Baby Sissi eating mashed sweet potato like a big girl!
Sixtine will turn 8 months this sunday. Which means that I have one month left to get back in shape. At least, if you follow the saying “9 months on, 9 months off”. In which case, I should hurry up a storm.
The thing is, in my case, it was more the opposite. I started by losing quite a bit of weight at the beginning of my pregnancy (remember, I suffered from severe sickness), and ended up not gaining much and lost it pretty fast. As soon as I gave birth, the sickness stopped and I decided to celebrate in eating anything I couldn’t eat while I was pregnant (pretty much EVERYTHING if you ask me). So instead and losing quite nicely, I stayed rather the same.
Hips don’t lie (do you know this song by Shakira?) and it is true. I had hips (which wasn’t always the case) and stretch marks (and bigger boobies but that, I don’t mind ;)) It really saddened me. The first thing I thought was: “I will never, ever, wear a bikini ever again”. I realized it wasn’t just about the weight, but more about the fact that my body had tremendously changed and would, well, never be the same again.
I think it is the hardest part…I should have appreciated my body the way it was before, instead of complaining about it all the time, when really, it was a great body. Yes, I said it: I was fairly lean.
Now, my husband says that my stretch marks are a tribute to our daughter, which makes it so beautiful. I was so lucky to be able to conceive and give birth to a healthy baby that it really helps me see things differently.
And you know what, I went from hating them to be ok with them. And yesterday, as I was lying in bed, I realized they were so much lighter than they used to be. I even thought: “I might be able to wear a bikini again”…
I think I should lose about ten pounds to feel great again but right now, I have absolutely no interest. I think I don’t look that bad and that the weight will come off someday somehow. I think I should enjoy the time I have left in Paris with my husband and make the most of it!
My question is: how did/do you feel about your body during pregnancy, after, and nine months later?
ps: another 4 comments, and I will be at 1000 comments! Thank you everyone !
Sixtine et Victoire 
I’ve never had a baby, but I have friends who have kids and it seems everyone goes through the body image issue. No matter what they won’t believe you when you say they look great and healthy, change is scary, especially when its yourself in the mirror, even if its not necessarily a bad image you see. My friends all needed to find their peace and acceptance with this change at their own pace and time, and it sounds like you are finding yours.
Your body might have changed, but I have 2 pieces of good news for you :
1) The streches will fade and become almost invisible (sadly, I have some too)
2) You have that glow that makes you gorgeous. You had it before, you have it now, and when I see Sissi’s mischievous smile, I see you when we were planning girly stuff in London!
So bring it on summer, there’s gonna be a hot mama on the beach 🙂
Oh goodness, I went through a horrible time afterwards. Since I almost died, and lost half of my blood, I lost my muscle mass and had to start from scratch. I was so determined to get back into shape that I stopped caring about weight. I think that getting pregnant and then having a baby throws you off completely, you loose a sense of identity. The good news, you find something else in you.
9 months, or 2.9 years after, geez I am still trying to rid myself of the 20 lbs. I’d wish would quickly leave…. but up until recently, my heart wasn’t it it to loose. Now I feel like it’s time. =) And fromt he few pictures I’ve seen you look pretty amazing!
I have never had a good relationship with my body. I always disliked aspects of it…ie hips. I want to feel good again, and when I put on clothes I feel self conscious and sad, so I know that for me its the right time to lose the last few pounds. I think that if you are happy that’s all that matters.
I just wrote a blog about this a few weeks back, check it out below.
http://softcrunchymom.com/2012/05/01/just-a-number/
I’m below my pre-pregnancy weight and still don’t have anywhere close to the same body.
I absolutely loved my body during pregnancy and felt super sexy 🙂 I guess I was just very proud of my baby bump. I gained a lot of weight during my first pregnancy (47 lbs) and had lost it all at some point but gained 15 lbs after I returned back to work. I’m blaming the eating out. However, my body shape had changed and I was having more trouble finding clothes that flattered me. After baby 2 I’m still not back in shape (he’s 8 months old).
More than the weight, I think it’s my body shape that has changed. And I don’t care enough to make the effort to go back to my pre-babies body. I just shop at more mature shops 🙂
I did feel kinda sexy as well! I smiled at your last comment. I too feel too old for some of the shop I used to shop in…;) And that’s all right. I am a respectable woman, wife and mother now! Hehe Thanks for your comment x
During pregnancy, I felt great. Other than some morning sickness and tiredness I usually felt like ‘normal’ me…just with a big belly. I gained all baby – all was out front and I didn’t gain anywhere else, which was great. I didn’t get back in shape until after I went back to work and just slowly started working out and eating right. I’m back to pre-pregnancy clothes and size/weight and feel great. Still don’t like the stretch mark tho – hahaha.
You are a beautiful mama! I agree with hubby, stretch marks are a nice tribute that you carried your Sissi for 9 month ♥
I loved being pregnant with my daughter. I loved seeing my body change and knowing there was a little baby growing in there. I put on 18 kgs (I was quite slim before the pregnancy so this was huge for me) but I didn’t care. I didn’t lose the weight quickly or easily. A year later, when I got pregnant with my son, I still hadn’t lost it all. The second pregnancy, I was less ‘glowy’. I still liked it but there were more downs, I was more aware of my swelling body. I put on less weight overall though. My son is now 6 months old and I’ve lost all the weight I put on with him. For some bizarre reason, it was much easier this time around. And now, over two years after my daughter was born, I’m starting to lose the last few kgs.
I’m not that fussy about losing them or not though. It took me a while but I’ve finally come to terms with my changed body. I think, like some people already said, even if I get back to my pre-baby weight, my body has changed and will never be the same again. And that’s OK with me. The different body shape, the extra kgs, the stretch marks, that’s all part of being a mum for me.