Belly

34 Weeks Pregnant (Dallas)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, First Pregnancy, Pregnant, Submissions 7 Comments

34 Weeks Pregnancy

The name you want posted with your entry: Dallas

~Your story or thoughts if you want to include something:

I am currently 34 weeks pregnant with my first child. I am expecting a little princess. My pregnancy was a total surprise. The baby’s father and I had separated in late March of this year, and I found out I am expecting in April. We decided that it was in everyone’s best interest if we tried to work things out. We started with a clean slate, moved to a new house and got all new furniture. Things were going well. I had the nursery completely set up, clothes washed and unpacked. I was ready for my princess’ arrival.

Two days ago, he served me with an eviction notice. I was forced to leave my home at 3:30 in the morning. Our relationship was perfect by no means, but this was completely out of left field. I am utterly broken and bitter. 8 months pregnant, and no where to go.

I can’t help but feel the pregnancy is the cause. Not the child, but the pregnancy. I feel like the worst mother in the world, because since this happened I have felt completely detached from my baby. Normally, I love feeling her move and wiggle. But every kick, every roll, reminds me of her daddy. Reminds me of the heartbreak. It’s not her fault, and I know that. I love her more than life… But I feel like being pregnant has caused problems. My self esteem has disappeared since gaining weight and stretch marks. And my self esteem disappearing made me very uneasy about the relationship, causing tensions between us.

I love my baby. I want her to be here. I want to regain my love for myself. I want my family back.

I’m quite sure this post didn’t even.make much sense. But it feels good to get it out.

I took these pictures of my belly today…. There’s nothing more I hate about myself than these marks.

~Age: 20
~Number of pregnancies and births: 1
~The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: 34 weeks gestation

I HAte My Belly (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions 6 Comments

I had my daughter almost a year ago, I have tried to do everything I can to get rid of the stretch marks and the flab HELP. anyone know any exercise, and i’ve used bio-oil it seems to do the trick. before i got pregnant i weighed 97.9 and then after i was at 158, and now i am to 115 but STILL have a gut! HELP!! I am only 20 should feel and look beautiful.

Question (Jilliann)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Cesarean, Four or More Pregnancies, Postpartum, Submissions, Twins 5 Comments

Hi my name is Jilliann and I’m a mother of 7.All my kids were born by c-section.They were all pretty small.My biggest was 7lbs 1oz.When i got pregnant the last time i found out i was having twins(boys)I got really big with themNow they are here and are 5 1/2 months old.And i still like look im about due to have another one.Everyone always asks and it makes me feel so bad..I just wanted to no how you did it.How you lost that look???

Thanks jilliann

Heres a pic.Its not the best one but u can see my belly.I took it today.

Love/Hate Relationship With My Body (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) 5+ Years Postpartum, Belly, Breasts, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions, Teen Mom 14 Comments

I was 18 when I got pregnant so being that young and still kind of dealing with the insecurities I had then didn’t help what was going to come along with pregnancy. I hadn’t started really gaining weight till about 5/6 months then I shot up in weight. My pre-pregnancy weight started at 150/155 I ended with a weight of 220… I will say having the father of my daughter gone all the time partying and being stuck alone with his family did not help but no excuse. We had a young and dumb relationship I caught him watching porn all the time so that didn’t help I knew it wasn’t my fault that he was the one with the problem but I just couldn’t help but to think I’m disgusting/fat/saggy/with stretch marks everywhere.

It’s been 1 1/2 yrs. since we split up but I still hate me. My friends and family say I look great but they are just friends and family they wouldn’t tell me what I really looked like(in my head) I am down to 174 with only 20 pounds to go to loose. I have done all the diets no eating..eating right/exercising/taking phentermine/liquid diet..Nothing makes me feel better. I am currently engaged to the most amazing God loving man I had longed for the past 6 years. He is amazing to not only me but most importantly my daughter! He says all the time how much he loves my body..That it’s beautiful and sexy mainly because of what I see as flaws. He says my body is a woman’s body that brought a beautiful little girl into to the world and that everything about it is perfect. WHY CANT I BELIEVE HIM????????? I love myself to an extent..but I feel such shame a selfishness because I know my body did something amazing and while that something amazing is laying on the floor in front of me playing with her barbies, so perfect, beautiful, loving and everything else a mom feels for their child I can’t help but to look at my sagging/stretch marks with extreme disgust…I feel ashamed in myself for even being so negative..

So with all that being said this website is AMAZING!! Y’all are an inspiration and completely beautiful! I don’t look at any of these pictures or stories how I look at myself..I see all of yall as beauty queens with “an amazing woman’s body”(like my fiancé tells me) Thank you all for sharing!!

