I recently discovered that I am pregnant. I am only a month along (first appointment with the midwife in a few days. Nervous!) but already I have started gaining weight on my belly (obviously), around my hips and on my thighs.

For years I have maintained my body at a size I'm comfortable with, and it feels strange, to say the least, to see these changes occurring, changes which I have no control over.

I also had anorexia for over ten years. So it's a challenge to say the least...saying that, I did catch my reflection in the mirror the other day and thought 'hey woman, you actually look quite sexy!' I did not expect that. It also helps that my boyfriend and the father of my baby actually loves how my body is changing.

Sadly though, there are many women who struggle to adapt to their changing body. Who look at themselves and hate what they see. Fortunately, there are some which come to love the (changing) skin they're in, though others aren't quite as lucky. In this article, you will read about 15 individuals moms, all of whom really struggled with how pregnancy changed their shape and size.

15 A Freak Show

Stephanie Powell was excited to tell her friend Anne the big news. Little did she know, her friend already knew. "I could tell the minute I saw you. You look … bigger.” Stephanie never managed to get the words 'I'm going to have a baby,' out of her mouth.

"Thankfully my husband, James’ comments weren’t as bad," he said. "During the early months, while friends were giving me clothes and calling my bluff, he would say encouraging things like: “I love your new belly” and “your butt looks awesome in those jeans.

But when he walked in on me after a shower one morning during my second trimester, I could tell what he was thinking: Her nipples are the size of dinner plates! “Stop staring!” I insisted, quickly covering up with a towel. The shower encounter did nothing if not push me closer to the brink of all-out body paranoia."

14 Everything Was Bigger

When your partner is in the army, and one of the only ways that he can keep track of your pregnancy is through pictures, it is a really tragic state of affairs when you dislike your body so much that the idea of taking photos - even for your significant other - is terrifying. This is what happened to Heidi.

She loved her baby-to-be, but disliked her pregnant body. "Heavy boobs, fatter everywhere. I felt like I was pregnant all over, and not in a glowy, happy kinda way!" She said.

"My husband always said he loves my pregnant body and begged for pictures so he could see the changes (he was deployed for most of my two pregnancies), but the idea of capturing this on film totally freaked me out!"

13 He Started Looking At Other Women

One day, Cat was saying that she couldn't believe that she didn't look pregnant, and the next day, boom, she popped out, saw all the stretch marks and couldn't fit into the clothes she'd already brought for her pregnancy. "I know I hate my body," she says. "I feel like it all happened at once."

Cat was only 18 weeks at the time, and had another trimester and a half to keep growing. Her self-confidence vanished and she would find herself on the verge of tears when she'd catch her husband looking at girls in bikinis with perfect figures as she was growing and loosing hers.

Cat's husband wouldn't touch her either. It was especially hard because her sex drive was ramped up, but he wouldn't go near her or tell her that she was hot.

12 "Doing It For The Baby..."

Slightly concerned about what our next mom has to say about her pregnancy body...

"Man oh man I hated my pregnancy body. I was a stick with boobs before I was pregnant so I got stretch marks pretty bad. Really depressing since I was out of my pre-pregnancy job of modelling. I went up a cup size which was nice, I had that opportunity to be a DD and I ended up hating it...LOL.

For me I just had to tell myself that it was a baby not me getting fat. There is actually a condition know as Pregorexia. Seriously! It's when a pregnant woman sees her baby as fat so she starves herself to be thin. Just remember that it's worth it in the end and if you start doing walks now it'll help burn calories post partum."

11 Couldn't Let Anyone Take Pictures

I am not great with photos as it is...if I'm not the one holding the camera I usually panic. (I have no idea how I am going to cope over the next 8 months!) Haven't you noticed that photos taken by someone else often leave you thinking 'hell, I don't look like that...do I?' So I can understand why this one mom, who wishes to remain anonymous, was so stressed about it. When you're pregnant you're yourself, but in a way, you're kind of not.

"I wouldn't let anyone take pictures of me during the whole pregnancy, although I found a couple a few years later," she said. "I weighed 105 lbs before pregnancy and during I gained 50 lbs all over... my boobs, butt and face. I felt so unglowy and unhappy. But I am a happy mom now!"

10 "I'm Never Doing It Again"

Sandy is one mom who was an unhappy mom-to-be and really struggled with the changes her body went through. "I disliked my body when I was pregnant. I hated being pregnant. I'm not so happy with the post pregnant body either. I had no interest in [doing it] for months during and after the pregnancy.

I'm not a photogenic person to begin with and loathed all pictures taken of me while pregnant and even now, since I'm not back down to my pre-pregnancy weight yet. My husband, bless his heart, was very doting and all that good stuff, which really only made it worse. The only reason I glowed was because I was pregnant during the summer on a tropical island. It sucked for me, and I'm never doing it again."

9 Can't Escape The Hugeness

I am getting the impression that many men actually love their partners pregnant body. And it's lovely! Though sometimes it doesn't matter what your man says. If you can't accept the changes and love them, nothing he can say will make a difference. This is what happened to mom Tabby.

