Pregnancy has changed my body. I’m not talking about the stretch marks. Or the “mom pooch”. I’m not even talking about the pregnancy induced skin tags or the odd changes in my hair texture. 

When you get pregnant, your body becomes up for discussion. “You look great for 6 months pregnant”, “You’re carrying your belly well”, “You look like you’re about to pop”. People rub your belly. They stare. How much weight you gained or haven’t becomes average conversation. 

You deliver your baby. “You look great for just having a baby”, “You’ll bounce back in no time”.

I handled that with grace. I didn’t mind the attention, I’ve been fairly confident in my own body for years. 9 months later however, I’m struggling. You see, I am now more than 30lbs below my pre-pregnancy weight. At every gathering it’s the inevitable compliment. I think I’m struggling because I loved my old body. I feel like I’m somehow cheating on old me, with this new me. This is not my own body. I’m not even trying to lose weight! Chasing a child around and breastfeeding changed my body. Not only does pregnancy change your body but being a mom does, too. And while I love myself, just as I did 30lbs heavier, I feel somehow less confident. Weird, huh? I think it’s because my body is now up for discussion. I can’t help but wonder if anyone would be commenting on my body had I not lost weight? Or more worrisome, would they all be talking negatively behind my back? Eeeeeeeek! It’s odd that losing weight has actually made me more self conscious. Society seems to tell us the opposite should be true.

I know, I know. I need to learn to accept a compliment. Until then, I just have a couple complaints.