Body Image - (My) New Mom Perspective

I know there is a HUGE range of perspective on the new mom and body image, and I know that we often hear about the negatives. The stretch marks, the extra belly skin, how NONE of our clothes fit, how our tits HURT!

And the list goes on.

My experience is quite different from the tales we so often hear. Like much of my pregnancy, life post pregnancy for me has been quite easy.

My stuff
stretch marks? Yes.
Still wearing mat pants? Nope.
Two pairs of pre-preg pants. Sometimes my pre-preggo jeans.
Still have a bit of a paunch.

Feeling good
Eating healthy (for the most part)
I was resting for quite some time, partially thanks to my c-section infection and time needed to heal. It was PRET-TY bad!
Perspective. The weight won't stay on forever. My priority is being mama and not losing weight and getting back into shape so shortly after giving birth.

During my pregnancy I gained 38 pounds. 20 pounds of that I lost in the hospital. 9 pounds of that was baby, the rest was fluids, water weight (that went straight to my boobs) and placenta. I lost 10 pounds pretty quickly by breastfeeding, but as I said previously, I had a c-section, so I had to take it easy. Then my incision got infected (while I was still in hospital. Yes, I brought up with all nurses and anyone who came into my room that it felt weird, everyone said it was fine... until I walked into the ER 11 days later... turns out, I was right, there was something weird!) so I had to take it easy for much longer.

Right now, I am 5-ish pounds away from my pre-preggo weight. And I'm not sweating about it. My priority is still being a mom rather than getting back into shape. I don't want to be fixated about a number on a scale.

Today, I woke up feeling tired, but a few minutes into the morning, I felt awesome. I felt energized, I fit into my pre-preggo jeans, my babe slept until 8:45 in contrast to her normal 6:30, I got my makeup done. And I had a good poop. Yup, I said it, deal with it.

Most days, I feel pretty good. Some days I wake up feeling exhausted and I really don't know how I'm going to get through the day. Most of the time it's with coffee and ice coffee. How I feel about my body image changes with each of those feelings. For the most part, I'm super comfortable and confident about my body.

My body is freaking awesome. I grew a child. I never felt more beautiful than when I Was pregnant. I felt freaking gorgeous, and I think that showed. And well, I still feel pretty awesome. I feel pretty... and, I have to say, I have the cutest kid ever. How can I EVER hate anything about my body when it housed her, kept her safe and nurtured her?

Yes, I have stretch marks, I have a scar above my pubic bone, I still have a bit of a mummy tummy.

My body is the only one I have and I have made a choice to love my body. The way it is right now. Flaws and all. Because the way it is right now, is perfect in my daughters eyes. And I want to take a lesson from her, to teach her a very important lesson later on. That our bodies are beautiful the way they are. I don't want her to hear me say "I'm fat and ugly and wrong." Because she will believe it, and she will learn it, and she will live it.

I want my daughter to learn the lesson later, that she already knows now. Her mommy's body is perfect the way it is. And so is hers.

Preggo Lady Survey 39 Weeks

39 weeks

How far along: 39 weeks - nearly there!

Weight gain: 40 lbs - from 175 to 215

Innie or outtie: I asked someone if I was an innie or an outtie a little while ago since it's hard for me to see my belly button without manipulating my stomach, apparently, I have a 'flattie'.

Maternity Clothes: 3 pairs of pants - one pair I've mostly stopped wearing recently because I can see the seam on the bum starting to stretch out, and it would be really embarrassing if the bottom of my pants ripped in public. A few mat shirts, but I also have shirts from regular stores that I could grow into. I also recently bought a couple nursing bras. Most comfortable bras EVER! I know they're not exactly 'mat wear' but they should be.

Sleep: Still doing pretty well. I only get up once, maybe twice a night to pee.

Pregnancy Perks: Being rushed to the front of the public washrooom line, people tend to move out of your way in a crowded area and having doors opened for you.

The downside? Getting shirts dirty in places
you can't see

Any downsides? Some people don't realize that with a belly, you need more room to get by. I mean, you really can't squish though spaces the same way. That AND with not being able to see the bottom of your belly, you could have something on the bottom part of your shirt and not even know it! (In my case, it's often dishwater, flour, chocolate from baking or some other such thing)

Any random strangers come up out of nowhere and touch your belly? No, thank God. I have people I know (or kind of know) touch my belly, which isn't a big deal to me. It wouldn't be a huge deal to me if another preggo came up and touched my belly. But if anyone else came up and touched my belly, I'm not sure how I would handle it.

Embarrassing Pregnant Moment: Still don't really have one.

Lastest Baby Purchases: Some more crib sheets; a playpen with bassinet attachment off of the Toys R Us registry (Yes, I bought the playpen... *grumblegrumble*) For the first while, Victoria will be spending her nights in the master bedroom - as suggested by Health Canada.

Latest Baby Gift: My friend Katherine sent me some really pretty flower headbands and an udder cover for when I breastfeed in public.

Movement: Big rolls and jabs. Most of the time she doesn't hurt me though

Food Cravings: Hmmm. Nope.

Food Aversions: I haven't really wanted to eat pork.

How's Mama? Still doing really well and still comfortable. I was telling one of my friends that with how well things are going and how comfortable I am still, she could be two weeks late if she wanted - although, I do REALLY want to meet her.

What I'm Looking Forward To: Meeting my little girl, being able to sleep/lay down on my tummy again, be able to see if I have anything anywhere on my shirt

My Baby in Veg/Fruit Terms: A watermelon!

