What I Learned about My Body after Pregnancy

Postpartum I expected to learn a lot about myself, as a mom of two, and my tiny best friends in our new family dynamic. What has really surprised me is how much I learned about the world around me, courtesy of my body after pregnancy, and how it relates to the world.

I’ll say now, as I’ve said for the millionth time this year “I’ve been the same height and weight (give or take twenty pounds) since i was about 13”. I only find myself waxing poetic about this when I’m pregnant because the sudden weight gain always throws me for a loop.

I literally can’t remember a time where I haven’t enjoyed trying on clothing, save for every Christmas eve of the 90s. My relationship with my body and how I’ve loved her, so thoroughly has been deeply intertwined with how I dress her. Of course, I only know these things about my body after pregnancy in retrospect but in hindsight, it’s pretty glaring.

I’d wear anything! it didn’t matter the size, XS /3X were just symbols to me if it was cute I’d find a way to wear it. Over the years I learned what worked best to create the illusion of curves I grew up coveting.

To put it into perspective, every nickname I’ve ever been called, every insult or compliment of my physique have applied to one person, for the last two decades. Every bit of my identity, my heartaches, and my achievements all belong to a woman I know intimately but can no longer find in the mirror. Twice I’ve lost her in the span of 5 months, my body doubling in size to sustain life. This time after my second pregnancy my body is holding on to this protective weight, and my body is beginning to resemble that of my own mother’s.

In case you are wondering I’m doing all of this explaining because as a straight-sized woman in a curvaceous world I’ve lived my life keeping silent about my body.

However, gaining weight and keeping it on after this pregnancy has been wildly eye-opening about how the world relates to bodies in general

5 things I’ve noticed about my body after pregnancy

• I can’t use a regular-sized blood pressure cuff to take my blood pressure (apparently they come in sizes, that not all facilities have on hand)
• I sized out of conventional clothing stores for the fit that I like. (I normally size up for a flowy exaggerated look. That doesn’t work when you’re the largest size)
• airplane seatbelts (I’m not maxing them out but I’ve extended them so far I wonder how others are being accommodated)
• I wanted to use the treadmill in my home but I’m past the weight limit (I’ve never once thought of the weight limit of an item before)
• body commentary (as a slender person comments on my body stopped when I was in middle school. Strangers NEVER talk about my body. Postpartum the unwanted commentary and comparison has been nonstop)

I can’t remember a time in my life where I ever wondered if I could find something to fit me, off the rack. I’ve always assumed my love affair with clothing was “regular” and “normal” it’s only now that I realize I’ve been benefiting from my genetics. It’s only now that I realize everyone isn’t being serviced by the same industries.

It’s like there’s a world that accommodates a small portion of people and a whole other one for people with #midsize or #plussize people. With 68% of Americans wear above a size 14, “midsize” and “plus-size” are the actual norm.

Postpartum bodies

After housing a human and being forced out into the world to fend for them while simultaneously healing herself, the very last thing a new mother should have to deal with is not feeling good in the clothing they have.

Imagine having absolutely no clothing and being forced to wash fold and sort the perfectly curated wardrobe of your overbearing boss. That’s the reality for many mothers after pregnancy. Their beautiful postpartum belly housed a miracle and now it can’t fit in anything in the house.

Lingua Negra | the dark line that forms on your belly during pregnancy thanks to ancient hormones may linger on your body long after your postpartum journey begins

Loose Skin | Depending on how fast you gained weight your body after pregnancy may be full of loose skin that needs pampering.

Stretch Marks | Humans have the ability to contract and grow thanks to our skin and stretchmarks will appear in more places than just your belly postpartum. The ones on my thighs surprised me the most

Enlarged breast | Like gargantuan girls

As someone who prayed for breasts my entire life, if I could build a time machine and tell 11 year old me “they are not worth it” I would. I’ve gone from an A to a D breastfeeding and I have a hard time seeing my toes. Breast makes everything look different.

Diastasis Recti | the culprit behind your new postpartum belly. Your abdominal walls separated to accommodate a growing belly and often times need pointed therapy to bring them back together

New Shoe Size |For some women your feet can change up to two whole sizes postpartum, due to the prolonged additional weight of their belly on the foot’s arches. The weight your growing body gains can essentially flatten your feet after pregnancy

After pregnancy body

Body after pregnancy
Belly postpartum

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