Motherhood changes us.

Not just in the way we think, love or live.

It changes our bodies too.

And honestly, this is something we don’t talk about enough.

We talk about the sleepless nights. The endless laundry. The school runs, packed lunch boxes, homework, tantrums and the never-ending question of, “Mumma, where is my…?”

But somewhere in between becoming a mother and becoming the person everyone depends on, our bodies change.

Our waistlines may change.

Skin may change.

Our hair may change.

Our bodies may carry stretch marks, scars, loose skin, pigmentation and the beautiful evidence of everything we have been through.

And for the longest time, we are taught to look at these changes and think, How do I get my old body back?

But maybe we need to ask ourselves a different question.

Why do we always want to go back?

Motherhood has taken us forward.

My Body Is Not Something I Lost

Before motherhood, I had a different body.

After motherhood, I have a different body.

But that doesn’t mean I lost myself.

This body carried life.

This body survived pregnancy, childbirth, sleepless nights and days when I barely had time to eat a proper meal.

My body has carried babies, groceries, school bags and sometimes the emotional weight of an entire household.

So yes, my body has changed.

But it has also done extraordinary things.

And maybe it deserves more kindness than criticism.

The Mom Body Is Not a Before-and-After Picture

Social media often makes motherhood look like a transformation story.

“Before baby.”

“After baby.”

And then the pressure to “bounce back.”

But real motherhood doesn’t always come with a bounce-back body.

Sometimes it comes with a body that is softer.

Sometimes it is stronger.

Sometimes it is tired.

Sometimes it is healing.

Sometimes it is still trying to figure out who it is after giving so much of itself to everyone else.

And all of these versions are real.

There is no deadline by which a mother has to look a certain way.

No perfect postpartum body.

There is no one-size-fits-all version of body positivity after motherhood.

I Am Learning to See My Body Differently

I am not going to pretend that I love every part of my body every single day.

Some days, I feel confident.

Some days, I look in the mirror and wonder when I started looking so different.

And that is okay too.

Body positivity doesn’t always mean looking at yourself in the mirror and saying, “I love everything.”

Sometimes, it simply means saying:

“This is my body today. And I am not going to punish it for changing.”

That, for me, is also body positivity.

Learning to wear clothes that make me feel good instead of waiting to become a different size.

Taking pictures without constantly looking for flaws.

Eating without guilt.

Moving my body because I enjoy it, not because I hate it.

And reminding myself that my worth was never measured by my waist size.

Motherhood Changes More Than Our Bodies

Motherhood changes our priorities.

It changes our relationships.

Our definition of success.

It changes the way we see the world.

And yes, it changes our bodies.

But somewhere along the way, we must remember that becoming a mother should not mean disappearing as a woman.

We are allowed to take care of ourselves.

We are allowed to dress up.

Allowed to want to feel beautiful.

We are allowed to work towards our health and fitness goals.

But we do not have to hate ourselves into becoming healthier.

We do not have to apologise for the body that brought us here.

We do not have to hide every stretch mark, every scar or every change.

Because motherhood did not ruin our bodies.

Motherhood gave our bodies a story.

And maybe, instead of constantly trying to erase that story, we can slowly learn to live in it.

With kindness.

Patience.

With a little less comparison.

And a lot more love.

Because this body may not look like the body I had before motherhood.

But it is the body that brought me through motherhood.

And honestly?

That deserves to be celebrated.

To every mother learning to love her changing body: you are not less beautiful because you have changed. You are proof that you have lived, loved, grown and given so much of yourself.

Sadvika Kylash

And you deserve to take up space exactly as you are.

Motherhood changes us. But it does not make us less of who we are.