For the Moms who avoid the camera

wozkaa
wozkaa Posts: 224 Member
in Motivation and Support
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/allison-tate/mom-pictures-with-kids_b_1926073.html

Summary: There are so many Moms out there who avoid being caught on film, as they are unhappy about how they look compared to how they looked prior to having babies. This article looks at changing that. It makes you think about when your children look for pictures of you with them when they were small, and can't find any.

It's not a new article, but it's interesting to see how common the issue is.

I'm one. And it's one of my main motivators to change the way I live.

Replies

  • 949BeachMom
    949BeachMom Posts: 89
    I do avoid pictures sometimes but most the time im like whatever im big . I wont be forever n he will see the progress when hes looking at the pictures.
  • 2BeHappy2
    2BeHappy2 Posts: 811 Member
    I always try to get out of it by nominating myself as the picture taker...hoping not to have to after Ive lost this weight!
  • wozkaa
    wozkaa Posts: 224 Member
    Yeah, I'm usually behind the camera anyway (Husband says can't operate my DSLR).. It's the candid snaps he takes with his phone when I am doing things with the girls that gross me out. But hey, I know that in 5 months when they turn 2, I won't be hiding. I want pictures of my beautiful babies with their mother.
  • laurenb1994
    laurenb1994 Posts: 40 Member
    I have always avoided the camera. From being very young. At my sisters wedding when I was 7, I spent the whole day sobbing as I hated that being bridesmaid meant having my photo being taken.

    When I got pregnant, I started taking pictures. It clicked instantly that I wanted to remember this, and I wanted to show my child how they looked in mummy's tummy.

    I started taking photo's with my daughter when she was born too.

    For the first time I had myself in my profile pictures.

    My photo confidence is on the increase and for that I am very happy. I'm glad my daughter will have photos of us together. Memories are so much more special and important than feeling badly about how I look in pictures.
  • kms2072
    kms2072 Posts: 55
    This is very interesting. I have never liked myself in pictures. I have very few from my childhood and when I was doing a photo album for my son for his graduation, I realized how little pictures we had of us together and it made me sad. I have a gazillion of him, LOL. I regret that, but try to take pictures now regardless of how bad I THINK I look in them. Thanks for sharing this!
  • DaveDeLange
    DaveDeLange Posts: 48
    It's not just mothers, but fathers too!

    Given the way I react to a camera being produced, anyone would think a gun was being pointed at me.

    I'm a man of mystery, absent from all family photos (well for many years anyway). It's a bit sad really.
  • kms2072
    kms2072 Posts: 55
    It's not just mothers, but fathers too!

    Given the way I react to a camera being produced, anyone would think a gun was being pointed at me.

    I'm a man of mystery, absent from all family photos (well for many years anyway). It's a bit sad really.

    This is very true! Men can be just as self conscious as women. We forget that sometimes!

    I had to laugh a little because as we are talking about not wanting to have our pictures taken and I note that both of us do not have a picture of ourselves for our profile. Haha
  • ClinicalTrial
    ClinicalTrial Posts: 55 Member
    Mothers are the best people in the world.
  • CallMeCupcakeDammit
    CallMeCupcakeDammit Posts: 9,377 Member
    It didn't occur to me until I was filling in a scrap book with vacation pictures a few years ago, and I wasn't in any of them. Mostly because I'm the one taking pictures, but I'm the last to say "hey, can you take a picture of us?", because I take horrible pictures.
  • Aero1dynamic
    Aero1dynamic Posts: 702 Member
    I am this mom. My eldest graduated this year and she nearly had to drag me into the frame for ONE shot. I felt horrible but couldn't help it. I've never liked the camera, even when I was young and NOT overweight. The weight has just made it 100X worse. I hope by the time my next child graduates ( not too far off) that I am a lot more comfortable with myself and can maybe even smile for the birdie !
  • CindyMarcuzAdams
    CindyMarcuzAdams Posts: 4,007 Member
    As much as I hate having my pic taken I let them snap away now. My kids have less pictures of me than they do of their late father, my sweet hubby. So smile with your head up. You never know what is around the corner. Say CHEESE
  • DaveDeLange
    DaveDeLange Posts: 48
    It's not just mothers, but fathers too!

