We live in a very visual and social media driven age. There is a pressure to have the same skin as most ladies on the gram, have the same weave length, have the same vacations and have the same kind of cars. There is a pressure to keep up with the “Joneses” and I say that in quote because at the end of the day, nobody really cares what you do and so you may as well make yourself happy and do the things you want to do.

The pressure has not only been in how much of the material things you should have but now also how your body should look. How wide your hips should be, the width of your waist and now even how much time is the appropriate to still have the post-partum weight.

I see so many mothers because of the pressure, starving themselves, using all kinds of teas and subjecting themselves to all kinds of magic treatment just to get their pre-baby body back and in record time too.

First things first, reduce the pressure on yourself. At the end of the day, you are the major shareholder in your life and as such, you are the biggest decision maker, so you decide what you want and do just that.

Secondly, take things slow, you stretched your body for nine months, practically had another precious and beautiful human growing inside you and as such, things cannot just snap back immediately. So you may need to trust the process, put in some effort and most importantly, give yourself time.

Now in my opinion, there are only two ways to deal with pressure and it is found in the simple truth, to thy self be true and set up boundaries. Once you have made peace with yourself, you will notice that it becomes easier to deal with others and establish the boundaries that need to be set up.

So 1) Be True To Yourself; on your own part, banish all the thoughts of snapping back in record time to a corner and stay true to your own process.

Yes you can eat a very nutritious and balanced diet and workout but don’t put your own body on another person’s timeline and begin to rush yourself.

2) Set Boundaries; establish clear boundaries and let people know what they can or cannot say around you. Let them know what is acceptable to you and what is not. The more you clarify your stance, the less likely they are to bring such nonsense your way.

So remember ladies, do your best but take your time and be on your own timeline and nobody else’s, at the end of the day, only your own opinion matters.