Submissions

I had NO idea what pregnancy could do to a body, I had heard from others that it goes through drastic changes but I always shrugged it off thinking those changes would not happen to me. before I got pregnant I was 110lbs, I gained 40 lbs during my pregnancy and I have now at 10 wks PP only lost 15lbs and still cannot fit into my jeans. The weight is not what I cared about, it was the stretch marks I was left with that did not show up until week 32, I thought for sure I was going to get away without them, but no such luck, not only did I get them I got them BAD, everyday a new one showed up, I became so ashamed of my body and embarrassed beyond belief, I am only now beginning to accept them, I am still very self conscious but this site has helped tremendously, I was beginning to think I was the only one on the world to have received such brutal marks. I hate that I have them, but i feel like I cannot complain, my baby is worth it, and to think so many women can’t bare children, I am lucky to have these markings, they are a constant reminder of what I went through to have my baby.

(Note from Bonnie: I completely missed this one in time for actual Halloween, so I’m sorry it’s late, but enjoy!)

I thought I would submit a special halloween Shape of a Mother. I’ve always loved halloween and there are usually some pretty fun pictures. So I am going to submit pictues taken from halloweens since before my pregnancy (butterfly), three weeks before my son was born (do I need to tell you which one that is), about a year after he was born (he’s a monkey, I’m not wearing a costume for once), three years after he was born (flower), and this year, four years after he was born (belly dancer). I was somewhat overweight when I got pregnant (155 – I had knee surgery that year and I don’t take inactivity well) and gained nearly 75 pounds by the time my 10 pound 4 ounce son was born naturally in a birth center one week after his due date. I taught tango lessons until I was 6 months pregnant and social danced until the week before he was born. I struggled to lose the weight and got down to 170, but I couldn’t get any further until about a year ago when I think my hormones finally settled down. In the last 6 months alone I have lost 30 pounds, bringing me to 20 pounds under my prepregnancy weight. I’d like to lose another5-10, but I am pretty pleased overall. My skin is slowly starting to catch up with my fitness regimen but I still have that little apron and I suspect I always will. But if I dress just right, I can still pull it off as a tango dancer…

Hi there,

I have been wanting to share a little bit of my story on this website for awhile. I visit a few times a week and am so grateful for the stories and the amazing women that shared them. Thank you!

My name is Stephanie (aka www.stepherz.com) and I am mother to 3 of the most beautiful babies in the world. My oldest, Austin, is already nearly 13 and I had him when I was 19. I popped right back into shape after having him, with only a few stretch marks. I met my husband when Austin was almost 2 years old and within a year, we were trying to start a family together. After 5 miscarriages and about 6+ years of infertility treatments, Clomid, surgeries to open my twisted tubes, and a lot of heartache, we were blessed with our first baby together– Bella. When Bella was 10 months old, I got pregnant again with Noah. Bella was 10 pounds and 7.5 ounces, Noah was 2 months premature and was a whopping 4 pounds and 4 ounces. My pregnancies with Bella and Noah did a number to my figure, I gained some 60 pounds with each pregnancy. Noah is 15 months old now, and I’m still trying to get those last 10 pounds off. I’m content with my body, have worked really hard to get into shape again, and am at peace with being 10 pounds heavier. My struggles with my self esteem are mostly with the seperation of muscle in my stomach, my umbilical hernia that just won’t heal and causes discomfort, and the loose skin that just is there for good. I have a little paunch, no matter how many crunches I do. I am entertaining a tummy tuck in the Spring, have started the financial program to save for that, but so wish I didn’t want one as I want to just be happy with my changes.

I am 5’10” and spent years in the fashion/modeling industry. It really was an unhealthy experience for me and I’ve struggled with eating disorders in the past, low self-esteem, and having too high expectations for myself physically. It’s amazing that, even after 4 years away from this industry, I am and probably always will be strongly influenced by the vanity that surrounds the modeling world. I have learned valuable things from this though. I want always to be loving to myself as my daughter will learn how to love herself, and her body, through me and the examples I set for her. I will always encourage her, compliment her, and also nurture the beauty in her, outside of the physical… Because that, my friends, is what lasts, isn’t it?

Thank you for letting me share my story, and thank you for this wonderful website!

