Becoming a mom does crazy things to your body and mind, but here's how to fight back.

When I got pregnant, I was bound and determined to look good and sexy after the baby was born. I admired those moms in my Facebook news feed whose hospital pictures showed them smiling with makeup on as they cuddled their newborn. That was totally going to be me. I even imagined all the comments people would make in on those first few pictures. "Congratulations! Baby and mama look great!"

In retrospect, this was a crazy notion. (Can I blame that the hormones?) None of those things happened. Oh sure, people congratulated me on my baby, but I did not look good (or sexy). Not at all.

I was completely unprepared for the world of hoo-ha hurt and for all the things that come in the weeks after birth, like the oozing and not being able to control your bladder very well. Gross, right? Tell me about it. So, putting on makeup in the hospital never happened. And all those pictures of me with lipstick on, cuddling my newborn? Those never happened either.

In fact, despite the euphoria over having my daughter nothing about being a mom made me feel good. I felt gross (see bladder issues above), tired, fat and very unattractive. Losing the weight was taking forever. I was too tired to work out and nothing fit. One night, when my daughter was two months old, I was trying on pants. "Nothing fits!" I wailed to my husband as I lay prostrate on a pile of jeans.

"Well, maybe you could go buy something?" He suggested. The idea floored me. "But why would I buy something I'm only going to wear for like two months?" I asked.

"So you can stop whining and feel good about yourself," he said. One nap and one shopping trip later, I felt better about my new body and myself. I hate to admit it, but my husband was right, when it comes to feeling irresistible after becoming a mom, sometimes you have to just indulge your bulge.

Check out this photo gallery to find out the ten things I learned about feeling good and sexy about my postpartum body.

Photo: WeHeartIt

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