Jade Roper Tolbert celebrated the power of “women’s bodies” in an Instagram post after the birth of her son
It’s still fairly uncommon to talk about the difficult recovery process after giving birth, and our Instagram-saturated culture continues to place an uncomfortable emphasis on achieving perfect “post-baby bodies” as soon as possible. Comparing the way someone looks pre-pregnancy and post-birth ignores the many changes that happen to the body during pregnancy, and also puts unnecessary pressure on new parents. Bachelor in Paradise Season 2 winner Jade Roper Tolbert, however, recently celebrated “women’s bodies” with an empowering postpartum selfie.
On August 7th, Tolbert shared a picture of herself in her underwear, holding her 9-day-old son, Brooks Easton Tolbert. In her caption, the mom of two said that it was taking longer to recover this time than it did after her first delivery. But she also marveled at the strength it takes to give birth.
“Women’s bodies are seriously phenomenal!” Tolbert wrote. “It’s taking my uterus more time to return to its normal state this time around, but honestly I have never loved my body more than I have this postpartum.”
She continued by writing about her physical and emotional recovery, and the inner strength she’s found in the process.
"A lot of you have asked about my recovery, and I received several stitches and am slowly healing physically—the mental and emotional healing is hard to put a finger on, but I am giving myself grace to process everything. But after such an overwhelming labor and delivery, I have so much respect for my body and the journey it’s been on this year to grow and bring this perfect little joy into my life. So in love, so thankful."
Tolbert unexpectedly gave birth to Brooks Easton on July 29th, delivering him at home in her master closet. She shared the story on Instagram the following day, writing that she was “still processing the shock of it all.”
"It was one of the scariest moments of my life because I felt so out of control, but Tanner, Tanner’s mom, my mom and the medics and firefighters kept me going when I felt like the world was caving in on me and my unborn baby," she wrote.
Tolbert’s post highlights how important it is to talk about the post-birth recovery process and to celebrate all postpartum bodies. After all, bringing a new human into the world is a lot of work. We’re glad that both she and baby Brooks are doing well.
