The Weight of Motherhood (Series, Part 2)

I have been discussing my relationship with my weight as a woman and especially as a mother. The Weight of Motherhood (Series, Part 1) is here.

I had my fourth baby eight months ago. I was hoping to have lost more of the weight after eight months.  Before babies, I weighed about 155 lbs and was comfortable with that.

A picture taken about one year ago at the St. Luke Auction. I was about
five months pregnant and probably weighed about the same as I do now.
As you can see, my tummy was just starting to get noticeably bigger. 

Admitting that my comfortable is 155 lbs is so difficult! I remember watching Everybody Loves Raymond and during one episode, Raymond guesses his wife Debra's weight to be 140 lbs. She is disgusted and says adamantly that she is "nowhere near 140." Now, I am taller than she is and then of course, it's a television show. But it stuck with me. While someone else might be disgusted with 140 lbs, my good day is at 155 lbs!

During pregnancy, I do not gain the recommended 25-35 lbs. It's more like 45 lbs. On the day of birth, it may even be approaching 50 lbs! So at the end of each pregnancy, I weigh about 200 lbs. Going to the doctor's office, having the nurse weigh me and watching that scale tip over 200 lbs is definitely some type of torture.

It helps to remember that I am not my weight. It doesn't define me. It's a number. Also, this may possibly be a form of denial, but I think I carry my weight in a somewhat flattering way. As flattering as extra fat can be, I guess!

A photo of me last August, about three weeks
before Teresa was born. 

With my first baby, the weight came off pretty easily. I didn't have to diet. Nursing for only three months and a little exercise brought me back down to 155 lbs pretty quickly. So much about that first experience as a mom was like false advertising, from the weight coming off so easily to the baby sleeping through the night at ten weeks.


After my second and third babies, I would get down to about 175 lbs and then plateau. After that, I joined Weight Watchers and each time I was able to bring my weight back down to 155 lbs. Weight Watchers definitely works.


So why not just do it again?


For lots and lots of reasons. Right now, I am at 174 lbs and in my next post I will explain my struggle with joining Weight Watchers once again.