Alex Gladwin Blog

Why I am happy in my skin after pregnancy & birth..

I'm not really one for discussing weight. I've never had issues with my own weight, other than when I failed to get a job I'd applied for and passed at 17 years old. I was too 'light' for the role and failed to put on the requested weight in the time frame they gave. At the time it sucked, but now I'm glad it didn't work out as I later found out that the job really wouldn't have been for me. But apart from that, I've never really given my weight too much thought.

Perhaps I'm lucky that I'm naturally quite slim, and perhaps that's why I've never cared about the bathroom scales and what they have to say. But does being slim mean that I have the 'perfect body'? Of course it doesn't..

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder and I have many flaws that I just accept as part of the make up of me. For one I have particularly small breasts.. and though this might be seen as a flaw to some people, I see it as quite the gift and spend everyday happy in the fact that I don't have to wear those horrible uncomfortable devices known as bras!

I could list many things about my body that I could say was a flaw.. things I shouldn't be happy with. Things that annoy me from time to time to the point where I sulk about it for a day and then forget it the next. (Us girls are very good at that!).

But the thing is that I'm actually rather happy in my skin. I'm okay with having no boobs, and pale skin, and weird feet, and so many stretch marks that it's impossible for me to count them all. I'm okay with having put on some weight after having Ethan. My body made a baby, it carried him for nine months and then gave birth to him - that's unbelievably amazing! I'm eternally grateful to my body and all of it's 'flaws'. I'm grateful that it made, carried and then delivered my healthy baby boy to me. After all it's done for me - how could I not be happy with my body?!

And I know that not everybody who reads this will feel the same. I totally understand the want to lose weight (if that's the issue) as I've watched my Husband Adam, who wasn't happy with his own weight, stick to a very strict diet day in and day out for months. It took him a lot of will power and determination but he lost the weight that was bothering him and is now back to feeling comfortable and happy in his skin. He told me that it was the hunger cravings that would sometimes be his downfall... appetite suppressants can be found in the form of foods such as almonds and they would help him to feel fuller for longer. And he also considered using weight loss pills which included ingredients which are often natural, to help suppress his appetite. But in the end he didn't need them. (If you or anyone you know is considering using this option, please make sure you research it fully and use this useful guide to choosing the best.

I know that body image is such a personal thing, it took me a long while to feel comfortable in my own skin (I suffered with body dysmorphia when I was in my teens, which I do intend to one day sit down and write about). But however you feel about yourself, it's important to remember that it's being beautiful on the inside that matters the most.