Worried about your soon-to-be post-baby bod? Well take it from me, it’s not worth the stress.

I never thought I’d be able to say those words in my life – but after spending 30 of my 31 pre-baby years brutally abusing my body with fad diets, extreme workouts, and a galaxy full of self-loathing and scrutinizing, it feels good to have turned the other cheek (pun intended) to our horrible society more obsessed with whether or not a woman loses her baby weight than whether or not she has a happy, healthy, and thriving child.

Somewhere between honeymoon and conception, my husband hit me with a cold, hard, dose of reality about the pregnancy we were trying so hard for.

“You’re going to gain weight when you’re pregnant, you know. And I certainly don’t want my child growing up in a home where looks and diet are the only topics of discussion”.

Oh, sure, easy for him to say. He wasn’t the one who was about to gain 38 pounds of baby weight, most of it in the butt and leg region of the body.

But he had a point. There was absolutely no way I would let my daughter grow up with the same feelings of self-hatred that I harbored so deeply. There was no way Body Dysmorphic Disorder would entangle all of her thoughts, kill her dreams, and stunt her emotional growth when she could be busy planning for her role as a future leader of the free world.

On the day my little treasure was born, I literally watched as my doctor pulled her sweet, six-pound body from my womb. “You are amazing,” my husband said as we took turns cradling her. “My body is amazing,” I thought. And instantly I knew, with the birth of my new best friend, I could NEVER put down this incredible vessel of flesh and strength ever again.

And you shouldn’t either.

Because whether you lose the baby weight or not, whether your pre-pregnancy jeans ever fit you again, or whether your body is riddled with stretch marks and cellulite from now until eternity, here are some reasons why your body is SO much better after baby.

3. You’re a Mommy now.

Someone’s voice of reason. Someone’s model of everything that is good and holy in the world. Someone’s version of perfect. Someone’s everything and more. Don’t tarnish yourself in this little persons eyes by NOT loving yourself. After all, where else will they learn to love themselves as much as you do?

2. Hips. Booty. Boobs.

Wherever you gained the weight, I bet you’re looking mighty voluptuous. And there isn’t a man on the planet that wouldn’t mind a handful of a little extra something – especially from the woman who gave him a child.

1. You are now a Superhero.

Well, the obvious here? You birthed a baby. You spent upwards of 9 long, hot, uncomfortable, months serving as an oven of perfection. You created life. Your body is pure magic.

Embrace it, rock it, love it, own it – every last bit of it.

(Same girl, same jeans, new hips, new appreciation for ME!)

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