Mom Who Had 3 Kids In 11 Months Shares Post-Baby Belly Pic To Make An Awesome Point
She urges all mothers to be more accepting of their post-pregnancy bodies
Most moms struggle with body image at some point after going through pregnancy and child birth. But one Australian mom who welcomed three children in only a year’s time decided to share her post-pregnancy body with the world in hopes of inspiring conversation and acceptance of our bodies, no matter what.
Eliza Curby, who writes about her experiences as a new mom on her blog, Twingenuity, welcomed a baby girl in January 2016. Just six weeks later, she found out she was pregnant again – this time with twin boys. After the birth of her sons, she was left with stretched skin on her stomach (because, of course) and decided instead of covering it up or being embarrassed by her new body, it should be celebrated for all it has given her.
Curby shared a photo of her post-pregnancy belly on Instagram with a message to other women who may feel ashamed of their bodies after baby. “Because I’m not embarrassed of the scars my body now carries. Because I’m proud of what my body has done for me. Because many women feel the need to hide it,” Curby wrote.
“Because famous women post ‘look at my body just three weeks postpartum’ and portray unrealistic images of what it means to be a mother. Because I feel beautiful in my own skin – even if there’s alotttt of it!”
Curby tells Scary Mommy she often feels celebrities’ postpartum photos give an unrealistic expectation to new moms to get their bodies back in pre-pregnancy shape as soon as humanly possible. “I really am not embarrassed or ashamed and I wanted other women to feel better about their post baby bodies,” Curby says. “If they don’t look like Kim Kardashian or Beyoncé or whoever else, I wanted to encourage women to accept and feel comfortable in their own skin.”
Women are constantly bombarded with images in magazines and on television telling us how we should look. Then we have kids and a new set of standards emerge, suggesting we should be back in pre-baby condition only weeks after giving birth. Curby’s very personal photo focuses on her loose skin, which many of us do our best to hide. But our bodies have carried a child — in her case, three children in just 11 months — they aren’t supposed to look like they did before. We need to give ourselves a break and be thankful for our bodies, flaws and all.
“Because beauty takes many forms,” Curby says at the end of her post. “Because I can. Because you should also be proud. This is me… because I love my body.”
Curby’s body may not look like every mothers after birth. But for those who can relate, it’s empowering to see an image of a postpartum body that looks like ours. “Sure it’s not glamorous,” Curby tells us. “But it’s real.”
We’re mothers, we’ll take real over glamorous any day.
