Pregnant and Postpartum Body

[Anonymous]

Thoughtful perspective on a childbearing body: https://www.washingtonpost.com/lifestyle/2023/01/08/pregnancy-changed-my-body-unexpected-ways-im-learning-accept-them/

[Anonymous]

My mom still blames me for her being overweight 40 years later. I guess…

[Anonymous]

Well, pregnancy triggered hypothyroidism in my body, which makes weight loss harder. Not impossible, but harder.

I will also never get my stomach back without surgery

[Anonymous]

One thing I didn't realize was that even if your physique goes back to pre-pregnancy, your body is changed permanently in other ways that may not be visible/aesthetic. For example, I was lactose intolerant pre-pregnancy and can now handle moderate amounts of dairy just fine -- was told it is related to having been pregnant. My feet and hips never shifted long-term the way people warned me about, but my ribcage is permanently huge. And pelvic floor, obviously...I had PT but still have issues relaxing the muscles (better than the alternative, I guess).

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:One thing I didn't realize was that even if your physique goes back to pre-pregnancy, your body is changed permanently in other ways that may not be visible/aesthetic. For example, I was lactose intolerant pre-pregnancy and can now handle moderate amounts of dairy just fine -- was told it is related to having been pregnant. My feet and hips never shifted long-term the way people warned me about, but my ribcage is permanently huge. And pelvic floor, obviously...I had PT but still have issues relaxing the muscles (better than the alternative, I guess).

I'm the opposite! I had no issues with dairy prior to pregnancy, and now after 2 kids, have pretty bad lactose intolerance and really cannot eat milk, soft cheese or yogurt (hard cheeses are OK). Now I'm expecting #3... it would be great if things reverted back to being able to tolerate dairy again. Especially since I seem to be craving pizza and subs with melted cheese

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My mom still blames me for her being overweight 40 years later. I guess…

Same and I actually remember being upset about it as a preschooler. She told me it was my fault she was fat and it was also why she didn't have more kids.