Having a hard time with body image.....

So tomorrow i'll be 18wks and I don't look pg. I mean I wear maternity pants since they are comfy and I do notice my chub is rounder but I just don't look it. I am overweight to begin with and my upper stomach and lower stomach have always been larger with a smaller waist in between. I just long to LOOK pg. I feel so fat and if you didn't know me you would NEVER guess i'm almost half way there. I'm so asha,med to take belly pics that I have stopped and I get so uncomfortable when people look at me like I'm nuts when they ask how far along I am. Has anybody else gone through this? I'm down 17lbs due to m/s so i'm guessing that plays a roll, but still I just feel so not pg. Anybody else understand?

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

Yes, I feel you-at 11 1/2 weeks, I think I just look ugly!

I am sure you look beautiful-you will have a baby belly before you know it!

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

yes yes yes i understand. i lost about 20 lbs from the m/s too - but there's HOPE!

look at these progression pics:

17wks (note the upper and lower roundness)


finally - more of a baby belly at 19 wks!


and here we go - no denying this baby belly. 24wks


and it eventually became ALL BABY! 37 wks



I'm now 3wks post-partum and back in my regular jeans. In fact, they're a little big in my butt/thighs, but they fit the tummy pooch. I was back to my pre-pg weight before i even left the hospital.

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

Shorty....even at your 17wk pic you LOOK pg. My belly is so weird. I'm just down on myself right now. Joe thinks i'm sexy as h*ll, but I just can't see it and have started to wearing pj's to bed...TMI, that's not how we have EVER done it, and I have no desire to have s e x

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

I always have body issues, I just learn to brush them off. My father always gave me a hard time about being a chubby little girl, so I had lots of practice ignoring him and my thoughts.

At 11 weeks, my chest is now 2 cups sizes bigger than it was. My baby bump is nothing to compare to the bloat in my upper belly and my boobs surpass. I feel horrible about how my body is morphing.

I just try to focus on the baby growing inside me and doing everything for it. I even got excited about BD again because I heard it can help strengthen muscles for birth. I could never do it before when I felt so horrible about myself, but my focus has totally switched.

hang in there, focus on your baby now. We can all join the chub club later and work on our bodies then.

Thank you Shorty for the pics, they made me feel like I could actually look like a normal pregnant women and not just a fat blob with boobs. You looked gorgeous pregnant!

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

Totally understand!
I didn't have a little tummy until 20 weeks and even then it wasn't 100% obvious that I was pg.

Don't worry about how you look, try to focus on the amazing thing that is going on inside of you. And if it stays your secret for just a little while longer, it makes it that much more special.

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

Posted by Shorty

yes yes yes i understand. i lost about 20 lbs from the m/s too - but there's HOPE!

look at these progression pics:

17wks (note the upper and lower roundness)
IMAGE

finally - more of a baby belly at 19 wks!
IMAGE

and here we go - no denying this baby belly. 24wks
IMAGE

and it eventually became ALL BABY! 37 wks
IMAGE


I'm now 3wks post-partum and back in my regular jeans. In fact, they're a little big in my butt/thighs, but they fit the tummy pooch. I was back to my pre-pg weight before i even left the hospital.

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

ugh, I feel the same way. My body just looks odd to me, I have that upper belly chubb too, which just looks bloated all the time. I'm trying not to think too hard about it, and just focus on the baby, cause there isn't much I can do about it!

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

sweety - i hear you so loud & clear i almost have tears in my eyes....

i felt the same exact way!!!! because of the GD diet - i wound up losing 2 pounds of my already plus sized figure - i had a very small belly and felt so upset about it...and honestly - when i see these women with these perfect round bellies - i get sad.. i always say to dave - the ONLY TIME In my life i EVER wanted a belly - i didn't have one.

it may sound silly - but not ONE person came up to me and asked if i was pregnant and when i said that i was - i got shock and awe as responses (not joking). We went on our hospital tour when i was 36 weeks pregnant and the woman asked me if i was SURE i was that far along. There were women there with tummies three times the size of mine and they were half as pregnant as i was....

just keep telling yourself that it's all good in the long run. it does make it easier to lose weight AFTER...all said and done - i have lost about 25 pounds once Emma came out....but i'll be completely honest - i still wish i had that belly then..

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

I totally understand and share your pain I'm 16 1/2 weeks and do not look pg at all. I too have the double stomach (upper and lower) and always have. I lost a lot of weight in past year and a half and I still have it!
Now - my pot belly is more pronounced and my upper stomach just looks bigger/more bloated. Same here - I long to look PG and have a cute belly

Re: Having a hard time with body image.....

You are not alone! I am having a very hard time with this change in my body. I'm 14 1/2 weeks and i have a little belly, but i still just feel fat not pregnant. I had someone at work who i just told i was pregnant tell me he noticed me getting "larger"!
Of course i take that as he's calling me fat and start to get upset. I've always had body image issues and this isn't helping. I try to remind myself that its for a good reason that i'm gaining weight, but i just wish i had my baby belly so i can wear maternity shirts and actually look preggo!