Pregnancy and a Woman's Body

There's no doubt that pregnancy changes your body forever. Your belly grows exponentially (resulting in stretch marks for 90% of us) and while stretch marks fade, the rumble strips are around for good. Besides the scars, basically everything downstairs changes too. You will just never feel the same again but, to me, a baby is worth it. 

I started thinking about this today because I can finally see my abs again. Your abs are one of the first things you say goodbye to when pregnant and they were the last to return. I'm pretty sure it's because I spent at least 5 months of my pregnancy rolling over instead of sitting up, and once Petra was born, rolling over was a hard habit to break. Just like how it takes a while to realize you can bend over again. Once your abs are weakened, it's really hard to get them back. My tummy would hurt, and still does, when I exercise hard. All I've been doing to get them back is pelvis stabilizing exercises. I did unwrap a Pilates DVD and put it in the DVD player but I haven't watched it thru once yet.

Speaking of exercise, that's another post-pregnancy shocker. Try having a baby vaginally and then going for a jog or jumping up and down. It's pretty terrifying, if you have a fear of peeing your pants in public anyway.

Obviously your breasts change too but it's different for every mom. Some have told me theirs got bigger, while mine are smaller. I think the biggest complaint we all have is how they are no longer a matching set. The Baby Whisperer, in her chapter on deciding whether or not to breastfeed, lists t-shirt nipples as a breastfeeding con. Before J.Lo had her twins, she used to pay someone to perk her nipples for her. That should make it a breastfeeding pro, right?

So the abs are back and the kangaroo pouch remains... I still have some work to do. Have any other mommas noticed earth shattering changes?