2 hours, 2 days, 4 days and 1 week: What Ellie's stomach looked like in the days after giving birth.

It's been just over a week since social media influencer Ellie Bullen gave birth to her son. 

Like many new mums, Ellie decided to share a photo of herself and her baby on Instagram. But she also posted something we don't usually get see in our feeds. 

The 27-year-old nutritionist and dietitian uploaded "raw" and "real" images showing what her body looked like in the days after giving birth. 

"Images of my body two hours post birth, two days post birth, four days post birth and one week post birth," she captioned the post, which she shared with her 761,000 followers. 

"I wanted to share because I think it’s something as a first time mum that you’re not really prepared for. We’re so used to seeing images of women with snatched waists just after having a baby," she added.

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A post shared by ELLIE BULLEN ⋆ PLANT-BASED (@elsas_wholesomelife) on Jul 19, 2020 at 2:37am PDT

Speaking to Mamamia, the 27-year-old explained that she posted the photos after receiving a "great response" from women who appreciated her sharing raw mirror selfies of her postpartum body on her Instagram Stories. 

"I think it’s important so that other women can learn and have realistic expectations for themselves one day. I also think it’s empowering to show how amazing a woman’s body is post pregnancy," she said. 

"We see so many pregnant bellies all over Instagram but after birth it’s rare to see postpartum bellies."

And her followers think so too. 

"Thank you for sharing this. We need more real beauty...The female body is divine and to show it in all its greatness is what we should be after," one person commented. 

"Thank you for sharing! I remember four days after having a baby I was so confused why I couldn't fit in even any of my 'fat clothes'. Media gave me no preparation that your belly sticks around for a bit after having a baby," said another.

Listen to Mamamia Out Loud, Mamamia’s podcast with what women are talking about this week. Post continues below.

As a new mum herself, Ellie said there’s a lot of pressure for women to "get their pre-baby bodies' back" after giving birth. 

"We shouldn’t be focusing on our pre-baby body, its likely it will never be the same. I like to think of postpartum as a new body is born, a mother’s body."

Now, one week postpartum, Ellie says it’s been eye-opening to see how her body has changed. 

"In just one week it’s been seriously insane to watch my stomach begin to shrink and become 'slightly' more toned. I think when you understand that it’s due to the uterus shrinking back to its original size it’s actually pretty amazing," she told Mamamia. 

"I also have a pretty large degree of abdominal separation (six centimetres) so it’s been challenging trying to balance waking and feeding a newborn as well as protecting my abdominal muscles for recovery."

By posting the photos, she hopes other mums will also feel empowered to share what they are really going through.

"I hope that other women will feel more comfortable and less alone in their postpartum journey, and less afraid to share their realities."

Feature Image: Instagram @elsas_wholesomelife.