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Welcoming a child into the world is widely known as one of the greatest experiences life has to offer, but as a result of snap-back photos and Instagram filters, the pressure on mums can be huge.
So, here’s a look at some of the ladies showing it for how it is, posting candid snaps of bumps and postpartum bodies without a filter, or three.
Kate Ferdinand
New mum Kate Ferdinand has kept things very candid on her Instagram account post-pregnancy.
In a recent admission, the stunning 29 year old held her baby and posed in the mirror with her tummy on show.
She penned: "Ahhh … nerves kicking in again, but here goes. Let’s talk post pregnancy body.
"I’ve really held off on uploading any pictures with my body in because last time I did, for some reason, I felt all types of nerves and ended up deleting it … hormones, or the pressure of Instagram to look a certain way? Who knows, but either way, I’ve finally plucked up the courage. Here I am.
"I’m finally starting to slowly feel more like ‘me’ again, but it hasn’t been plain sailing. I was seeing lots of ladies, and I salute you, saying they love and embrace their post pregnancy body; I wish I felt like that but in all honesty … I love that my body produced our baby BUT quite frankly, I don’t love my post baby body. I miss feeling fit & strong!
"As women, our bodies go through so much & I feel like there is so much pressure to ‘bounce back’ when it’s just not realistic, especially with a newborn. I mean how tough is it to find the energy to exercise?
"Some days I am like a machine working out, walking, eating healthy and feeling on top of the world and other days (like yesterday) I haven’t found time for the exercise and I’m caught tucking my head in the sweet cupboard looking for some sugar in the hope it will keep me awake."
Kate welcomed baby Cree with husband Rio Ferdinand in December 2020.
Ashley James
Ashley James welcomed her first child with boyfriend Tommy Andrews.
The gorgeous reality star, 33, gave birth to a son, after after welcoming him into the world she has been incredibly candid about her pregnancy journey.
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Sharing a snap of herself with her tummy on show after giving birth, Ashley penned: "Pregnancy and childbirth has given me a whole new appreciation for my body, and I look everyday at wonder at all the little changes.
"I love that my belly is a little wobbly as it's the perfect place for baby's little body to rest on for post feeding naps. He loves it. I also love that my body is being used for what nature intended – I'm not sure if this makes sense or not, but having had my boobs be sexualises ever since I was a teen, it's just so nice to see a baby feeding and sleeping on them. Bliss."
Camilla Thurlow
While awaiting the birth of her adorable baby girl Nell Sophia, Love Island star Camilla Thurlow took to Instagram to post a candid baby snap.
Laying on the sofa looking as gorgeous as ever, the 31 year old penned: "The tops are getting shorter, the leggings are getting higher, the ankles are getting bigger… and don't even get me started on the size of the underwear #35weeks."
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Charlotte Dawson
Former Celebs Go Dating star Charlotte Dawson welcomed her first son, Noah, with fiancé Matt Sarsfield.
The 28-year-old shared a video of herself to her 1.1million followers on Instagram where she revealed she was still wearing maternity clothes.
During the upload, which she shared to her Reels, Charlotte danced to the backing track of LMFAO’s Sexy and I Know It while uncovering her maternity and breast pads.
“The glamour of being a new mama my darlings…,” she wrote in the caption beside a laughing emoji.
Charlotte asked her followers if they knew when she could start glamming up with fake tan and perfume.
“One question I do need to ask,” she penned. “When can I start putting tan & perfume etc back on??”
“I want Noah to know my smell & don’t dare put anything on…” Charlotte went on. “Orange face slag lines like back in 2k9.”
“I smell fabulous with my hot breastfeeding sweats…” she added. “The pvcs won’t help Chaz lolz.”
“Oh n not made my bed… how do we have time???” finished the TV beauty with a high five emoji.
The post was liked by over 83,000 people, some of which showed their appreciation for Charlotte’s honesty in the comments section.
Katy Perry
Katy Perry has showed off her post-baby body in a nursing bra just five days after giving birth.
The 35 year old, who named her and Orlando Bloom's newborn daughter Daisy Dove, took to her Instagram stories to share the incredible photo with her 105million followers.
