Despite the fact that most of the continental U.S. is in the middle of a frozen winter, there is a swimsuit-clad Aussie mom taking over the Internet with an empowering message, urging moms of all sizes to embrace their beautiful mom bods.
In her now viral post, Kirsten Bosly of Perth, Australia — and writer behind the blog 1MotherBlogger — poetically and honestly wrote about her struggles with accepting her body:
“Today marks a new beginning for me. For most of my life, I have hated my body. Despised it. Loathed it. Resented it. Wanted so very much for it to change; for it to be smaller, thinner … less ‘fat.'”
What mom can’t relate at least a little bit to these kinds of feelings? She went on in her post to add, “I recently read a meme that said something along the lines of ‘be in pictures with your kids because when you’re gone, the pictures will be all they have left’ and it struck a nerve.” And then she posted an absolutely beautiful picture of herself, standing proudly with her arms wrapped around her two children on a Tasmanian beach.
Talk about bold and awesome, right?
Bosly’s body positive message has struck a chord with Facebook users, with her post receiving hundreds of responses from women struggling to accept their own bodies.
One inspired woman wrote in response, “You look amazing, tomorrow I am going to the beach with my favorite people and I will make sure I am in the photos.”
Another woman commented, “Good on you. My mum passed away many years ago and I have three photos. She avoided the camera as well. If I had my time again I would insist she in every photo. Once they are gone it’s too late.”
Bosly made a fantastic and eye-opening point when she wrote: “The truth is, I’m tired of being ashamed of my body; it’s done nothing but support me for 41 years. So today I let go. I let go of the hatred and resentment of this body of mine and chose to enjoy it for what it is; my body.”
As a mom of two (and expecting a third), I can relate so hard to Bosly’s honest airing of negative feelings about her body. I get it — I too feel awkward and not-so-great about my expanding parts. When we moms are constantly shown images of petite ladies who seemingly lack stretch marks, lumps, poochy bellies, and saggy boobs, it can feel overwhelmingly discouraging to embrace the fact that mom bods are fierce and amazing. We made babies! How marvelous is that?
So kudos to Kirsten Bosly for posting a refreshingly honest tribute to what real women look like, and for encouraging us all to step into the picture and feel happy for what our bodies can do for us, rather than sad for how we perceive our appearances to fail us.