Submissions

I am still about 10-12 pounds over my pre baby weight and it is a constant struggle to stay where I am on the scale. I am hoping after weaning that I will get back to my old body. I am super grateful that I bounced back this well at 40 years old though, I must say! But I know my body will never be the same. My poor boobs are pointing at the ground! But they are nourishing another life, so for that I am thrilled and feel blessed. My daughter is the light of my life, so….. the scar, the cellulite, the back fat and belly roll are all worth it! One big hug from her makes me beautiful!

Hello, My name is Ashley, I am 21 years old and have just given birth to my beautiful daughter Shyanne. When i got pregnant i was 135lbs, which is good for me i have always had a problem maintaining a good weight. At 6 months i gained 23 lbs, All in total i had gained 45lbs, At 8 months i was 195lbs, At this time i did not have any stretch marks which i was happy about, a week before i had shyanne it was like over night i had these purple lines that were over my midline, I was upset, that was one thing i was wishing during the whole pregnancy that i would not recieve, But at this point there was nothing for me to do but live with them. I want to take a moment to explain why i am writing this letter but before i go and do so i will give you a little insight on how my delivery went. I was in labor for 38 hours…. I went into labor on 03/12/08 at 8:00am when my spouse was going to work, I didn’t let him know until about 9:00pm that evening when my sister was visiting and he took me up to the hospital where i was dialted at 1cm, they sent me home that evening, all night i was having contractions, the next morning of 03/13/08 i went back up to the hospital at 11:45am where i was dialted at 3cm, there was progress and i was admitted, I had the epidural in at around 1:00pm, from 11:45am – 3:30 pm i dialated to 5 cm, By 4:45pm my doctor broke my water, come 8:45pm there was no progress. I had a specialist look at me at 9:00pm when they informed me that i would need to have a c-section that shyanne was tilted, my spouse and my sister were my support and they were scared when they heard i needed a section, I informed them that this is a part of having a child and that i would be fine, even though i never expected that when i went into the hospital that i would be having a section, but i knew that the baby was fine and it was something that needed to be done, I was in good spirits and the laughing and smiling while i was having the c-section done, my doctor was laughing at me, and i just told her im going to take it as it comes and if this is something that i needed to get done then this is what i have to do. at 9:34pm my daughter was born via c-section. I didn’t get to see her until 11:30pm that night when i left the recovery room, she was beautiful, a true blessing, she was 8lbs 5oz, and was 19 inches long with a 34cm head. This has been the most happiest time of my life. It was the next day after my section when the nurses came in and told me that i would have to get up and walk. I was all ready to get up and when i tried i have never experienced that much pain in my life, and this is coming from a women who has had 38 hours of labor and previous accidents prior, but honestly it was like someone was taking a hot knife and cutting though my body. I cried for the first time and told them i couldn’t do it. The next 5 days while i spent in the hospital was learning how to walk and get up. My spouse was my support, he was there every step of the way and took care of our daughter, he took care of me, I would look at him and cry and tell him i didn’t think i could do this and yet he was there to support me each and everyday and made my recovery faster for me, its been 3 weeks and yesterday my last sutures stitches came off, the stitches on the inside are still there and havent disolved but i feel 100% better. I am writing because i felt so usless those first 5 days, the first two weeks really, i could not attend to my daughter the way i would have love to as well i had to depend on my spouse to take care of me, and i am an independent person and it bothered me that in the beginning i could not be the mother i would have wanted to, But this goes beyond that, i am writing this website because it has truly helped me with something i did not think i was going to deal with, what i am refering to are the stretch marks that are outlining the mid section of my stomach, along with the incision on my bikini line. I came across this website while i was looking for ways to feel attractive in my new body, I started to read other women stories and look at pictures and it made me realise that the stretch marks that are along my stomach are there for a reason they came during a time where my daughter was inside me and was growing and has grown into a beautiful healthy baby girl, and the incision that is out lining my bikini area is where my daughter was taken out of me and was brought into this world. I never thought i was going to be able to deal with the stretch marks, even though my spouse he thinks that i am more attractive since i have became a mom. We all know how we can somewhat feel disappointed in our own bodies, I did not think that i was ever going to be able to appreciate my ever changing body into a body of a mother, but i look at myself now and the stretch marks along my stomach and the incision as a memory of when shyanne was inside of me and was growing.If the stretch marks and the incision is the price i have to pay in exchange for the beautiful daughter i have now i would do it all over. I may not have the body of a beautiful model, but i have a body of a mother and i could not be more happier. I want to thank all the women on this site who was inspired me to feel beautiful about becoming a mom and having a mother’s body.

