Young mum horrified by photo of her post-baby body: 'I couldn't believe it was me'

As a first-time mum, Ruth Lee was vigilant about taking care of her body while pregnant.

The 25-year-old followed pregnant models on Instagram and said the images of the svelte new mums posing poolside post birth left her thinking: "Wow! I hope that happens to me!"

Instead, Lee says she has been left shocked by the changes to her body after seeing a photo of her stomach postpartum. Sharing the image to Instagram, she wrote: "I took this and actually was horrified. I couldn't believe it was me."

The young mum, from Utah, also shared that she was putting the image out there in a bid to "stop censoring motherhood" and remind others who may be going through similar feelings of inadequacy that "what you see presented on social media isn't necessarily the reality for everyone.

"Don't let social media taint your view of what is beautiful, what is REAL," she wrote. "And above all, know that if you are struggling, I am here."

Lee, who lives with her husband and now four-month-old daughter Perry, has since spoken to The Huffington Post explaining that she felt compelled to post her image after seeing too many "perfect" post-baby bodies in her feed.

"I ended up on my bathroom floor, crying. I felt that because my body didn't look like theirs, somehow maybe my worth was less.

"I knew that there had to be other women out there like me and that social media needed more authentic pictures."

Lee says social media "needed more authentic pictures" and hopefully hers will inspire others to appreciate what they have.

"I feel amazed and grateful that I was able to conceive and carry a baby full term," she said. "Our bodies are not ruined after pregnancy. We need to stop letting social media contort our views on what is 'beautiful.' Motherhood is beautiful. Scars are beautiful. Stretch marks. Imperfection. Loose skin."

And it looks like Lee's brave revelation has struck a chord with other mums on Instagram.

One commented: "Absolutely beautiful. As a mother of 3, all by c-section, I'm proud to see photos like this because its a lot of hard work to grow a beautiful baby and there is no shame in a woman body postpartum... You rock."

Another wrote: "Thank you so much for sharing. It means a lot to see others going through some of the same struggles as you. Congrats for being so open."

- NZ Herald