Mom Posts Honest Pics: 'I've Earned My Stripes And I'm Embracing Them'
Attitude is everything, especially when it comes to embracing our stretch marks after pregnancy
If you’ve ever been pregnant, odds are you have stretch marks somewhere on your body. For a lot of us, these marks can be frustrating — so many things about our bodies change after we have kids. Stretch marks are one more (very permanent) reminder of this. But, as are most things in life, your attitude dictates the power you choose to give a perceived negative.
Abagail Wedlake posted a series of pictures recently to remind us all what we have accomplished to earn our stripes.
https://www.instagram.com/p/BTO4ZkdFwcc/
The artist and mother posted a picture on Instagram holding her gorgeous newborn daughter. Wedlake showed off her stomach in the photo, and wrote an ode to her stretch marks. Part of her post is from a poem called “Birthmarks” by Cassie Fox, and we just can’t get enough of it.
“A mark for every breath you took, every blink, every sleepy yawn,” she wrote. “One for every time you sucked your thumb and slept in perfect darkness. One for every dream you dreamt.”
For Wedlake, her “tiger stripes” are a symbol of power, and she believes we should love them and the body that allowed us to bring another human being into the world. “It was your home and where I grew to love you,” she wrote. “I’ve earned my stripes and am embracing them more and more every day.”
It seems those who have seen her pictures are loving her positive outlook as well:
“Thank you for posting this. I hope this helps more women to love their body the way it is.”
“Such an empowering message! you’re beautiful! wear bikinis and crop tops, show the world what women are capable of, which is carrying life!”
“Thank you for sharing. I have almost identical stretch marks as you and seeing this post has made me feel better about myself and my stretch marks.”
“Thank you for inspiring me!! Your photo gives me the courage to embrace my own body and my stretch marks.”
Around 90 percent of women will get stretch marks at some point in their pregnancy, according to WebMD. Growing at a rapid speed can leave you with stretch marks (elastic fibers just under the surface of the skin which break causing the marks), especially on your stomach and breasts. They can also show up on the thighs, butt, and upper arms. If your mom had them during her pregnancy, a person is more likely to develop them, too (thanks, mom).
Wedlake followed up her original photo with several others of her stomach, solidifying her message with the caption: “The love of my life. We give up our bodies to create our children, our bodies change and gain perfect imperfections that we should be celebrating not shaming. Women are amazingly powerful creatures. Stop the body shaming.”
We couldn’t agree more.