I accidentally got pregnant after dating my now husband for only 9 months. We soon decided to get married and 5 months later, I had our little boy. I gained 50 pounds and had a few stretch marks. I got pregnant soon after when my son was only 5 months old. I was on the patch and having heart problems when I got pregnant. Everything turned out fine and I had a little girl in April ’06 when my son was 14 months old. We decided two was enough and my husband had a vasectomy. Three months later, I find out I’m pregnant again. I delievered my third baby (all were induced and born vaginally) in May of ’07. I am now 11 months post-partem. My babies are 3, 2, and 11 months and I am so glad to have had all of them so quickly. I did, however, feel like I was pregnant for three years straight. I cried after my last baby because of the way my stomach looked. It gets better everyday and I’ve excepted my body and embrace it. It brought tears to my eyes to see everyone’s pictures on here. I was the first on both sides of our family to have a grandchild, so I had no one to experience pregnancy with. I am so happy to know that I am not alone and my body looks so much like everyone else’s out there. Thank you so much for making an ordinary person feel special and proud and priviledged.

I’m not sure if I love my tummy or hate it. Normally I hate any photos of myself. When I saw the photos of my tummy I didn’t think it was *that* bad. Saying that it looks awful in trousers I have a fat bulge. I have started slimming world and thats what prompted me to take a photo so I can hopefully see a change. My son was a biggish baby 8lb 13oz and I was all outfront. My c-sec scar healed very quickly and quite nicely too.

Dear Everyone: I am a new mother of a beautiful baby boy (6 lbs 10 oz 19.5 in). He is such a blessing. However, we had only been married 11 months when I got pregnant, and shortly after our ultrasound at five months, we found out he was getting deployed to Iraq. He left one week before delivery. As difficult as this time has been for me, Traice is such a welcome addition to my life. True, my breasts are saggy and the stretch marks on my hips and breasts are kinda ugly, but I think he is worth it. I would take the marks over never getting to meet my son. Thanks to all of you that had the courage to post to this site. It gave me strength as my due date drew near.

This is my belly. Im very self conscious of it. People tell me im pretty but i always say you would change your mind real quick if you ever say me naked. I envey the mothers who got away with a couple stretch maks and have their elasticity in their bellys. I wish i had more self esteem to be proud.

I haven’t seen that many larger women on the site, so I wanted to talk about my experiences. I was 255 lbs. before a got pregnant, and I am 5’4″. I’ve always been heavy, just like everyone in my family. Throughout my teenage years I had been about 170 lbs., and I was pretty fit for all that (my husband and I decided to get married while on a 50+ mile bicycle trip). After we married, though, I got a desk job and gained a lot of weight. When I hit 215 lbs. I decided I’d had enough and tried very hard to lose weight. I got back down to 200 lbs. briefly, but hit a plateau, became discouraged, and then went back up again. Every time I tried to diet, I would end up at least 10 lbs. heavier than I had started out. At least 40 of the pounds I carry are “failed diet pounds”. Several months before my pregnancy, I had finally gotten my weight stabilized, and was feeling like the healthier eating habits and increased exercise I was trying to slowly and carefully implement were starting to take hold. I wasn’t quickly dropping weight – but I also wasn’t gaining any. Every day felt like a victory because I felt in control for once. Though I knew it would take years and years, I was beginning to hope that I could once again have a 1 in front of my weight instead of a 2. My husband and I had been talking about getting pregnant for years, and despite being large I was in very good health. So, we took the leap and started trying. The first month we tried, I became pregnant! I was overjoyed, and I knew that I could grow a healthy baby. I didn’t know how complicated pregnancy would be (emotionally, not medically) for someone of my size. As soon as I became pregnant, I began eating better than I could ever have imagined I would. It was all raw vegetables, lean meats, low-fat dairy, fruits, and whole grains. It was much easier to eat well knowing that my baby was eating everything I was. My body responded to all this healthy eating, and by the time I reached the second trimester I had lost 15 lbs. As the pregnancy went further along, I began to feel upset at how un-pregnant I looked. I was still wearing my pre-pregnancy jeans at 5 1/2 months. I had no roundness to the belly, just jiggly fat. I was so proud of my body and what it was doing, but no one could tell I was pregnant and it irked me. I was getting pretty insecure about it, and it was a relief when I went in for my ultrasound and they told me the baby was growing just fine. I could rest a little easier knowing that she was getting bigger even if I wasn’t. Finally, I started to show a bit in my sixth month. I am now seven months along, and still no one thinks I’m pregnant unless I tell them, but at least now they can believe me once I do. I have accepted the fact that I’ll never have the “perfect” round belly that makes pregnant women look so beautiful, but it can be hard seeing other pregnant women because they look so lovely, while I just look fat. Here are some pictures of my belly at 28 weeks. I have some stretch marks, but they don’t bother me at all. In fact, I kind of like them. My body is marked by my baby, and I think it’ll be nice to still have her touch on my body after the pregnancy is over. Of course, I’ve had stretch marks on my belly, hips, thighs, and breasts since I went through puberty and filled out very quickly. I guess having a decade or so to get used to having them makes it easier to deal with getting new ones. Overall, I am happy that this is a healthy, completely normal pregnancy. I try to remember how lucky I am that my baby is growing healthy and strong inside me. This is such a special time, and I’m trying my best to relax and enjoy it.

