# What is your reaction to this c-section (scar) photo?



## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

Viral C-Section Photo Shows The Beauty Of New Moms' Scars

I've had two c-sections (and thankfully nobody has ever made me feel like less of a woman for that....well, nobody but myself), so I get it.

HOWEVER. This woman couldn't have put a small blanket over her crotch so that her baby wasn't laying naked on her girly parts? No need to cover up the incision/scar, as it is the point of the photo (and I like that). But really.

Do you disagree?


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## kristin2349 (Sep 12, 2013)

SecondTime'Round said:


> Viral C-Section Photo Shows The Beauty Of New Moms' Scars
> 
> I've had two c-sections (and thankfully nobody has ever made me feel like less of a woman for that....well, nobody but myself), so I get it.
> 
> ...


The scar is fine, it is fresh it will heal barely noticeable. 

But I have to be honest I was more thrown by the crotch pic with the baby right there, then I thought I was being a prude because the baby would have made its way out of that very spot. I don't get why it went viral, it is a strange photo.


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

kristin2349 said:


> The scar is fine, it is fresh it will heal barely noticeable.
> 
> But I have to be honest I was more thrown by the crotch pic with the baby right there, then I thought I was being a prude because the baby would have made its way out of that very spot. I don't get why it went viral, it is a strange photo.


I thought the same thing....well, the baby did exit from there....but still, you don't hold your baby naked on your crotch area. It just doesn't happen, so it's a very odd photo. Can you imagine if the dad was hold his newborn baby there? 

I just find it very distasteful and I wish the baby was at least wrapped in a little blanket.


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## Voltaire2013 (Sep 22, 2013)

SecondTime'Round said:


> I thought the same thing....well, the baby did exit from there....but still, you don't hold your baby naked on your crotch area. It just doesn't happen, so it's a very odd photo. Can you imagine if the dad was hold his newborn baby there?
> 
> I just find it very distasteful and I wish the baby was at least wrapped in a little blanket.


I think it's tastefully done as a art, nude baby from nude Mom with battle scar. Clothing would detract from the natural statement. Art is subjective, but to me it's a powerful image. 

I kinda dig a section scars, so maybe I'm biased. :laugh:

Cheers,
V(13)


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

Voltaire2013 said:


> I think it's tastefully done as a art, nude baby from nude Mom with battle scar. Clothing would detract from the natural statement. Art is subjective, but to me it's a powerful image.
> 
> I kinda dig a section scars, so maybe I'm biased. :laugh:
> 
> ...


It's not the scar I'm opposed to....not at ALL. I just don't think they have to be exposing her pubic bone, with a baby on top of it. The baby could be on (or in) a blanket, and still show the scar.


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## Voltaire2013 (Sep 22, 2013)

SecondTime'Round said:


> It's not the scar I'm opposed to....not at ALL. I just don't think they have to be exposing her pubic bone, with a baby on top of it. The baby could be on (or in) a blanket, and still show the scar.


I don't think that's the point, it's supposed to represent the natural bond between mother & child and what the mother went through to get there. The clothing is not part of that process, it superfluous to the image.

Also, I just said that so I can use superfluous in a sentence.:wink2:



Cheers,
V(13)


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## Idyit (Mar 5, 2013)

What I noticed. Doc did a fair job closing. Scar will be a little un-even on moms right side.

~ Passio


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## Anon Pink (Jan 17, 2013)

My first impression was sympathetic pain. Don't like looking at fresh incisions!!! But once I got past that, I also thought it was tastefully done nude art capturing "naked bonding" at its best. When you think about it, the baby generally has its first view of Mom's crotch so I saw nothing wrong or unsettling about the photo.

But I love nude art and think the female body is just glorious! Pair a nude female with a newborn...I'm in heaven!


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## Faithful Wife (Oct 31, 2012)

It reminded me of some other nude mom and baby pictures I've seen that are tastefully done but not something you may want your neighbor to see of you. I've seen several mom breastfeeding nude or just lounging nude with a baby, or taking a bath together. Also reminds me of nude pregnancy pics. It is beautiful to see the changes the human female body goes through in order to get one of those little rascals out of you!


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## Anonymous07 (Aug 4, 2012)

SecondTime'Round said:


> I thought the same thing....well, the baby did exit from there....but still, you don't hold your baby naked on your crotch area. It just doesn't happen, so it's a very odd photo. Can you imagine if the dad was hold his newborn baby there?
> 
> I just find it very distasteful and I wish the baby was at least wrapped in a little blanket.


Dad's don't give birth, so that comparison doesn't work. 