What Do I Think My Baby Will Look Like? Blonde/light brown hair, greenish-blue eyes, chubby little cheeks but a long/lean little body.
Natural/C-Section/Drugs? Natural with a midwife baby. (Although if I have to, I will do whatever it takes to get Victoria out safely. And if I have a LONG and hard delivery and I need relief, I am open to taking drugs... I've made it very clear that I'd rather be encouraged to do without rather than have my support group just agree with me that I need the drugs)

Signed up for any classes? I've done my prenatal classes, preperation for labour classes (Mostly about comfort measures) and breastfeeding 101 - a GREAT class! I learned some new things, techniques I didn't know about, and just random bits of info.



My newly developed stretch marks. Funny, most of them
are on my left side, and fewer are on my right side.

Stretch Marks? I have some on my bum, a few on the very tops of my thighs where my legs meet my torso, and on the bottom of my belly. Am I ashamed or will I cover them up at the beach this year? No way. My body is doing something awesome.

Are you ready for it to be over? I'm ready to meet her, but she can come whenever she wants.

Any weird dreams? Not weird dreams... but I've had a few dreams that it's going to be a boy... which freaks me out a little bit because I originally thought that we were having a boy, just a feeling. If we do end up having a boy? Plus side, we have a name picked out. Down side? He'll be wearing girl clothes for a little while - but I did buy gender neutral clothes... I don't want our little girl to be dressed in pink from head to toe... that's a lot of pink to handle.

Preggo Lady Survey! 36 Weeks

How far along: 36 weeks today

Weight gain: 35 lbs

Innie or outtie: Innie still - but my deep deep belly button is really shallow now!

Maternity Clothes: Three pairs of maternity pants, one Thyme Maternity night gown, and a couple of maternity tops. Lots of 'regular clothes' that I bought from regular womens fashion stores that I could grow into. No maternity underwear or compression stockings.

Sleep: Not too bad. I still only get up once or twice a night to pee with no problems getting back to sleep. Sometimes when I get up to pee I am pretty hungry too, so I do a 'sleepy preggo waddle' to the fridge and break off a piece of cheese to satisfy my hunger until the morning.

Pregnancy Perks: Being rushed to the front of the public washroom line. Thank goodness for women who have been there :) Being told to have a sit down, have a lay down or a nap :)

Embarrassing Pregnant Moment: Farting at prenatal yoga. Not super loud. Not even during a position that could really squeak it out of me.
Lastest Baby Purchases: A couple little outfits from my local baby consigment store. 1 Osh Kosh summer jumper Victoria can wear this year, 1 Old Navy jumper and 1 Old Navy dress that she can wear at 18-24 months and 1 pair of size 1 shoes.

Latest Baby Gift: Cute pink Bat Girl onsie footy pajamas that my friend Caroline saw and bought for me. They won't fit Victoria for quite a while, but she will grow into them!

Movement: Big rolls! It is WAY more entertaining to watch my belly as opposed to anything movie or TV show. It makes me laugh, smile and sometimes I tear up.

Food Cravings: Still no real food cravings.

Food Aversions: I haven't eaten eggs since the beginning of my pregnancy. Other than that, no real food aversions since the first trimester

How's Mama? I'm doing fantastic. A lot of my pregnant friends can't wait for it to be over, between heartburn, back pain, swelling, vericose veins and just about everything else... but me? I've had it pretty easy. Some pain when she sits on my sciatic nerve, swollen feet and ankles every now and then and a little bit of fatigue. Other than that (Which isn't much to complain about - and I've been told I don't really complain) I'm doing great and I'm feeling good.

What I'm Looking Forward To: Having my mom come to visit after Victoria is born. More baby gifts in the mail. Being able to eat things I haven't been able to for months (feta and goats cheese?! Yum! Subway sandwiches? Yes please. A glass of wine? I'd love one, thank you very much)

My Baby in Veg/Fruit Terms: What the heck is a crenshaw melon? Length: more than 18 1/2 inches, head to heel and weighs about 6.5 lbs
Next Doctor (In my case, midwife) Appointment: April 5th. The first of my weekly visits

What Do I Think My Baby Will Look Like? Blonde/light brown hair, greenish-blue eyes, chubby little cheeks but a long/lean little body.
Natural/C-Section/Drugs? Natural with a midwife baby. (Although if I have to, I will do whatever it takes to get Victoria out safely. And if I have a LONG and hard delivery and I need relief, I am open to taking drugs... I've made it very clear that I'd rather be encouraged to do without rather than have my support group just agree with me that I need the drugs)

Signed up for any classes? Yup! I've done Prenatal Classes, Preparing For Labour,  Prenatal Yoga. I'm just waiting for Breastfeeding 101 in a couple of weeks (Hoping she doesn't come before then, I REALLY want to reap the benefits of this class!)

Stretch Marks? I few on my bum, a few on my legs where my thighs meet my torso but not a lot. None on my tummy or back.

Are you ready for it to be over? I'm still pretty comfortable. I'm not in any rush.

Any weird dreams? Not weird dreams... but I've had a few dreams that it's going to be a boy... which freaks me out a little bit because I originally thought that we were having a boy, just a feeling. If we do end up having a boy? Plus side, we have a name picked out. Down side? He'll be wearing girl clothes for a little while - but I did buy gender neutral clothes... I don't want our little girl to be dressed in pink from head to toe... that's a lot of pink to handle.