my firstborn entered the earth by nonemergency c-section after 28 hours of labor. For my second, a scheduled c-section after great personal debate. My mother had 5 cesareans and has always said that she felt a little cheated- a bit like a failure. I have never felt this way. In fact, I was pleasantly surprised to see that my first scar is still present- I thought it would be cut away to make the new one which, by the way, is only 11 weeks old.

Here are some images of me 1-4 weeks postpartum following the birth of
my third child, a daughter.
I received an email recently from a friend encouraging me to think of
the beautiful postpartum body.
I started looking back at old photos and I have to say,
I love the beauty of my postpartum body and I don’t mind showing it off!
What would I do without my belly?
Where would my babies sit?
Where would they rest their wee heads when they grew weary of nursing?
RIght now my belly is full.
I am safe and comfortable in my domain as Mother with arms open wide.
My fullness is a sign of my waiting fertility.
It is part of me.
I am a mother and I look like one!

Hi, I was 20 when I found out I was pregnant, I had never really worried about my body although it was far from perfect. I stumbled across this website when I was searching after I noticed my 1st stretch mark at 34 weeks. I started to worry about what I would look like after I had my son and I have to say this website helped. I realised there was no “ideal” way to look after a pregnancy and everyone was different. I thoroughly enjoyed my pregnancy from start to finish it was a wonderful experience and I will definatly be having many more! I got developed really bad eczema at 12 weeks pregnant that lasted until about 36 weeks, I was all over my face of all places and I was more self concious about that than anything else! I was induced at 12 days overdue on a wednesday morning, and unfortunatly was allergic to the gel they used… so I had severe pains and constant sickness by the next afternoon and really though I was in labour only to be told it was just a reaction and I was only 3cm dilated! I thought I would never cope with real labour after this and began to panic! My partner and mother were on side to help me, and my partner was allowed to stay in a private room with me that evening… at around 1 o’clock in the morning my waters broke… and what a shock that was!! I didn’t have my son until 2.08am on saturday morning by emergency cesarean. I was fully dilated and pushing… having had only gas and air as pain relief before they realised he was stuck and I would have to have an emcs. Not the best experience as I had really wanted to be the first person to hold him and feed his straight away but nevertheless it was a wonderfull experience and as soon as I held my son for the first time and breastfed him it all felt so natural! Unfortunatly for Matthew, he was bruised and had a cut on his nose from where he had been stuck in the birth canal and his head was blistered from where they used the suction cap for a few days, but he is now 7 and a half months old and so beautiful, I look at him everyday and remind myself how lucky I am to have him. As for my body that is always an after thought. I have a partner who supports me 100% and loves my womanly figuire, and I love my stretch marks, they are a reminder of the wonderful 9 months I spent carrying my son!