It’s so crazy that we’re only just starting to acknowledge what postpartum life is really like for new moms and we owe a lot of that to the rise in popularity of social media.
How come movies and TV shows never show new moms recovering or resting after giving birth? Or wearing mesh underwear while sporting a jelly belly?
Thankfully, these photos from real moms taken hours after they gave birth are shedding light on the real postpartum experience.
“Bouncing back” is a myth.
Instagram user @catherinemarieyoga shared this raw selfie with an important message about how much healing goes on during the postpartum period. New moms need rest and lots of it. “Bouncing back” should be the last thing on their minds.
This is what postpartum life looks like eight hours after giving birth.
Mesh undies, an IV, and a round, puffy belly are all super common in the first hours after giving birth. Growing and giving life to a baby is hard work and recovering is going to take time.
There are also lots of smiles.
Most new moms look forward to the moment when they can finally snuggle their little one. A cute, smiling selfie captures this joyous moment between a mom and her newborn.
Striking a pose.
This mom was in labor for over 20 hours. Way to go, mama! Glad to see you are walking around and even striking a pose for the camera.
The view from a hospital bed.
Loving this honest post that really captures what the life of a new mom is like. It’s not glamorous, unless mesh undies are tracking to be the next fashion trend, but most moms wouldn’t trade this experience for anything.
Seeing your postpartum body can be an emotional experience.
Many women expect that pregnancy and childbirth will permanently change their bodies, but this mom explained why her postpartum belly made her emotional for another reason.
She saw it as a symbol of the fact that she and her baby were no longer physically connected. I never thought of this perspective before, but it makes a lot of sense.
Don’t forget C-section mamas.
Sadly, some moms are still shamed over the C-section births but moms are taking to social media to share their experiences. Photos like these prove that C-sections are not the “easy way out” and require lots of recovery time, too.
Skin to skin
The mom in this photo took a moment to celebrate all the work her body had done to bring her baby into the world.
“No pressure over here to fit back into my pre pregnancy jeans and I’m going to celebrate that with this photo of me rocking my best bod,” she said.
A raw look at postpartum life.
Instagram user @hellokatiejo didn’t hold back when describing how she felt after giving birth to her third child.
“I’m a hot mess, but it’s kind of a lovely mess, because I get to snuggle a sweet baby while I recover,” she said.
Working all the angles
This mom is absolutely rocking her mesh undies and looking fierce while doing it. Since mesh undies are a part of postpartum life for most new moms, isn’t it time we made them a bit more stylish?
Learning to love your postpartum body can be a hard journey.
It took this mom a month to get around to sharing her postpartum selfie because she was afraid of how her friends might view her. I’m so glad she did because seeing photos like this are really encouraging to other new moms.
A sister and brother’s first meeting.
There is so much love going on in this photo. There’s no doubt that postpartum life is difficult, but moments like this make it all worthwhile.
There are a lot of moments where you’ll ask yourself, “What is going on?”
You don’t think that you’ll spend your first few hours after giving birth walking around half-naked and trying to find a way to pee comfortably, but there’s no telling what your experience will be like.
Make sure people are there supporting you as well as your new baby.
It doesn’t get any more real than this.
This is the life of a newly postpartum mom: trying to get some dinner while breastfeeding your newborn and dealing with a swollen body all at the same time. This is why moms are warriors.
It’s not easy, but it’s beautiful.
This mom embraced the positive and negative aspects of postpartum life by calling it, “Raw, sore, and healing. Yet beautiful oh so beautiful.”
Postpartum life is a true rollercoaster of emotions and it’s important to acknowledge the good parts and the aspects that challenge us.
