but I already had a ton of old ones from when I went through puberty so I knew it was a lost cause.
The angry little marks showed up around 37 weeks and I decided that I would document the changes in my belly from the end of pregnancy to immediately following the birth, to a couple weeks after to 2 years after to see how my body recovered. The marks do fade but never go away and you learn to live with them, I got a higher cut bikini to hide the old marks the best I can but I really don’t care anymore.
I am now 25 weeks pregnant with my second kid and wonder what will happen this time around, I’m sure I’ll be sad initially but I will look and see that the scars fade and life goes on. =)
picture 1 is of me a few months before getting pregnant
picture 2 is me the day I went to the hospital, the marks are hidden by the size of the belly!
picture 3 is an hour after birth while laying in the hospital bed
picture 4 is two weeks after
Two weeks
2 years after
Pregnant 25 weeks
Where is my Self-Confidance? (Anonymous)
I am 24 years old. I have two children, 2 1/2 and 9 months old now. I met my husband back in 2007, he deployed for a year and then we began dating in July 2008. After three months we moved in together and after 8 months I was pregnant. It was unplanned as I was on birth control. I in no way will ever regret being pregnant at a young age. I had to give up college & much a of a social life but it was all worth it.
I had a massive weight gain with my first pregnancy, starting weight 138 and the day I gave birth I was 200 pounds. I had Preeclampsia by the end of my pregnancy and was induced 2 weeks early. 12 hours of labor and my baby girl was here. I’ll never forget that day.
Weight coming off with my first pregnancy seemed easy, I tried breast feeding for a month which I think helped in my weight loss. By a month with no working out, just eating right and drinking plenty of water, I lost 35 pounds of my baby weight. Then another 10 more pounds when I started working out a month before my wedding, which was just 5 months after the birth of my daughter. After my wedding, I just kind of let my body go. My husband loved my body, and I didn’t look awful but I still felt i did. Most depressing thing is having a baby who is 5 months old looking like i gave birth yesterday and then seeing a mom who is a tooth pick with a newborn. I guess some women are lucky?
My husband and I decided we wanted our children close together and so we started trying when my daughter was 6 months old. Nothing happened for months….but then tragically I lost my father when my daughter was 10 months old and for a month I just got depressed, lost hope of getting pregnant, knowing my father wouldn’t be here to see any more grandchildren.
When my daughter was a year old my husband and I discovered I was pregnant! We were so happy, I felt like it was a blessing from god. My depression got better, I accepted the death of my father and lived life as much as we possibly could as a family.
My weight gain with my second pregnancy was much less than with my first. I was 160 when I got pregnant with the second and when I gave birth to my son I weighed 195. The day I gave birth to my son, my mom couldn’t be there with me because she had to put my grandma into hospice who was diagnosed with cancer a month before my Dad passed away. So my depression just seemed to sky rocket. Not having my Dad with me, not having my Mom by my side and soon to be losing my only grandma left.
Two weeks passed and my grandma lost her battle with cancer.
Maybe I am a just weak minded person, I never thought I was. Depression took over me…at my 6 week check up my husband came with and unknowingly told my dr. that I was battling with depression and I needed something to help. I have always been strong and felt that taking depression pills made me weak, unstable and psycho.
It took a good month before I noticed a change.
I shouldn’t use my depression as an excuse to why I haven’t lost a lot of weight or fixed my body but I am so ashamed of how I look that I hate going out of the house. I don’t like being around old friends who haven’t gone through the childbearing process.
I have never been okay with the way I look, my sister called me fat all the time while growing up and sadly it has just stuck with me. My sister weighs less than 100 pounds and she also had a baby. So seeing her being so skinny a week after she had her son makes me feel horrible.
After my son was born, I got the implanon birth control. I in no way wanted to get pregnant until I have finished college and could fully help my husband support our family.
I was on it for four months, depression worsened, headaches were awful, and I had my period for 4 straight months. My husband and I had no sex life which was hurting our marriage by the day. I decided enough was enough and I was getting it out. A week later I felt amazing, my period stopped, my sex drive sky rocketed and my husband and I got a long amazingly and still do to this day.
