Instagram can give us a lot of unrealistic expectations about how we should look and feel. Now, one mom is fighting back against those standards with her raw and real photos.
By sharing pictures of her “perfect” body and real postpartum body, this mom hopes that she can help other moms out there love themselves.
Sandra Uhrdin is a Swedish blogger and mom to two boys.
Sandra blogs about the realities of motherhood and is also a body-positive fitness influencer on social media.
When it comes to her Instagram account, Sandra shares updates on all aspects of motherhood with her followers.
She posted this beautiful breastfeeding photo taken shortly after she gave birth to her second son.
Throughout her second pregnancy, Sandra shared updates about her changing body.
We all know that pregnancy causes a number of physical and emotional changes to a woman, but it seems like we’re just starting to acknowledge these changes thanks to moms like Sandra.
While visible veins on your baby bump aren’t usually considered “Instagram-worthy”, Sandra shared these photos anyways.
We’re so used to seeing perfect baby bumps with no stretch marks or veins, but I honestly don’t know a single mom who didn’t have either of those!
She also shares aspects that are less than glamorous when it comes to being a mom.
Take, for example, this photo of Sandra cleaning a poop explosion. If you’re a parent, then this is definitely familiar.
She’s even made these amazing mom memes.
Okay, I don’t know whether to laugh or cry because this is too real and too funny. Personally, I take my alone time in the bathroom these days.
Sandra’s relatable and real posts set her apart from other mom bloggers.
It seems that there are so many moms online who only show their so-called perfect lives on social media. Sandra keeps it real and hilarious with her posts.
One topic Sandra is very passionate about is encouraging postpartum body positivity.
As a fitness influencer, Sandra knows that it’s hard to not constantly compare yourself to the seemingly perfect images on social media. That’s why she posts lots of real photos of her mummy tummy, stretched skin and all.
Like all new moms, even Sandra felt the pressure to bounce back after giving birth.
But, we all know that “bouncing back” is a complete myth. Most moms have a post-baby bump and many women still look about six-months-pregnant after giving birth.
And the reality is that loose, stretched skin and stretch marks are common and normal after pregnancy.
So Sandra chooses to see their beauty and share these real photos with her followers.
Sandra isn’t afraid to have a sense of humor about her mom-bod, either.
I am loving this picture of her belly rolls which Sandra cleverly captioned “They see me rollin’, they lovin'”. LOL! I’m never going to look at my belly rolls the same way again.
Like all moms, Sandra’s body went through permanent physical changes after giving birth to her sons.
She wants to help other moms who might feel self-conscious by posting real and positive photos of her own postpartum body.
One way Sandra does this is by revealing the secrets behind those “perfect” Instagram pics.
Posing, lighting, and filters can all make a picture more perfect than it actually is. Both of these photos are of Sandra, but in the second pic, she proudly shows off her loose skin.
One side-by-side photo posted by Sandra shows the truth behind many Instagram posts.
Taken when she was just 11 days postpartum, Sandra revealed that some high-waisted leggings were all you needed to hide your postpartum belly. Case in point: don’t believe everything you see on social media!
Sandra posted another update at three weeks postpartum.
Once again, those leggings and a bit of sucking her tummy in created a totally unrealistic vision of a postpartum mom. In her second photo, she lets her mummy tummy hang out.
Other moms have shown their support for Sandra’s honest photos.
Other new moms who are still coming to terms with their postpartum bodies thanked Sandra for posting these photos. It can mean a lot to see other moms going through this.
A lot of moms agreed that there’s a lot of pressure to lose the baby weight.
Every mom feels this pressure and it can have a negative impact on your self-worth. Posts like these show the truth behind the images we see online.
For many, these posts help moms know that their bodies are “normal”.
Even women and new moms have no idea what a postpartum body should look like because, as a society, we almost never see these real images. Hopefully, that will change with posts like this.
These photos are an important reminder to moms everywhere not to compare yourself to the images you see on social media.
Postpartum bodies come in all shapes and sizes, but at the end of the day, what matters is that we show these bodies some love and gratitude.
