A Guide to Post Partum Body Confidence

Disclaimer: this guide is totally tongue-in-cheek, and is a lighthearted look at how we perceive our bodies after having a baby. Some mums don’t struggle with post partum body confidence, whilst others suffer terribly. This guide is intended to provoke thought and reflection rather than being ‘cure all’.

Step One:

Stand in front of a full length mirror. Preferably at home as this process will involve things that you probably could be arrested for if caught doing in the middle of Primark…

Step Two:

Take off your clothes. All of them. Told you this was something to do at home…

Step 3:

Observe yourself in all of your glory. Don’t avoid looking at the bits you hate the most. Drink them in. This is your body, you need to take ownership of every single inch of it.

Step 4:

Forget what you’re actually doing and eat a tub of Ben and Jerries on the sofa whilst binge watching some shitty series on Netflix, or another equally random activity.

Step 5:

Remember that you’re meant to be gaining post partum body confidence, go back to the mirror. Go on!

Step 6:

Run your hands over the parts of your body that you loathe. Don’t avoid them. Get to grips with them, get to know them better. Address them individually. You own them, you control them.

Love handles? More like Sexy Pushin’ Cushion!

Muffin top? You mean Goddess Gut, am I right?

Thunder thighs? Nah, Queenly Curves.

OK, so it isn’t as simple as this guide.

You cannot just look in the mirror and suddenly feel better instantaneously. I cannot make anyone feel better with the push of a button sadly, BUT you can empower yourself and learn to love yourself as much as you deserve to.

Look at your body – I mean REALLY look at it – it was made with love. It grew your precious baby. It nurtured your child, it birthed your child, and it continues to support your child.

Take ownership of your new body – it isn’t bad, it isn’t ‘worse’, it is merely different, for GOOD reasons.

There are solutions to help you improve the parts that you don’t like. YOU own and YOU control your body, don’t ever let anyone else or any feelings of self doubt negate this.

Just please don’t torture yourself and feel that you HAVE to focus on your lack of self esteem to the point that you spend more time agonising over your tummy/tiger stripes/etc than enjoying your gorgeous children.

Nourish yourself. Exercise. Enjoy life. Have fun and enjoy the process of making changes that will improve your self confidence, don’t make it a chore.