God Bless!!!!!

Pregnancies: 1
Age: 24
Daughters Age: 5(6 in December!!! =D )

My Body and I (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Postpartum, Second Pregnancy, Submissions, Teen Mom 7 Comments

Age 24
2 children ages 7 and 3
One natural (no drugs! Woot!)
One emergency c-section

I have always had body issues. Thanks to my mother’s ex boyfriend of 5 years I was led to believe I was grotesque. How naive I was. At 5’8 and 135 lbs I was perfect. I got pregnant with my son at 16. On my 16th birthday. Lol. Happy birthday to me! His daddy was (and is) my soul-mate. We were together a year and a half before I got pregnant and I got lucky enough to suck him in with a baby. ( kidding!!!) I gained around 70 lbs with him and delivered at 215. My son gave me these stretchmarks and loose skin. He also gave me more love than I knew what to do with! He is the light of my life. Full of joy and energy. He makes my heart smile. I had my daughter in Italy at the age of 20. Her daddy wanted to see the world, and took me on an adventure. I carried her well and, as a matter of fact, was asked if I was sure I was pregnant and not just gaining weight at 6 months! My daughter gave me a scar and an understanding of life. We died on the operating table, and we fought our way back together. She is my heart. Her sense of humor lights up my life everyday. I sometimes cry in vain over my body. I refuse to leave the lights on (unless there is wine involved! Lol) I will not wear a bikini, I compare myself to other moms. I stress about what my skin is going to look like when I’m done losing the extra pounds and I get angry at my belly and myself. I am down to 180 and scared of what my hanging flap will look like at 140(my goal) but ultimately I have made peace with my body. It gave me my children, and I thats worth every dimple and stretchmark.

Hope is Not Lost (Laura)

Bonnie (SOAM) Before Pregnancy, Belly, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Pregnant, Submissions 5 Comments

Age: 22
Number of pregnancies and births: 1
The age of your children, or how far postpartum you are: 5 months PP

I discovered this site while I was pregnant. I was desperate, searching for answers of what my body would look like after baby. Now, 5 months after delivering a beautiful baby girl, I can say think my obsession was a little silly.

I, like so many others posts that I have read, was an insecure teenager. I was always chunky, from the time I was 10 to the time I was 18. Then I lost a bunch of weight. I was still self-concious, but deep down I thought I looked great. Well, that level of confidence lasted for 3 years: until I got pregnant at 21 years of age.

I started my pregnancy at 155 pounds (I am 5’9″). The week before I delivered, I think I weighed around 225. I say I think I weighed 225 because I had stopped looking at the scale at the doctor’s office. Being weighed while pregnant was never a fun experience! lol. Now, around 5 months after delivery, I weigh 186 pounds. I’m still working towards my goal of 155 pounds, or to fit into my pre-pregnancy clothes, whichever comes first.

Losing weight has not been easy. Trying to exercise with a newborn in the house? Enough said. But I’ve been doing it. I’ve been watching my calories using an application on my phone and I’ve been working out whenever I have time left over after being a mom, working part-time, and being a full-time college student. I’ve lost 20 pounds since I came home from the hospital and my self-confidence is slowly returning. I feel great! I still do feel insecure at times though since my body is a lot different from most 22 year olds. Whenever that happens I quickly remind myself that I have been fortunate enough to have given life, and that it in itself was no easy task.

The main thing I would like to say to women who have experienced pregnancy is to love your body! And if you find that you just can’t manage to love it, do not settle! Do something about it! Whether it be exercising, or telling yourself every day how beautiful you are, if you are unhappy, then change something.

The following pictures are of me:

Pre-pregnancy
8/9 months pregnant at my baby shower
1 month PP
5 months PP (one front and one side belly. Forgive the broken mirror, I’m a bit clumsy sometimes.. :) )
And finally, my beautiful baby girl

My Dear Belly (M.B.)

Bonnie (SOAM) 5+ Years Postpartum, Belly, First Pregnancy, Mom over 30, Postpartum, Submissions 9 Comments

My name is M.B., I am 30 years old and live in germany. I’ve got one daughter. She is nine years old now and in all those years I never found a way to accept the shape of my belly. I am doing a lot of sports, which makes me skinner and more strength through the years, but nothing ever changed this skin looking they way it does. Whenever I stretch myself in a yoga-class, so that my belly gets to be seen, I feel ashamed and lose my grip. I totally loose my breathing and get out of training. Or in summertimes, when my daughter, my boyfriend and me go swimming I always think, that everybody is just starring at my shink. I often felt uncomfortable for my body and always felt like having the responsibility to work on that. So thank you for this wonderful idea, which I totally support. Let’s not feel bad about our humanity. Respect my belly! It carried a human.