The star put her own hilarious twist on the first virtual MTA Video Music Awards, which was held on Sunday 30 August, by posing in her nude nursing bra and a pair of grey high-waisted underwear as she stood in front of a bathroom mirror.
The blonde beauty styled her hair up with a side parting and stood with one hand out to the side as her face conveyed the sheer weariness she must feel.
The Roar hitmaker, who recently shared a peak inside her daughter's futuristic pink nursery, placed an MTV sticker over the image and joked: "Hair by: exhaustion," before tagging the brands where her bra and underwear are from.
Millie Mackintosh
Millie Mackintosh has been met with praise for sharing a photo of her postpartum body, saying she has “no intention” of “rushing to get her body back”.
The former Made In Chelsea star, who welcomed her daughter into the world on 1 May, spoke out as she revealed she doesn’t feel “totally happy” with her body after giving birth.
The 30 year old shared a photo of herself posing in front of a mirror with 10-week-old daughter Sienna while showing off her body as she wears underwear.
Alongside the image, the proud mum wrote: “With Sienna nearing 10 weeks old nothing has given me more purpose than knowing that a small life depends entirely on me to feed and nourish her as she grows.
“I try to live a healthy, balanced lifestyle and I count myself lucky that throughout my adult life I’ve felt and identified as pretty body confident but now all that has changed along with every other aspect of my life, which makes me look at my body in a totally new light and it’s been a big adjustment!”
Millie continued: “Fitting into my pre pregnancy clothes seems a long way off and I have no intention of rushing into ‘getting my body back’ but it would be a lie if I said I feel totally happy and at one with my body post pregnancy.
“The process has been made a lot harder by some overly strong and hurtful comments online about my appearance (as much as you try and ignore them). I’m in awe of what my body has achieved over the last year but I find it hard not seeing the girl I know to be me looking back at me in the mirror.”
However, fitness fanatic Millie says looking back at pictures of herself before she had Sienna made her realise “how critical” she was of her own body.
She wrote: “I now see photos of myself pre-pregnancy and remember thinking at the time I didn’t like my body at certain angle but now I look back and think I looked great!"
Melissa Suffield
Former EastEnders actress Melissa Suffield proudly shared a snap of her stretch marks on her Instagram as she sunbathed in her back garden.
Melissa, who played Lucy Beale in the BBC soap, welcomed son River Jefferson Carter-Robinson in March and proudly showed off her stretch marks on her stomach and legs.
The 27 year old snapped herself soaking up the sun in her garden in black shorts and wrote on the image: "Stretch marks = battle scars."
She added: "Lets tan them into oblivion."
Melissa later returned to her Instagram to hit back at nasty trolls who sent cruel messages about her stretch marks.
In a defiant message, she wrote: “If you don’t like them, don’t look at them.”
"No I won’t put them away, if you don’t like them, don’t look at them.
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Nadia Essex
Celebs Go Dating star Nadia Essex gave birth to a baby boy at the start of March and posted a stunning, make-up free Instagram post sharing the news.
The photo sees her newborn son resting his hand on her lips. Captioning the upload, she simply wrote: "He is here and he is perfect," alongside a blue love heart emoji.
And since the birth of her baby boy, Nadia, 38, posted an incredibly candid snap of her baby boy.
The star wrote: "I’m not doing this because I hate my body, I’m doing it because I love it. ’m in awe of what it did, grew my baby and kept us safe. I have been filling it with junk and it’s time to get a grip, so I’m doing the @dotheunthinkableuk plan.
"Got my very first Virtual PT session tomorrow and boy am I scared it’s gunna be tough. please show support and encouragement, I love my curves but ready to get healthy."
The star, who claimed to be "uber excited" about getting healthy, told fans that she was embarking on a fitness journey whilst sharing three separate photos of her body.
As well, Nadia recently opened up on her baby weight in another candid body post, which was met with praise from fans.
Sharing a photo in pink workout gear, the 38 year old penned: "5lbs down and feeling fabulous now I realise 5lbs isn’t a lot to some, I realise I still look fat / overweight to some.