I got pregnant with my first baby when I was 15. I had the PERFECT body then and never realized it because I always had low self esteem. I was 5’2″ and weighed 115lbs. After I had him I weighed 135. I had a baby again when I was 17 and gave her up for adoption because I needed to finish high school and other reasons I’m not very proud of. After I had her I stayed at 145. At 19 I had another beautiful baby girl but my body had HAD IT, I am now stuck at 160. I wish I could wear a bikini or show my body without shame…… I NEVER had a stretch mark, roll, or extra skin before I got pregnant with my first. I feel like my body is just ugly, I’m trying to accept it but it’s very hard when I look at what I used to be, what I could be now if I never got pregnant. I love my children to death but I HATE the way my body looks more like 80 then 19.

I gave birth to my 9lb 3oz son nearly 15 months ago now.. I was roughly 70kg (154lbs) pre pregnancy. During my pregnancy I did no exercise and I ate take away most days, getting up to 94kg (206lbs). Everyone told me i looked “healthy”, which I know think was just a nice way of saying i’d stacked on the weight. After giving birth I dropped down to 80kg and in the next 9 months my weight loss stalled and I was stuck at 76kg. 7 months ago I decided to make a big change… I started watching what I ate, how much I ate and when I ate.. I also made time to fit in at least 30 mins of exercise a day. I am now 57kg (125lbs), smaller than I’ve ever been and so proud of my hard work. I wish I’d taken better care of my body before becoming pregnant, but I am beginning to be more comfortable in my skin and appreciate what my body has gone through. I developed stretch marks on my tummy, breasts, thighs and even butt but only in the last two weeks (I was 2 weeks overdue!) and my stomach has some loose skin but I love my son more than anything and I would do it all again for him.

My name is Lindsay, I am 22 living in South Florida with my family, and son. I am recently divorced. My son is 1 year and the love of my life, ALWAYS! His name is Jackson Caleb. I live with my older sister who also has a son, Gage who is almost 2.

The other day, as I was in my bedroom fixing my hair, my three year old looked up at me with curious eyes and touched my long deep stretch mark that had poked out from under my shirt. With all the innocence of a sweet child he asked “Mommy, what’s that?” As I looked down at his small hand beside the deep red memory of his and his brother’s time they spent being nurtured in my womb a great big proud smile swept across my face. I bent down to his level and told him lovingly all about how when he and his brother were little tiny babies and they lived inside my belly. I told him that they had to grow big and strong so that they could come out, so my belly stretched WAAAAAAY out while they were inside. That big mark, I said, and these others, as I pointed to the rest, were what you left me to remind me of that time, and they helped me grow a big tummy for you to live in. “Isn’t that neat?” I asked him, he definitely thought it was. I told him those marks are very very special to Mommy, and that I loved him and his brother so much, along with the special marks they had left for me. You know what? Just thinking about it makes me tear up. I can’t believe how vain I used to be, and the way I used to look at women’s “marks” as something so unfortunate and something to be ashamed of and something to cover up. Now that I have these very special gifts myself, I can’t imagine not having them. There are few things in my life that have compared to the amazing blessing of carrying my two children in my womb and birthing them into this world. These marks scream out that I am a Mother, that I have two precious children to love the rest of my life, that my husband and I created life, and I can’t imagine feeling anything but love and pride now as I run my hand over a place that created, nurtured, and housed two miracles. Boy am I blessed. Thank you so much “Shape of a Mother” for truly allowing me to cherish something that society would have tried to make me feel “ugly” for, there is nothing more beautiful on my body than my marks of Motherhood.

My daughter is 5 and a half months old. About 7 weeks after she was born I decided I was going to join a weight loss program and get “back in shape”. I had gained 35 lbs during my pregnancy and lost about 20 the first 2 weeks after giving birth, then nothing. I started cutting calories and exercising, while trying to learn to be a mom to an almost 2 month old. My weight did not budge much at all and I became depressed and hated my body. I had it in my head that I would have lost all of my baby weight by 6 weeks post partum. I only had images of celebrities to compare myself to and I felt like a fat failure. After doing some research I realized, I AM NORMAL. I would never want to spend all day in a gym instead of with my baby just to try to “get my body back”. I have a new body now that carried my precious daughter safely for 9 months, delivered her, and has helped me to nurse her exclusively for almost 6 months. I would never trade that for flat abs! Sites like this are invaluable to women. Instead of beating ourselves up for not having the bodies we once had, we should be spending every second enjoying the new little lives we helped to create. When I finally stopped dieting and just started enjoying life and time with my baby, the weight slowly began to come off. Even if I never lose those last 5 lbs and my belly is always a little stretched out, its all worth it because I have experienced the joy of being a mother. Pictures: 1- 5 1/2 months post partum 2- 8.5 weeks pregnant 3- side view now