We used condoms ever time we had sex, one night we didn’t have one and used the stupid pull out method…..which resulted in my getting pregnant with our “3rd Child”
We were shocked, scared and many other things. We weren’t financially ready to have another or mentally ready. Children take a lot of time work etc…..
After accepting we were having another, we started thinking of names, etc. I was 9 weeks pregnant and started cramping and spotting, called the dr. knowing it wasn’t normal.
Went in for blood work and ultrasound. Seeing the baby, I knew something wasn’t right, it was measuring 6 weeks when I was actually 9. So we had to meet with the dr. She told us we were going to miscarry. We were devastated, it’s been two weeks & I am still going through the miscarriage. I hope to be done soon.
I’ve been tired, feeling depressed, feeling I look disgusting….. I want to feel better soon.
9 months later after the birth of my son, I weigh 164. My goal is to weigh 140 again…. I have been walking/running which makes my days so much better.
This website gave me so much encouragement to face my body. Seeing other mothers in this world who struggle with the same body issues has made me feel better about myself, that I am not a lone. Thank you to all!
Nobody knows beauty until they have created children :)
I should add that before I had kids my bra size was 36 b now after two kids I wear a 36 DD…. That itself is hard to deal with, my boobs aren’t feeling young and perky anymore
Age: 24
Pregnancies: 3
Births: 2
Daughter is 2 1/2
Son is 9 months
9 Months pp
Vaginal Births, cellulite & some stretch marks
1st Picture: Me the summer before getting pregnant ( Brunette in black swim suit) Thought I was fat then.
2nd Picture: Me on the left the month I got pregnant (138 pounds)
3rd Picture: 5 months after my first child was born, my wedding day 150 pounds.
4th Picture: Me with my daughter 6 months after she was born
5th Picture: My stomach and thighs today 165 pounds
6th Picture: My breasts & stomach today
7th and 8th Pictures: Side views of my stomach
9th Picture: Thighs.
My stretch marks are worse on one side than the other. I have tried everything they make for stretch marks and nothing has helped. I do not tan anymore which I am sure helps with them looking less visible?
Trying to Cope (Claire-Bee)
ok so I’m a 24yr old mother of two, a 3 1/2 yr old and a 21month old. Both c-sections and both almost 10lbs each. It has been a rough journey to start. I was a size 9 with amazing abs. With my first I tried every cream on the market still got stretch marks. Bad ones they bleed towards the end. Now 21 months postpartum and working out like crazy, I realize those abs I once had will never show again. Just saggy stripped skin. I’m trying to be happy everyday that bathing suit season approaches but its hard knowing at 24 I’m going to be stuck in a one piece all summer. Good think my babies are healthy and beautiful, probably what gets me through.
* I have my 30in waist pre-pregnancy picture.
*my first pregnancy 38 weeks along with hubby
*my second pregnancy 39 weeks along with hubby and daughter
* my current 21month postpartum belly. 15lbs from my before weight.
There is hope to loving your postpartum body. (Amanda)
My name is Amanda. I’m 24 years old, married for 5 years, and a mother of a beautiful 2 year old little boy. I have been very self conscious since probably the first 4 months during pregnancy. I gained a tremendous amount of weight. I am 5’4 – 5’5.and went from 135 to 193! I may have weighed more than that by the time I delivered though. After I had my son, I was severely depressed and hated my body. I didn’t want to leave my house, or be seen by anyone. I had stretch marks, huge thighs, big butt, you name it, I had it all. My weight did not just “fall off”.People were always commenting on my weight and it made me even more depressed, although I’m sure they didnt realize that they were truly hurting my feelings. I forgave them, but I used their words as my motivation. It was time to get serious!! So about 4 or 5 months ago, I started dieting and exercising. Zumba videos online daily, crunches, side bends, squats etc. and here I am now..2 years later.. Im feeling ALOT better.. I am now down to 131 pounds(a little less than pre-pregnancy) YAY :) My hips are bigger, and my body has changed quite a bit from pre-pregnancy, and Im much curvier.BUT I am learning to LOVE my new body everyday :)
1st pic- me, front view, 2 years postpartum
2nd pic- side view, 2 years postpartum
3rd pic- me 2 weeks, post partum. Had only lost about 10 pounds at this point.
