“I Don’t Feel Like Myself Postpartum” ~ And That’s Okay

If you’ve recently had a baby and you’ve caught yourself saying, “I don’t feel like myself,” you’re not alone.

I hear this from so many mums, and honestly, I’ve been there too. Those first few weeks (or months!) can feel like a blur. You’re exhausted, your body feels different, your emotions are all over the place, and it’s easy to look in the mirror and not quite recognise the person looking back.

But here’s the thing: that version of you, the one with messy hair, tired eyes, and a baby constantly in your arms, is just as worthy of being seen and celebrated as any other version of you. Maybe even more so.

You’re in the thick of it, and it’s beautiful in its own way

So often, when we think about newborn photos, we imagine perfect hair, a tidy home, and a sleeping baby in a basket. But that’s not real life, is it? Real life is feeding at 2 am, living in comfy clothes, and finding moments of joy between the chaos.

That’s exactly what I want to capture, the connection between you and your baby, not the perfection.

When I walk into your home for a newborn session, I’m not looking for spotless rooms or styled outfits. I’m looking for the way your baby rests on your chest, the gentle way your partner looks at you when you’re soothing them, the tiny hand gripping your finger. Those are the moments that tell your story, the real, beautiful, raw, and honest story of early motherhood.

You don’t have to “feel ready”

A lot of mums tell me they almost didn’t book the session because they didn’t feel like themselves yet. They wanted to “wait until they felt more like them again.”

But you know what they always say after seeing their photos?

That they felt beautiful in ways they didn’t expect.

Because through my lens, I see you, the love, the strength, the tenderness. Not the tired eyes or the baby vomit on your shirt. I see the way your baby fits perfectly in your arms, the quiet moments that you’ll want to remember when they’re suddenly crawling, then walking, then heading off to school.

You don’t have to lose weight first. You don’t have to do your hair. You don’t even need to clean up the house (I promise, I’ll find the light and move anything distracting out of the way). All you have to do is be present and love your baby. The rest is my job.

Connection over perfection

My sessions are gentle, baby-led, and slow. I’ll guide you, but never force anything. If your baby needs to feed, we pause. If your toddler wants to show me their toys, I follow their lead. If you need a breather, we take one.

There’s no pressure to “perform.”

Instead, it’s about feeling.

About soaking in these fleeting days and letting me capture what that love feels like.

Because one day, when you look back at these photos, you won’t see how tired you were. You’ll see how deeply you loved. You’ll see how tiny your baby was, how safe they felt in your arms, and how, even though you didn’t feel like yourself, you were becoming someone new.

The truth about motherhood

Motherhood changes us in ways we can’t prepare for. It stretches us physically, emotionally, mentally, and sometimes we grieve the person we were before.

But what I’ve come to learn, through photographing hundreds of families, is that the person you are now is even more incredible. You’re softer and stronger all at once. You’ve learned patience, resilience, and a love that can’t be explained.

You might not feel like yourself right now, but you’re growing into a new version of you, one that deserves to be celebrated.

If you’ve been putting off photos because you don’t “feel ready,” please know this: you already are.

You don’t need to be perfect, you just need to be you.

And when you see yourself through my lens, I hope you’ll see what I see: a mother in her element, wrapped in love, doing the most beautiful and important work there is.