Mom Posts Viral Belly Photo In Response To "Having The Perfect Body"
Amen for being REAL.
shurkin_son / Shutterstock Your body tends to change after you have a baby, and some women are made to feel ashamed of that.
When you look on newsstands, you can find multiple magazines with celebrities showing off their ridiculously "perfect" post-baby bodies.
However, what those magazines never say is that those photos are retouched. They're often the result of a strict diet and expensive personal trainer that the average mom can't afford. (They also don't talk about how they're afforded so much time to just focus on working out and how they also have nannies.)
But one woman's post-baby belly shot truly stood out because it was real.
You might recognize Kimberly Henderson for being rejected three times on American Idol. She also made a viral video with her cute daughter singing, "How Will I Know."
In 2015, she was back in the spotlight after sharing a fantastic photo on her Facebook page.
"Everyone always compliments me on how I have such a 'perfect' body after 4 kids. I decided to upload this pic and leave my belly 'unedited' 'unphotoshopped' because I used to struggle with accepting my body after kids. I used to have a six-pack before my babies ... And now even though I work out, I know it's not going to make my loose skin tight ... Or my stretch marks disappear ever," she wrote in her post.
She continued, "And I'm OK with that because every day I get to wake up to 4 beautiful smiling faces and I’m reminded that they are worth this flabby belly and they are worth these stretch marks. I still wear a bikini because being a mother makes me feel beautiful..."
In an interview, Henderson opened up about the struggles she faced before being able to get to the point where she was more comfortable with her body.
"I have always been very insecure about my body after having children. As a young mother it was extremely difficult because I would get invited to water events or etc or the beach or the lake and I would start bawling my eyes out because the thought of being in a bikini with girls my age with flat stomachs and perfect skin would upset me," she revealed.
"I thought I looked gross. I shared this image because after years of being insecure I finally became content with my body...because I realized that being "perfect" is being imperfect."
It took no time at all for Henderson's post to go viral.
She said, "I had no idea so many women could relate. It was so inspiring reading all the comments on my original post of women AND men lifting each other up, women embracing their bodies... it's so inspiring."
Good for this mom for not being ashamed of her post-baby figure! We love body positivity, and the world could truly learn something from this. Natural and real are always beautiful.
Editor's Note: This article was originally posted in June 2015.
Nicole Weaver is a love and entertainment writer for Yourtango. Find her on Twitter for more.