I think the photo is beautiful. It shows the "naked truth" of birth. Baby's head covers any part you don't want showing and I think it's done tastefully. It's a very sweet photo. 

I have a topless photo of myself nursing my son soon after he was born. I love that picture and will always cherish it.


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## MarriedDude (Jun 21, 2014)

1st thought....

The baby is coming out backwards

Doesn't seem distasteful in any particular way
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

Anonymous07 said:


> Dad's don't give birth, so that comparison doesn't work.
> 
> I think the photo is beautiful. It shows the "naked truth" of birth. Baby's head covers any part you don't want showing and I think it's done tastefully. It's a very sweet photo.
> 
> I have a topless photo of myself nursing my son soon after he was born. I love that picture and will always cherish it.


I have no problem at all with topless/breastfeeding photos. I think they're beautiful, I guess because it's more natural to be cradling a baby there than on your naked crotch lol. 

Maybe I'm just a prude!!!


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## kristin2349 (Sep 12, 2013)

SecondTime'Round said:


> I have no problem at all with topless/breastfeeding photos. I think they're beautiful, I guess because it's more natural to be cradling a baby there than on your naked crotch lol.
> 
> Maybe I'm just a prude!!!



I had the same initial reaction to it STR, it feels awkwardly positioned or something.


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## Anonymous07 (Aug 4, 2012)

kristin2349 said:


> I had the same initial reaction to it STR, it feels awkwardly positioned or something.


I don't know. It doesn't bother me at all. 

My 2 year old loves to hide his head against my crotch and we joke that he can't crawl back up inside. 

I think people make it too sexual, when it's not. It's an infant laying on the mother. It's sweet.


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## Fozzy (Jul 20, 2013)

Didn't bother me in the least, but I watched the doctor peel my wife open three times.

As far as the baby/crotch aspect---non sexual partial nudity...meh. I wouldn't have it hanging in my living room, but whatevs.


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## OnTheFly (Mar 12, 2015)

My reaction to the scar is no reaction at all. It's there, and I'm sure it was medically necessary…..why is it even a topic of discussion? What I find interesting is that it's being touted as a thing of 'beauty'….why? Why can't it just be what it is?

If I post a pic of my FIL's scar from knee replacement surgery, will anyone care, and is IT a thing of beauty also?


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## CantePe (Oct 5, 2011)

It's art. I'm tired of judgemental people over sexualising what isn't sexual.

The problem lies in those who think sexual about a piece of art and a statement being made through art.

I see nothing wrong with the photo in the least. I've had 2 C sections. I'm a CSA and I have 5 kids.


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## Runs like Dog (Feb 25, 2011)

L'Origine du monde


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## bandit.45 (Feb 8, 2012)

I think they are sexy. Pregnancy is sexy. Motherhood is sexy. 

You women create life...that is sexy as hell....


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## heartsbeating (May 2, 2011)

Voltaire2013 said:


> I don't think that's the point, it's supposed to represent the natural bond between mother & child and what the mother went through to get there. The clothing is not part of that process, it superfluous to the image.
> 
> Also, I just said that so I can use superfluous in a sentence.:wink2:
> 
> ...


I viewed the imaged this way and think it's beautiful.


Plus superfluous is a fine word.


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## Chelle D (Nov 30, 2011)

I don't really like it. I kind of get the motherhood thing.. but....
Nope...

If photographer was trying for (Or trying to beat) an Anne Geddes type of photo. They failed. I mean, the baby is cute as all buttons... but the "where I came from" reference....Not cute.

As someone said... I think they were going for "art". Some art I like, some art I hate.

Just like some jokes I like. some jokes I hate.


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## AliceA (Jul 29, 2010)

Reaction was, um, shouldn't that be bandaged or something? Looks like someone just cut open her stomach, wiped off the blood and left.


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

OnTheFly said:


> My reaction to the scar is no reaction at all. It's there, and I'm sure it was medically necessary…..why is it even a topic of discussion? What I find interesting is that it's being touted as a thing of 'beauty'….why? Why can't it just be what it is?
> 
> If I post a pic of my FIL's scar from knee replacement surgery, will anyone care, and is IT a thing of beauty also?


The reaction to the scar is not the issue. I love the scar. It's the baby laying on her naked crotch that I don't think is necessary to make the point of the photo (i.e. scar). I imagine this baby in 20 years seeing this photo and saying, "Geez, mom! Couldn't you have at least put on a pair of panties!?" :grin2:

I'm not outraged by this photo or anything. For me, the fact that the baby is laying on her naked pubic bone (not a natural place for a baby to be hanging out, especially in what is obviously not AT birth since this woman already has her staples out) is superfluous (see what I did there!? ) to the photo. It takes away from the image and is a distracting. The same effect could have occurred with a little blanket draped over her so we don't have to see her pubes.