    Given the way I react to a camera being produced, anyone would think a gun was being pointed at me.

    I'm a man of mystery, absent from all family photos (well for many years anyway). It's a bit sad really.

    This is very true! Men can be just as self conscious as women. We forget that sometimes!

    I had to laugh a little because as we are talking about not wanting to have our pictures taken and I note that both of us do not have a picture of ourselves for our profile. Haha

    I have photos but the most recent is from about seven years ago!

    I think it's part of what I call the "weight denial" syndrome. Avoiding cameras and mirrors to remain in some kind of enforced ignorance about what is going on with oneself. Turning a blind eye to all the clothes that no longer fit us in our wardrobes, like a depressing museum of our former selves. I'm sure you can think of more.
  • loser4realz
    loser4realz Posts: 18 Member
    I think it's part of what I call the "weight denial" syndrome. Avoiding cameras and mirrors to remain in some kind of enforced ignorance about what is going on with oneself. Turning a blind eye to all the clothes that no longer fit us in our wardrobes, like a depressing museum of our former selves. I'm sure you can think of more.

    Avoiding the scale was another form of weight denial for me, literally. The times I've been at healthier weights I was regular about weighing myself and visually seeing a number. I never allowed myself to become a slave to the scale or anything, but keeping tabs on my weight helped me to stay on track. The times I backslid I avoided the scale like the plague because I KNEW the numbers were increasing but if I didn't step on it, it was okay to eat that cupcake.
  • Mariachicat
    Mariachicat Posts: 311 Member
    I see this in people I love and it's heartbreaking. Once I started seeing myself doing the same thing, that was a big motivator to change. I don't want to live like that.
  • Lleldiranne
    Lleldiranne Posts: 5,516 Member
    I think I read the article (or something similar to this) a while ago.

    My grandma avoided the camera ever since I was a teen (and probably before) because she disliked how she looked. I only have a few pictures of her from then, mostly from my wedding. Now that she's had a stroke and not really there anymore, I really wish I had more pictures of her.

    That is really enough inspiration for me to suck it up and allow pictures (I just try to know in advance so I can at least have hair and makeup together). I don't want my kids, and future grandkids, to wish they had more pictures of me in their lives.
  • paulawatkins1974
    paulawatkins1974 Posts: 720 Member
    I used to avoid pictures all the time. And then after my mom died, even though we were extremely close and had spent Tonnes of time together, looking through pictures for the slide show for the funeral, I noticed that the only pics there really were of the 2 of us together, were when I was in my 20's and younger. I decided then that my children will have LOTS of pictures with me in them. And we do. Take lots of pictures together. So much that I almost annoy them lol.
  • Superpook
    Superpook Posts: 20 Member
    Ok, ok, ok! I had my son at 42 and prior to that I rarely allowed photos of myself, not because of my appearance, but because I've always disliked the whole process of it all- being told to "SMILE!" and pose, and getting everyone in the same spot at the same time, and all of it.
    I've loosened up since my son was born so he could have pics of his mother, but I began retreating again when the weight started creeping up on me.
    Reading these posts makes me realize that he deserves to have pics of the mommy he will remember- fat, medium, purple, old, tall, short, etc...I know he loves me just as I am. So thanks for that.
  • kms2072
    kms2072 Posts: 55
    Avoiding the scale was another form of weight denial for me, literally. The times I've been at healthier weights I was regular about weighing myself and visually seeing a number. I never allowed myself to become a slave to the scale or anything, but keeping tabs on my weight helped me to stay on track. The times I backslid I avoided the scale like the plague because I KNEW the numbers were increasing but if I didn't step on it, it was okay to eat that cupcake.


    I used to never have a problem weighing myself when I was thin! Now, I only weigh myself once a week. When I started to gain the weight a few years ago, I never wanted to weigh myself because that would make the fact that I was overweight "real". Just as you said, if I didn't see the number, it was ok to keep eating the way I was. The scale should never be our only indication of weight loss or gain. I tend to go by how my clothes are fitting.

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