Mum’s shock at co-worker’s weight loss act

The pair hadn’t spoken for a long time, so the UK mum-of-two was shocked to see that her former co-worker had added her to a weight loss group.

“Straight away I felt upset and hurt – and had a sudden moment of self-doubt about my body,” Lara tells Kidspot.

“Then I felt anger and defiance. My body gave me two babies in a year – so how dare this woman decide that I needed to join a weight loss group without even speaking to me.”

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Lara welcomed her two daughters, Eliza (21 months old) and Lottie (nine months old) in quick succession.

She says her body went through some significant changes as a result of carrying two babies so close together – not to mention the fact that both girls were delivered via C-section.

“I’m really proud of my C-section scars as, without them, my babies wouldn’t be here,” Lara says.

“With my second baby, my body hasn’t really ‘sprung back’ but honestly I don’t mind.

“I asked my body to carry two babies within a year for me, so there’s no way I would expect more from it and put myself under pressure to lose that weight.

“I’m so grateful to it for carrying my babies safely … sometimes I think we take for granted what our bodies go through.”

So Lara was horrified when a co-worker she hadn’t spoken to for years added her to a weight loss group on Facebook.

She just couldn’t believe the other woman thought it was an appropriate thing to do.

But rather than keep quiet about it, Lara decided to speak up – penning a powerful post which she shared on Facebook.

“So, this is what my body looked like this morning when I opened the notification that someone on Facebook added me (without speaking to me) to their weight loss group,” Lara wrote alongside photos of her body.

“Just honest photos, with no makeup, no filters, no Photoshop or weird camera angles.

“Yes, my body is bigger than it used to be; it also has lots of stretch marks. I’ve also got a scar to get used to as well. But … I am very happy with my body.”

Lara posted the powerful message as a way of encouraging people to think before suggesting weight loss to others – regardless of who direct or indirect that approach may be.

“The other person might be recovering from an eating disorder, might have health problems, might be recovering from surgery, might be a new mum … OR they might love their body!” she says.

“I really hope that it has made some people think twice about adding people to weight loss groups.”

Lara also wanted to make sure that anyone struggling with negative body image was reminded how “amazing” and “beautiful” they were.

“Since posting, I have had so many people message me saying how it really spoke to them, or they had been struggling to come to terms with their new mummy body and how the post has changed their outlook,” she said.

“So it was all worth it for that!”

This article originally appeared on Kidspot and was reproduced with permission