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## thefam (Sep 9, 2014)

I'm with @chelle. Just commenting on the composition of the photo to me it seems like they were just trying too hard to get a unique pose and the photographer didn't quite pull it off. It's unique alright but not in a beautiful way. The elements of the photo just seem thrown together like here's my vj, here's my scar, here's my baby. 

The composition of it just doesn't work for me. It's not graceful or smoothe. As always, YMMV.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## inhope (Nov 17, 2010)

SecondTime'Round said:


> The same effect could have occurred with a little blanket draped over her so we don't have to see her pubes.


...and little blankets are just so artistic...

This is nature in the raw, that was the point of the pic. 
Naked mother, bloodied scar, naked baby. 
The reality of birth.

No room for frilly pants or cute little blankets covering up modesty here - they would have totally mucked up the message of the piece.


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## OnTheFly (Mar 12, 2015)

SecondTime'Round said:


> The reaction to the scar is not the issue. I love the scar. It's the baby laying on her naked crotch that I don't think is necessary to make the point of the photo (i.e. scar). I imagine this baby in 20 years seeing this photo and saying, "Geez, mom! Couldn't you have at least put on a pair of panties!?" :grin2:
> 
> I'm not outraged by this photo or anything. For me, the fact that the baby is laying on her naked pubic bone (not a natural place for a baby to be hanging out, especially in what is obviously not AT birth since this woman already has her staples out) is superfluous (see what I did there!? ) to the photo. It takes away from the image and is a distracting. The same effect could have occurred with a little blanket draped over her so we don't have to see her pubes.


Ah, ok, I see your angle and I agree, particularly with the last sentence. I suspect the photo would not have gone viral if it was ACTUALLY beautiful and modest. It seems for anyone to be interested anymore in anything an ever increasing 'shock' value has to be inserted. 

So, I ask, what message are they trying to put forth with a pic of pubes, a newborn and a c-section scar? Is this fighting against a belief by all men that c-section scars are hideous and an anti-scar shaming campaign is in order? Perhaps, I woke up extra cynical this morning, but at present there are 7 billion plus people on earth and in total hundreds of billions of people have been born and died. Child birth is not new or special. It might be for the immediate family, but not in the grand scheme of things. People are free to take any picture they want and post it, but don't write an article and expect me to agree that it is beautiful. (This paragraph is not directed at you, SecondTime'Round, just mental diarrhea that got written down.)


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

inhope said:


> ...and little blankets are just so artistic...
> 
> This is nature in the raw, that was the point of the pic.
> Naked mother, bloodied scar, naked baby.
> ...


But it's not the reality of "birth." It's the reality of a few days after birth when her staples have already been removed. A few days after birth, the baby is no longer hanging around her mom's vagina.


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

OnTheFly said:


> Ah, ok, I see your angle and I agree, particularly with the last sentence. I suspect the photo would not have gone viral if it was ACTUALLY beautiful and modest. It seems for anyone to be interested anymore in anything an ever increasing 'shock' value has to be inserted.
> 
> *So, I ask, what message are they trying to put forth with a pic of pubes, a newborn and a c-section scar? * Is this fighting against a belief by all men that c-section scars are hideous and an anti-scar shaming campaign is in order? Perhaps, I woke up extra cynical this morning, but at present there are 7 billion plus people on earth and in total hundreds of billions of people have been born and died. Child birth is not new or special. It might be for the immediate family, but not in the grand scheme of things. People are free to take any picture they want and post it, but don't write an article and expect me to agree that it is beautiful. (This paragraph is not directed at you, SecondTime'Round, just mental diarrhea that got written down.)


A lot of the comments around mommy-wars about c-section "discrimination/shame." I've had 2 c-sections and never experienced anyone shaming me for that, but I guess it exists???


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## OnTheFly (Mar 12, 2015)

SecondTime'Round said:


> A lot of the comments around mommy-wars about c-section "discrimination/shame." I've had 2 c-sections and never experienced anyone shaming me for that, but I guess it exists???


Really? I thought I was a connoisseur of the interwebs and I've literally never heard of this as a problem……live and learn, haha


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## Anonymous07 (Aug 4, 2012)

SecondTime'Round said:


> But it's not the reality of "birth." It's the reality of a few days after birth when her staples have already been removed. A few days after birth, the baby is no longer hanging around her mom's vagina.


