My Postpartum Revelation: My body will not be the same again. It will be different and that is okay
A guest post by Shelton Stallsworthy
This is me. 6 weeks pregnant on the left and 5 months postpartum on the right. This is are the two photos that sparked my post.
I have known Emily Wannenburg since I was a young teenager. She was the woman I always went to with my “baby/woman” questions. (Emily here: I remember showing you how Tampons worked when you got your period when your mom was away on a trip. So, I think we kind of bonded then!) After I gave birth and went in for my 6 week check up, I was shocked to find out I was not magically all healed up as I expected. Instead, I had extreme pelvic floor weakness and Diastasis Recti.
To be honest, I didn’t even know what a pelvic floor was or that my abs could actually separate. I was in shock. My doctor suggested Pelvic Floor PT which was a traumatizing prospect to me. So, of course, I reached out to Emily and she encouraged me towards a Postpartum Recovery Fitness class. I eagerly joined the class thinking it would be my new magic fix.
In reality, it was not my magic fix.
it was so much more.
I learned more about my body than I had ever previously known. I learned how to strengthen it appropriately as well as how to appreciate its strength. One of the things ,Meg, my instructor, said on the first day was along the lines of “your body will not be the same again. It will be different and that is okay”.
Not an exact quote but the gist was still a revelation to me. My body would not be the same.
That did NOT mean it would be worse, just different.
“Your body will not be the same again. It will be different and that is okay”
The rest of the class I spent soaking up the knowledge of my new body, its perks and why I should be proud of it. The class equipped me with knowledge and confidence to continue tackling this postpartum journey as well as helped me safely strengthen my body once again! I cannot say enough good things. The class, Meg and “Mrs. Wannenburg” all gave me the gift of knowledge which opened my eyes to the beautiful truth of the postpartum journey.