“Mother Teresa didn’t walk around complaining about her thighs, she had shit to do.” // Unknown
I was browsing my Pinterest recently I came across this quote. It motivated me to put into words what I have been feeling lately. To talk about my mom body. The body that I haven’t fully accepted. I am working on it though, and I feel like I am almost there.
A few weeks back a group of women got together and we watched the Netflix documentary “Embrace”. When asked in the room I was the only one who hadn’t heard of it, so maybe this might be totally old news, But… I wanted to share anyways.
Photography: Julie Christine Photography
We watched about two thirds of the show and I was hooked. I don’t normally get into TV shows, let alone documentaries. I tend to get distracted and just think about the amount of work I should be doing instead of paying attention. However, this show pulled me in. If you haven’t seen it I suggest you give it a watch, especially if you are a mom with a different body from before you were a mom.
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Our bodies are unreal. They grow little tiny people, it really can’t get anymore miraculous than that. Yet, most of us have an expectation of our bodies that isn’t realistic. Most days I shake my negative body image thoughts to the side, but there are the days where the thoughts linger. Why do I give the negative thoughts any glory. I don’t know.
I’ve been making an effort to dress myself in a way that makes me feel positive. Purchasing clothes that fit me, instead of purchasing clothes with the though, “this will fit me when I drop that XX amount of lbs.” Putting a little extra effort into my hair, nails and makeup always makes a difference as I spend more time on myself. I know that taking that time to give myself attention is important. I feel better afterwards which results in treating the people around me better as well.
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Since the start of the year I have wanted to start “eating better” and “exercising more”… whomp whomp whomp? I am still working on those things, don’t get me wrong, but I also feel like I have failed. With time just slipping by and me feeling like I have been rather unsuccessful at that goal I am going to focus more on feeling good. Making purchasing decisions that work for my mom body today and not the body that I “will have next month.”
What is more important then anything is to show my girls confidence. To show them the power of loving yourself.
A friend of mine Julie Christine (the girl who took these beautiful photos) wrote a post recently on “A Few Steps To Better Body Image“. Julie opens up about a past struggle in her life that she is constantly battling from one degree to another. She has some great tips for moving away from the negative mindset and bettering yourself to learn to love your body.
Outfit Details:
Shirt: Hazel Jools
Belt: Will & Co.
Shorts: H & M
Geometric Bracelet: DearLovesCo
Gold Bangle: Mint & Birch
Watch: Daniel Wellington
Big Girl Outfit:
Dress: Little & Lively
Shoes: Adelissa & Co.
Little Girl Outfit:
Elle est Forte onesie: She is Clothing
Black High Waisted Shorties: Little & Lively
Gold Shoes: Minimoc
I really enjoyed reading your thoughts on this subject. I, too, struggled with my changing body when I entered motherhood. At first, I was searching for ways to ‘fix’ and get the old body back. Then I realized that this is not how I wanted my girls to feel about themselves. I started changing my way of thinking: to celebrate what my body CAN do instead of focusing on what it isn’t. This made me fall in love with my body again. And that is something I want to show my girls. Thanks for sharing this Codi Lynn! (Here is a post I wrote previously on the subject: https://valeio.wordpress.com/2017/04/25/celebrating-me/)
Thanks so much for sharing!! This is all so important, looking forward to checking out that post as well.
I’ve come to terms that I won’t be a XS or S anymore. For me, I’m enjoying all the curves and roundness pregnancy has given me. But i know I’m going to have that daily struggle of accepting my post partum body. It’s just not fair sometimes ????
Thanks for sharing Heydy. I hope that things remain the same once baby boy arrives. Keep loving the body you got cause that baby boy will be thriving from it!