Despite the historic ruling that a woman has a right to choose whether or not to keep her baby weight, pressure is mounting for mothers to get rid of the post-baby chub, leaving many women feeling as if the choice was never theirs to begin with. But one brave woman is fighting back against the stigma of keeping her baby weight.
Weeks after bearing her first child, Dee Cosby has made a brave choice to keep her baby weight. “I’m not Beyoncé, you know? I don’t have time to worry about it,” says Dee Cosby. “I guess I’m just a little fatter now.”
Over 95% of American women attempt to terminate their extra pregnancy pounds, citing social pressure as the primary cause for this decision. Celebrity moms like Kim Kardashian and Jessica Simpson make it seem like slimming down is easy, and display little to no remorse after doing so.
As a result, Dee’s decision is garnering criticism in her community: “She was like really pretty in high school but now she’s got stretch marks and cellulite. I respect her decision, but when you really think about the whole process, it’s really kind of gross,” says neighbor Stacy Turner.
Fellow new mom Kay Adamson disagrees: “I’m so jealous. I gave birth two weeks ago, but my husband is already wondering when my thigh gap is coming back.”
Inspired by Dee’s story, women all across the country are sharing their own stories of baby weight loss: one woman was so overwhelmed by the decision that she decided to postpone motherhood until she was ready. “I was excited when I found out I was pregnant,” said teacher Sharon Ness. “But in my first trimester, people were already asking me about my plans to lose the weight. So I decided to have an abortion. I couldn’t handle the stress.”