4th pic- me pre-pregnancy, with clothes
5ht pic- me, 2 years post-partum, with clothes
The fat I hate, not the stripes. (Aly)
22 yrs old.
2 pregnancies, 1 birth.
Five month old daughter, pp.
My story may be everywhere, sorry.
I was pregnant before at 18, but never kept the baby. My personal choices led me to having an abortion. I am willing to share my reasons why, but if asked through email. I’m not ready to publicly announce why nor am I proud for what I have done. I battled depression, and so much more before I got to where I am at today. I just wanted to share that I was pregnant before, and to be honest with my choices.
I was 21 when I found out I was pregnant the second time, same guy. We have been together since we were 16. In April/2011 I found out I was pregnant with my little angel. I cried with joy never thinking I could get pregnant again. After the abortion I had a small fear that I may have ruined my chances of being pregnant again. Beside the point I had a wonderful pregnancy, nothing medically wrong with us. I did gain my warrior marks which I expected. My maternal grandmother, and mother have stretch marks so I knew I would get them. Funny thing is I’m actually okay with these marks. They will fade, and there are creams to help diminish them some. Bad thing, I gained more than the recommend amount of weight yet it never worried my doctors. I weighed 115 pregnancy, and before birth I weighed 167. On December 8, 2011 I gave birth to my beautiful daughter…. My greatest joy in life.
Five months later, I weigh 143-45 lbs. I hate it with a passion. I do, and can’t really sit down to talk to anyone about this. I tell my mother, or express it to my husband…. I do it with light humor to hide my hurt. I look five months pregnant, and try to do the right thing. Exercise, walk, drink water, and I’m also breastfeeding too. I have a wider girth, and haven’t worn jeans since I was 20 wks pregnant. I tried on jeans one time when I was three months pp, most emotional day of my life. I wanted to cry because I couldn’t fit a certain size. It has been pajama bottoms, and sweats for me. Another thing I hate is down there. My daughter turned her head when she was crowning, and ripped the left side of my upper vaginal area. So my clitoris… Or I mean the small lips whatever they are called part of the clit is forever seperated in half on the left side. I hate when my husband touches me there because I know it is ripped so there is another confidence downer for me. I sag, look pregnant, and have a ripped clit.
Never, never have I ever had to wear a girdle. Now I do, and its so depressing. Like wow, really? I wear a girdle to give the illusion that I lost SOME of my belly. Even then it still doesn’t work making me look pregnant still, but holds me in place. I blew up, and I hate it. I battle with the thought of this. I wish I had a tummy tuck I can deal with a scar. I try… I have the privilege of staying at home with my daughter to raise her… She helps me forget everything when she smiles at me. It just takes a toll on me.. everyone tells me I will get skinnier a bit in time. I hear them, but don’t take their words in stride. This hurts me… I struggle with raising my daughter while my husband works, try to care for my house, dog, and husband. At times I fail at all of those things. Where is there time for myself? I recently started exercising a bit more with the husband. I’m motivated to do that because we do it together. I’m trying. We will see, but right now I’m so down on myself it sucks. Makes me want to break down, and cry. I went from being a petite 115 lbs, five foot lady to a wide all around fatness. Yes, I went there. I’m serious too, I’m FAT! Yet I’m content with my stretch marks. I just miss the bikini days… And my confidence. If I don’t have any confidence how can I better myself at everything else? Once in a while I feel apathetic except towards my daughter. I have a real smile every morning when I wake up to see her smiling up at me with her innocent eyes. Maybe someday I will regain back at least a little confidence to push forward with more… For now I’m at a hate relationship with myself….
First picture – Pre-pregnancy,Second: Two days before induction, I was 40 wks., Third: Five months pp front view, Fourth: Side view, Fifth: How it looks when I suck my tummy in. It’s so sad… but I want to share because I can be me without wondering what someone else may say… and I don’t have to use humor.
