Stunning: mum's post-birth pictures are super empowering
The fourth trimester is a tough time for most mammas. Your body has changed in unimaginable ways, between the stretch marks, swollen ankles and weight gain. It can feel like an insurmountable task to 'bounce-back' again- especially when you have a new little life dependant on you for absolutely everything.
But damn gurl, you just literally pushed a child out of your body, take some time to appreciate what your amazing body has done and put down that weight-loss smoothie.
Nat Jorge-Martin, a 27-year-old from Florida, recently took to Instagram to share an important message about that postpartum bump.
It's far from the airbrushed pictures of celebrity mums who seem to bounce back in a matter of days. This is real, unfiltered, raw and it's beautiful.
"Why would I post this picture?" she begins. "You can see all the cellulite on my fat legs.
"My stomach looks huge, like I am still pregnant. My ankles are so swollen they look like logs.
"You can see the pad in my unflattering hospital panties. I have no makeup on and my hair hasn't been brushed in days."
So she asks again, why would she post this picture. Because it's beautiful.
"Because this is postpartum. This is REAL. THIS IS CHILDBIRTH."
Realistically, there is no magical "bounce-back" formula and that's okay.
"You will not bounce back once that baby comes out of you. You will not “lose the baby weight” super quickly. Your ankles will still be swollen and your belly will still be round.
"And there’s NOTHING wrong with that. You just brought a baby into the world. Whether you had a vaginal birth or a c-section, a child emerged from your body and that’s a HUGE deal!"
Jorge-Martin had asked her husband to capture this moment on camera, because it was a special moment for the new mother.
"It was the first time I stood up in days and the first time I held my baby all by myself, without wires connecting me to a bed. This moment was so beautiful, I got to sway side to side while holding the life I sustained for 9 months."
So engrossed with her new baby, she didn't care about her legs or the the ugly hospital panties
"All I cared about was that I was a mother now; and that I was head over heels in love with this little human."
And while she still isn't completely happy with her body (what woman really is though?) she still fully appreciates everything it's capable of.
"I'm still not happy with my body and I still have days where I look in the mirror and whisper 'ugh, this is what I look like now' under my breath. I am not happy with how my body looks but I am immensely grateful for what it has done. It grew a life out of a few cells. It laboured for 26 hours and it was opened on a table to bring that life into this world.
"I share this photo because it’s REAL, beautiful, and in this moment I felt LOVE and happiness."
We think it's gorgeous! You go mama!