When Brittany Smith learnt she was having twins, her excitement soon turned to worry. “What is my body going to look like after this?” she thought. Having been teased in school, Smith struggled with poor body image and low self-esteem her whole life. But when she reached the third trimester of her pregnancy, her mindset shifted. “By that stage I was in awe of my body,” Smith says. She gave birth to healthy girls and is now encouraging mothers to embrace themselves as they are.
Pregnancy and childbirth are no small feats. To honour the strength it takes, Smith teamed up with Durban-based photographer Michigan Behn to create a series of intimate images. Women are captured showing off their bodies, complete with loose skin and stretch marks. While magazines and social media place pressure on women to lose weight straight after giving birth, these photos transcend the shame surrounding postpartum bodies and champion authenticity. “I want all mothers to feel self-pride about how truly incredible they are,” Smith says. As she celebrates individuality, she’s paying tribute to the wonder of motherhood. “Enjoy the miracle of growing a baby,” she says. “You’re doing a beautiful thing.”
The series has empowered Smith and freed her of the burden to appear an unrealistic way. She hopes these photos will also show her daughters, who are now a year old, the meaning of self-love when they’re older. “There’s so much more to life than how you look,” Smith says. Our worth goes beyond society’s perceptions of outer beauty.
