Tuesday, 22 February 2011

• No Two Pregnancies Are the Same, Even on the Body!

  

  I'm so excited...I just can't hide it...I'm not pregnant any more! There aren't words for how good that feels!

  I've been pregnant for the past two years, and I am 150% ready to have my body back, to be able to reach my toenails again (and paint over the hideous, squished-bug purple they have been for months), to shove my mini-me and micro-me into a stroller and go for a jog without worrying about putting myself into premature labor, to wear pants that make my butt look cute, not like an escapee from a Sir Mix-a-Lot video...I am so ready for this.

   

  Now, I was left very intimidated by my body after my first son was born, and spent the few short months between pregnancies working my stretch-marked ass off to look human again. Admittedly, I wasn't so bad off--I was thin, in pretty good shape muscularly, but those awful "trophy" scars that covered me from knees to neck haunted me.

  It was fascinating to me to see different people's reactions to both my body and my own response to my body. Some people felt sorry for me, some people were inspired, some were disgusted, some were even jealous. The entire experience of just being a mom in a mom's body in a mom's world has been eye-opening, humbling, and bizarre. 

  

  Body when just barely pregnant w/ #1

  

  Body 4 months postpartum, and just barely pregnant with #2.

  With the birth of my second son came the fear of what I'd look like once again. This second pregnancy was already incredibly different, as are my two boys, but I was sure that my poor, worked, body would be even worse off than after my first. But even while pregnant, the damage was obviously different as well. 

  Taken 2 days before going into labor w/ #1 

  

  Taken just a few hours before labor w/ #2.

  With this second baby I didn't get a single new stretch mark. Not one! I checked every inch around my boobs, my thighs, I even contorted myself in front of my mirror to check more out of the way places...no new scars!

  Still, I had no idea how this would translate to my skin once the baby was out, especially with the damage from my first pregnancy.

  

  1 week postpartum after my first pregnancy.

  After my first was born, my stomach hung like a deflated balloon for weeks, and while it got a little better every day, I'd come to terms with the fact that I was going to live in the world of one-piece bathing suits and sex only in the middle of the night with the lights off and the blinds shut for the rest of my life. But something very different happened.

    

  Taken today, 1 week postpartum after #2.

  A year later--once again 1 week after having a baby--I'm in elated shock. The scars aren't nearly as visible as I feared they still would be. My skin isn't hanging from my body with a price-tag to sell me to the circus. I look...kinda normal.

  The human body is incredible. 

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