Peace,
M.B.

Motherhood (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Postpartum, Second Pregnancy, Submissions 6 Comments

Ive been following SOAM for a few years and always just reading but I decided I might as well participate. Lets see…I developed quite early and was always very down about myself for having bigger breasts and wider hips. I thought it was weird, and almost felt like thats how people knew me as. When I got to high school, I was even more self consious about it. I always felt heavy, and out of place. Now that I look back on it, I think it’s rediculous because if I could have that body now, id be in love with it. It’s hard for a woman to look at the media and see all these beautiful women with perfect bodies and not feel down about ourselves. Or those celebrities who have had kids and managed to bounce right back. Im on the journey of learning to love my body, knowing it brought two beautiful children into the world. Loving my tummy because it provided a nice home for my babies, and my breasts because it provided nourishment. It’s easy to say that, but harder to actually feel it. But then I think women have done this for thousands and thousands of years, and that makes me feel empowered. Soft tummies and stretch marks are realistic. And beautiful. Im still learning that. I dont exactly feel comfortable looking in a mirror at myself naked, let alone having my husband see me naked with the lights on. I feel like I’ve heard time and time again “you look amazing for having two children!” but then I think “well, you havent seen me without my clothes on.” But regardless, it’s just time to love my body now. I should be thanking it.

Age: 22
Number of Pregnancies and births: 2 and 2

Gaining Acceptance and a Little Appreciation (Anonymous)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, Postpartum, Second Pregnancy, Submissions, Update 3 Comments

Number of pregnancies/births: 2/2
Currently 3 weeks pp: weighing 166 pounds
Weight before pregnancy #2: 155 pounds
Weight on delivery day (40 weeks prego) 194 pounds
Height: 5’10”

After my first pregnancy I realized soon into my pp days that I was “cursed” with this saggy, wrinkly skin and horrendous stretch marks. I was convinced that I was no longer attractive, not now and never would be again. All of my two piece bathing suits went to good will. Not that I was ever completely satisfied with my body, being the typical young female and all, but I had it in me to appreciate my flat stomach and I had pretty nice boobs… Now both of those are no longer in existence. After breast feeding number 1, my boobs sag a bit. Now 3 weeks pp with number 2, I am being reintroduced to my saggy belly. Surprisingly enough, as I look at it now it doesn’t seem as bad as I thought of it the first time around. I think a lot of this has to do with this site and all of the wonderful women sharing their stories/pictures/encouraging words/words of wisdom… Even from the youngest of moms!! When I found out I was prego again, I remember saying to my husband “I promise after this one I will get into the best shape of my life and schedule a total mommy makeover…” he just rolled his eyes and tried to convince me that he finds me attractive and surgery is not needed… Yea right, I thought. Well, no longer do I feel I need a total mommy makeover. I have two beautiful girls. I know too many girls who can’t have kids and would die for my saggy skin so they can hold their newborn in their arms… As I hold my three week old in my arms, and I play with my toddler, I remind myself how blessed I am… Life is crazy hectic but these two beautiful girls are my world and I wouldn’t trade anything for that! Here are some photos 3 weeks pp with number 2… I do still plan to work out and eat healthy so I have a ways to go but I’ve gained acceptance and a little appreciation… Thank you to all who have shared and commented….

Updated here.

Extremely Self-Consious About My 2 Month PP Body (Hollie)

Bonnie (SOAM) Belly, First Pregnancy, Postpartum, Submissions 17 Comments

My name is Hollie, I’m 21 years old, and I gave birth to my beautiful, wonderful son Triston 2 months ago. I gave birth vaginally, and slightly underestimated how much it would hurt, haha. I knew that my postpartum body wouldn’t be like my prepregnancy body by any means, but i didn’t expect the stretch marks to completely ravage my stomach, hips and legs the way they have.I’ve always had terrible problems with self-image (my mom would call my thunder thighs when i was younger and told me not to go to the beach for my honeymoon because my husband would definitely look at everyone but me and my dad would tell me i needed to stop eating so much, that I looked like i could eat someone out of house and home.) and that caused me to work out all the time in high school and I ended up with an incredibly toned tummy, and it’s been flat since then.Until I got pregnant and the comments started back up. I remember going to the lake when i was 7 months pregnant with my husband and my much skinnier friend and confidently wearing a 2-piece until my mom asked me how i wear that and stand next to my friend knowing she looked so much better than I did… so this has been like a nightmare to see every time I look in the mirror. I honestly don’t even see how my husband could find me attractive. This website has been a real help to me, when I found it I was on for an hour looking at the stories and pictures and they brought tears to my eyes. Thank you for creating a place like this where mommies like me can feel normal.