I think it's beautiful, but I also have absolutely no issue with nudity. I'll take my 2 year old son with me to shower and have no issue being naked around him. None of it is sexual, it's just a human body.


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## kristin2349 (Sep 12, 2013)

My only issues with the photo is I thought the placement looked odd. I am a hobby photographer and I would have placed the baby at a slightly different angle. The mom could have still shown the scar, the baby could have still been placed near it but if she crossed one leg over the other a bit or something so her patchy pubes weren't part of the image. IDK why it went viral...


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## LainyLove22 (Aug 22, 2015)

A C section scar is nothing to be embarrassed about !? If anything it should we worn with pride !!

I gave birth twice naturally but if I did have a c section then I'd still be sporting a 2 piece bikini !!


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## CantePe (Oct 5, 2011)

They don't do stapling these days for the most part. It's skin glue now. Both my C section I had no staples...


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## Rosemary's Granddaughter (Aug 25, 2012)

It's interesting. IMO, it's beautiful, because I think childbirth is beautiful. It's interesting because I've never seen a c-section scar.
_Posted via Mobile Device_


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

LainyLove22 said:


> A C section scar is nothing to be embarrassed about !? If anything it should we worn with pride !!
> 
> I gave birth twice naturally but if I did have a c section then I'd still be sporting a 2 piece bikini !!


Did you even read this thread?!


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

CantePe said:


> They don't do stapling these days for the most part. It's skin glue now. Both my C section I had no staples...


I'm showing my age!


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## Rowan (Apr 3, 2012)

I had staples, too. They didn't come out for I think it was 4-5 weeks. And my scar isn't nearly that nice looking. My C-section was a very serious emergency, so the scar is too wide and crooked. 

Apparently, one facet of the mommy wars is that some people take the position that if you have a C-section - particularly a scheduled one - that you didn't "really" give birth. As if vaginal birth, preferably naturally with no meds, is somehow so much more virtuous and righteous than surgical intervention. I guess some folks think with a C-section they just unzip you, pull the baby out and send you home. I ran into a lot of people who seemed to not really consider a C-section to be major surgery.


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## Anon Pink (Jan 17, 2013)

SecondTime'Round said:


> I'm showing my age!


I wondered why she didn't have staples or staple scars too. The wound looked too fresh and the infant too young for the staples to have been removed.
@Anonymous07, you are so lucky to have that photograph of you and your son! I so wish I has something like with with my babies!


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## AliceA (Jul 29, 2010)

Rowan said:


> I had staples, too. They didn't come out for I think it was 4-5 weeks. And my scar isn't nearly that nice looking. My C-section was a very serious emergency, so the scar is too wide and crooked.
> 
> Apparently, one facet of the mommy wars is that some people take the position that if you have a C-section - particularly a scheduled one - that you didn't "really" give birth. As if vaginal birth, preferably naturally with no meds, is somehow so much more virtuous and righteous than surgical intervention. I guess some folks think with a C-section they just unzip you, pull the baby out and send you home. I ran into a lot of people who seemed to not really consider a C-section to be major surgery.


I ran into a few people of that mindset too. One lady told me, "Get a C-section! Makes it so much easier to be able to schedule the birth into your calendar" or something along those lines. My thought was, no one is cutting open my belly unless it's an emergency.


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## NotEasy (Apr 19, 2015)

My reaction was "it's a good thing females give birth, if men delivered the babies the human race would have died off long ago", to quote my father.

I see the link for the pain and effort of childbirth and the beauty of a new life. But I don't really see it as great art or a great photograph. 

Equally I don't see it as shocking or improper. It would not be up on the living room wall, but it would go in the family photo album. And I think a blanket or panties would look out of place.

That is an impressive scar. I have an appendix scar only half as long. For some reason they gave me a bikini line scar. I'd prefer a manly scar that I can show off without exposing myself. I would have also preferred skin glue, with me they used staples and a huge sticky bandage. Both were a pain to remove. And my staples left a frankensteins monster effect to the scar for a while. Her scar looks much neater than mine did.


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## SecondTime'Round (Jan 15, 2015)

breeze said:


> I ran into a few people of that mindset too. One lady told me, "Get a C-section! Makes it so much easier to be able to schedule the birth into your calendar" or something along those lines. My thought was, no one is cutting open my belly unless it's an emergency.


Oh man, I think I would have bit that woman's head off. I was in 47.5 hours of back labor before my first c-section, and 25 hours of back labor before my second one. There was NOTHING easy about it.


