New mum shares the sweet note from a nurse that changed her outlook on post-baby weight

After a challenging pregnancy, Mariah Kaitlyn Herrera was looking forward to enjoying her baby but also feeling like herself again.

Before her son was born, Mariah suffered pre-eclampsia and then discovered that her son had shoulder dystocia in the womb.

After getting her son Isaiah home and settling into family life, the new mum found herself worried by body insecurities, like many new mothers face - but not many people talk about.

'You have to wait a certain amount of time before you can exercise. It's like a waiting game,' Mariah explained to Babble. 'But you have made a HUMAN. Things have changed. And that's something I really had a hard time wrapping my head around now that I am covered in stretch marks.'

Something that the new mum struggled with specifically was losing her baby weight after giving birth - watching her weight stay the same, and judging herself because of her changed body became something of a routine. 'Self-loathing is such a big thing that nobody talks about… I know a lot of mothers who have struggled,' she said.

So, when Mariah went to her doctor's office for another weigh in, she was pleasantly surprised to find a sweet, kind-hearted noted that had been stuck above the scales by one of the nurses.

Sharing the note on Instagram, Mariah wrote: 'This is the second time I've seen this in the doctors office and I LOVE IT. SERIOUSLY these should come with every scale! Completely changes how I feel about stepping on the scale especially because I know I'm working on myself. P.s I'm down 47 pounds since childbirth.'

The sweet note reads: 'This scale will only tell you the numerical value of your gravitational pull. It will not tell you how beautiful you are, how much your friends and family love you, or how amazing you are.'

Talking to Babble, the mum revealed that after she read the note her mood instantly changed. 'I asked the nurse not to tell me,' she said, referring to the number on the scale.

'My mood had completely changed! I was happy and lighthearted, almost as if a weight has been lifted off my chest.'

And it seems that Mariah's note of support, and empowering post, is inspiring other mums too.

'Love is not in the scale 4 sure...' one exclaimed in the comment section alongside her image. 'Excellent post it note!!!