"But this is my amazing body who grew a baby and kept us both safe and well and I refuse to filter it, my mum pouch is real.
"I’m don’t have a bounce back body and I’m ok with that. I am eating real, healthy food, started working out twice a week and feel so good within myself…" [sic]
Ashley Graham
Model Ashley Graham is a beacon of positivity when it comes to body shots, and never fails to show it how it is. After giving birth to her son Isaac at the start of the year, Ashley wasted no time taking to Instagram to document stretch marks left on her stomach. “Same me. Few new stories,” she wrote.
Kate Hudson
Actress Kate Hudson, 41, got candid with her 11.9 million followers, posting a picture in her lounge after giving birth to her first child with Danny Fujikawa in October 2018.
She wrote: "The routine with our baby is getting more familiar and I'm ready to start taking a little time in the day focusing on myself. For me that means my health," whilst donning activewear.
Chrissy Teigen
Unafraid to share a stretch mark or two, model Chrissy Teigen shared a snap of her stomach after giving birth to her and John Legend’s second child, Miles.
The 34 year old proudly posted a clip of her stretch marks on Twitter alongside the caption: "Mum bod alert!"
Gemma Atkinson
Gemma Atkinson was “loudly and proudly [rocking] her post baby curves,” in an Insta post shared after having her baby Mia last year.
In the candid post, Gemma detailed how exercise is a crucial part of her life and routine, adding: “Part of training well is training smart and recovering long term. Not just a quick fix to 'snap back’.”
She added: “I hope new mums realise they don’t have to be back to their post baby body so quickly. Growing a human for 9 months is a big deal and it’ll take longer than a few weeks to get your body back to how you want it."
Amy Schumer
We were totally here for Amy Schumer’s incredibly no-nonsense pregnancy shots on Instagram, proving yet again that she really is one of the most down-to-earth celebrities going.
After welcoming her first child Gene with husband Chris Fischer, the star, whilst sat on the toilet, wrote: “Milf alert 1 o'clock."
Anne Hathaway
Anne Hathaway shared a simple snap of a pair of jeans cut in half with scissors resting on top. Captioning the pic, the actress wrote: “There is no shame in gaining weight during pregnancy (or ever).
"There is no shame if it takes longer than you think it will to lose the weight (if you want to lose it at all).
"There is no shame in finally breaking down and making your own jean shorts because last summer's are just too dang short for this summer's thighs. Bodies change. Bodies grow. Bodies shrink. It's all love (don't let anyone tell you otherwise.) Peace.” Hear, hear!
Serena Williams
Tennis star Serena Williams wrote a humorous caption on a post after giving birth to her first child, Alexis Olympia.
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She wrote: “4 months ago I could not walk to my mailbox… but I will keep going forward and I'll get there,” in an image where she’s clad in workout gear in a muddy field.
Opening up about her postpartum body in an interview with Allure, the star said: “After I came out [of the hospital], I had a stomach but I thought, this is kind of cool. I have a stomach because the baby was there."
Kim Kardashian West
Known for sharing most aspects of her life on reality show Keeping Up With The Kardashians, Kim Kardashian wasn’t afraid to jump on Instagram to tell her followers how it really was whilst pregnant.
She wrote: “First they said I'm too skinny so I have to be faking it…Now they say I'm too big so I have to be faking it…SMH! Some days I'm photographed before I eat & look smaller, some days I've just eaten & I look bigger. It's all a part of the process.”
Nadine Mulkerrin
Hollyoaks star Nadine Mulkerrin posted a refreshingly honest snap to her Instagram after giving birth to her first child with her fiancé Rory Douglas-Speed.
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The actress shared two nude pictures and an underwear snap displaying her post-baby body to break the taboo surrounding birth.
She wrote: “1 Week Postpartum! Was thinking should I really post a pic of my bare a** on insta…Then I thought b****r it!!
"The recovery is tough, the tears have lifted, my t**s are big brown aggressive and slightly Pamela Anderson-esque but you can’t do anything fun with them! 'It’s the best rollercoaster I’ve ever been on I don’t wanna get off! All mummies your amazing!! It’s true it’s all worth it.”
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