Canadian dietitian calls out 'incredibly damaging' pressure to 'bounce back' after pregnancy

Abbey Sharp is calling out "bounce back culture."

On Sunday, the Canadian dietitian took to Instagram with a video addressing the the pressure new moms face to bounce back to their pre-pregnancy figures as quickly as possible after giving birth.

She began by stitching a video from another creator, who claimed that her body bounced back "right after" giving birth, and urged her followers not to be "fooled" by social media.

"Bounce back culture is incredibly damaging for women and young moms," Sharp said, after the stitched clip, before encouraging her followers to "generally take the focus off of postpartum bodies."

Sharp went on to say that after having a baby, one's physical aesthetic should be "so far down" their list of priorities.

She clarified that while there may very well be many woman who do "bounce back quickly" after pregnancy, even they face criticism.

"Society's default expectation is for women's bodies to like, never change and never age," Sharp said, before pointing out that body-changes are an inevitable part of pregnancy and motherhood.

"They're gonna look pregnant — or not like they did pre-pregnancy — for a good while," she shared. "Their uterus has expanded. Moms who are breastfeeding may also experience a whole other set of body changes, including potential weight gain."

While Sharp said she didn't want to "shame" the creator of the original video for her "valid" postpartum experience, she does want to prompt mindfulness and help others to avoid perpetuating "bounce back culture."

In the caption, the "Mindful Glow" author passionately advocated for a shift in the narrative surrounding postpartum bodies.

"Actually had no idea I would still look pregnant after giving birth because society makes it seem like if your body doesn’t snap right back, you’re doing something very wrong," she penned.

"I would love if we could not put so much emphasis on postpartum bodies, whatever they decide to do," Sharp added.

"Because the most noteworthy and celebrated part of birth shouldn’t be the size of your tummy without a baby in it."

In the comments, fans praised Sharp's message.

"Thank you, Abbey," one fan wrote alongside a heart emoji.

"Thank you for speaking up!" another commented.

Someone else added: "So true! What it does to women’s mental health is awful. We need more posts like this."

"Thank you for this advocacy. Bounce back culture breaks my heart. Let people's bodies heal — they just made an entire human," one Instagram user shared.

Last year, Sharp shared another reminder with her followers in a video message about breaking "free of generational diet culture."

The Instagram Reel began with a stitched clip of two women chanting, "all the toxic mantras our almond moms live by," which included, "nothing tastes as good as skinny feels, a moment on the lips, forever on the hips," and "you're not hungry, you're just bored."

"If you're a millennial, you've probably heard all of these mantras," Sharp said.

"If you’re a parent looking to break free of generational diet culture, start by not suggesting that eating enough food should be deprioritized over losing weight and being skinny."

"This is not what supportive weight loss motivation looks like," she firmly added.

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