Body changes after childbirth

On the 19th of October I had my birthday. I turned 31. Almost one year ago I got pregnant. As I was getting dressed up for my birthday lunch, I took a moment to look myself in the mirror and notice the aftermath of birth on my body.

I can see that I am a little bit fatter, I have a small belly, my back is wider, my hips must also be slightly wider, and the strangest of them all, my feet are 1 size bigger. And I now know for a fact that certain of these changes on my body are permanent, like the new size of my feet and the wider back. The exact same thing happened to my mum and these things are usually hereditary*.

What I found hard to accept about the new me is that these changes didn’t come gradually, like the changes that come with age. My body re-shaped itself within one year in places where I didn’t think it ever would since I reached adulthood. Then I started contemplating and seeing things from a different perspective. It is actually amazing how smart the female body is. How it can alter itself in order to accommodate a new life and at the same time continue supporting the current one. If these changes hadn’t happened Erik might had not been here, I might had not been able to go through labour, I might had not been able to care for him after birth.

Another thing that hit me is how empowering it is to go through labour and how strong the female body is. I had to go through the last phase of labour without epidural for 2 hours, and I am a person that has always been extremely intolerant to physical pain. During these 2 hours I literally felt like I was dying. I also felt this way when I was 5cm dilated and was waiting for the epidural injection. The result of course was that I did not die and I did manage to stand the pain. It is bearable. The female body is programmed to bring new life into this world and nurture it. From now on, when I get grumpy about the new me, I choose to focus on its miraculous side and that it is capable of creating a family.

*Piece of advice… do not buy new pair of shoes during pregnancy unless they are of bigger size to accommodate your swollen feet. Same thing goes for jackets in pre-pregnancy size, tight jeans and so on.

Category: Erik and me