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## Anonymous07 (Aug 4, 2012)

Anon Pink said:


> @Anonymous07, you are so lucky to have that photograph of you and your son! I so wish I has something like with with my babies!


I am so glad my husband got that picture. Our son was a few days old and I was having difficulty nursing our son, so I was reclining in the glider topless trying hard to get him to latch properly. When I finally got him on, my husband snapped the picture. It's my favorite picture of my son and I. I want to do more pictures like that with the next baby. 



SecondTime'Round said:


> Oh man, I think I would have bit that woman's head off. I was in 47.5 hours of back labor before my first c-section, and 25 hours of back labor before my second one. There was NOTHING easy about it.


Some people schedule the c-section so they never go into labor to begin with. Why? I don't know, as the recovery is so much more difficult with a c-section vs vaginal delivery, but some people obviously like it that way. It seems to be a "thing" for some people to do. 

I've never had a c-section, but the scars would never bother me. Although, I should mention I already have a 9 inch scar down my leg, so I have plenty of scars already. They are all "battle wounds" and tell an amazing story.


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## Satya (Jun 22, 2012)

I'm more drawn to the baby than the scar in the picture if I'm honest. I enjoy representations of the miracle of life, and it shows how the baby was all tucked in while inside. 

I haven't had children yet, but I hope to. I also hope I never have a c-section unless absolutely necessary. My future bun-in-oven is not allowed to come out on a Friday.


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## Anonymous07 (Aug 4, 2012)

Satya said:


> I'm more drawn to the baby than the scar in the picture if I'm honest. I enjoy representations of the miracle of life, and it shows how the baby was all tucked in while inside.
> 
> I haven't had children yet, but I hope to. I also hope I never have a c-section unless absolutely necessary. My future bun-in-oven is not allowed to come out on a Friday.


Hope you didn't jinx yourself. 

My son was born on a Saturday night. I liked it because everyone was off work, so it was easy for my parents and others to come visit and help out(bring us food and other things).


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## imtamnew (May 13, 2013)

That is a beautiful picture. My wife went thru C-sections for both my kids.

That is a scar that reminds us of a very beautiful thing. This picture just made me smile as I remembered holding my babies minutes after they were born.


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## VermisciousKnid (Dec 27, 2011)

If you're going to say that baby at breast is functional and non-sexual then I guess you could say that baby at vulva is also functional and non-sexual. Except that it isn't exactly the same. Baby goes back to breast to eat but never goes back to vagina for any reason. 

The picture is nice though. One brand new person next to the home he/she was in for the preceding nine months. The c-section scar is the door to that home. The only thing missing is a picture of baby coming out of the womb. Probably too bloody for most folks, but I think those photos are beautiful, too.


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## karma*girl (Apr 28, 2012)

I see the beauty in it...but in the interpretation of it, not simply the parts and pieces of the actual photo. 
That's what makes it artistic. 

The fact that her pubes are showing or the baby's face is lying on her V, isn't the point. I think if you focus on the details, then the power of the message will be lost. 
For those that think it's distasteful, maybe there is a small cloth folded under the baby's cheek? You never know..)

To me, it is a raw and honest representation of what some women go through in order to bring life into the world. 
It's not the scar in and of itself, but the pain and sacrifice that comes with it, in order to safely and (hopefully) proudly bring forth life. I have had 3 c-sections and can truly empathize with this woman..and all women who go through this.


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## AliceA (Jul 29, 2010)

I didn't really care about the pubes, considering a baby often comes out of a vagina, a bit of pubic hair on the cheek is nothin'. That said, I won't be posting a picture of my episiotomy scar for everyone to tell me how beautiful it is, heh, could you imagine the reaction to that one, lol.


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## Kylie84 (May 4, 2012)

Interesting to read everyone's reactions 
My own was a combination of 'wow that's extreme' and 'actually it's raw and beautiful'. I think my initial reaction was because I hadn't seen a photograph before of a c-section scar so new, and I only (almost now) 8 months ago had a fresh one of my own.
I continued to look at it and then decided I really like the picture. Makes me feel proud of my scar for some reason.
Some mentioned the weird misconception some people have about c-sections like its easy and not very 'woman-ly' to get out of vaginal delivery, and I agree that some people think like that. I was in labor for 30hrs after being induced on NYE (nope, didn't see fire works from my hospital window haha) and had a terrifying ordeal of almost losing our baby 3 times before they finally decided I had to have the emergency c-section done. Because of comments from others, I do wonder if i can rightfully say that I 'gave birth to' our sweet daughter. Did I? How strange is that?


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