"I didn't like my pregnant body... I felt huge all the time. It caused lots of problems in my marriage because my husband liked how I looked. Now 9 months after I had my daughter my body looks just like it did before I had her but I still feel frumpy. My husband tells me all the time that I look just like I did pre-baby but after so many months of feeling huge I just can't seem to feel the same way I did about myself as I did then."

8 Nothing Worse Than Gaining Weight

Living in Sweden, I see a lot of thin, pregnant women. Don't ask me what their secret is, because I have no idea. I've managed (mostly) to come to terms with the fact with I'm not going to be a thin pregnant woman, but mom Kelly truly struggled, to the point that she actually hated being pregnant.

"I just had my little girl about 8 weeks ago, and I HATED being pregnant. I'm naturally a thin person and it really bothered me to gain weight. I always had people telling me that my belly looked so big, or that I looked like I was carrying twins (not the smartest thing to say to a pregnant woman!!)

But come to find out, lots of women don't like being pregnant.. so I don't feel so bad. Looking back on it, I kinda wish I had taken more pictures of my belly."

7 "I Feel Ugly And Disgusting"

When you are naturally thin and are used to having a flat stomach, being pregnant and gaining weight can be one hell of a blow. It was most certainly that to Amy...

"I'm about 6 1/2 months pregnant now with my second, and again just feel ugly and disgusting. I love my son more than anything in the world, and am really excited to have a little girl in Jan, but I HATE being pregnant! I never feel good, am a naturally thin person and enjoy having a flat stomach, shallow or not.

I know that the reason my belly is growing is so worth it and I couldn't imagine my life w/o the blessings of my children, but I just hate seeing my body stretch and change during pregnancy."

6 Being Big Is So Gross

Honestly, I feel like I'm gaining weight too early. I feel like saying to my body: 'WHOA THERE! You have another 8 months to get big...slow it the hell down why don't you?"

Net Moms forum used PepperPetite felt exactly the same way..."Self-conscious, bloated, felt like I was gaining way too much weight too early (I didn't have morning sickness at all), and just generally gross. I'm normally pretty ok with my body, and I like to do yoga and be moderately active. Also, I hate clothes shopping because I'm petite, so the thought of buying clothes (even maternity) in that state made me want to hide under the bed and never come out.

I started to feel much cuter around 22-24 weeks. I think it helped that even though I still felt big and gross, it was totally obvious on the outside that I wasn't just letting myself go.

5 A Violent Outburst

Most people expect moms to be accepting and nothing but positive about their blooming belly. But there's a significant lack of confidence among pregnant women. Mom selfbreakingtalks knew that her body would change, but she wasn't expecting the feelings of insecurity and self-hate.

"I need to be honest: my new body sucks. I was never particularly pretty or vain, but I did like to dress well even while on a grad student budget. Now I feel hideous and insecure.

I knew I'd gain some weight, maybe lose firmness in my chest, and accepted stretch marks. But there are so many weird things that I didn't anticipate. With the stress from the baby and finishing grad school, I feel like body issues are petty but now that I'm trying to find "professional" clothes for my first post-baby conference, I just want to punch the wall."

4 "I Just Hate My Body"

Anger is natural and normal during pregnancy. And I really hope my man is prepared for the shit storms that are going to be coming his way over the next 8 months. I predict that much of the anger will be about the fact that I can't fit into my clothes anymore and have to splurge on maternity stuff. I have a feeling my anger will mimic that of this poor anonymous mom who just had to vent her frustrations:

"I [effing] hate my body. We're 9 months PP and I am angry at my stomach and angry at my muffin top and angry at very piece of clothing I own. I had just lost weight and bought a stylish wardrobe then got my whoopsy twins. Nothing fits and if my husband says I look like a mom one more time I'm going to rip his man tits off."

3 A Mortifying Experience

I really, really hope that when I look into the mirror when I'm a bit 'bigger,' I won't think to myself 'I want to die.' Sadly, this is what mom Talargain wants to do when she catches a glimpse of herself.

"Personally I'm mortified by my body. I keep telling myself that this is all for the best cause, and when push comes to shove I haven't done anything to my body that a few months with a trainer can't fix, but when I look in a mirror, which I rarely do, I want to die.

My husband insists I'm beautiful, but I've never in my life felt more horrible about my physical appearance. I've discovered a streak of vanity that I never knew existed, and I'm quite ashamed of myself."

2 Very, Very Fat

I know there will be months when I feel very fat. And I know it'll take a new kind of strength not to revert back to old behaviours. Fortunately, my partner has a job close to home and is with me every night. Sadly for mom Britty0828 this isn't the case.

"I'm 17 weeks and feel very fat... I have this extra inner thigh fat and back fat my boobs have gone from a D to a DDD.. and before I got pregnant I had lost 50+lbs and now I am terrified about gaining it back... so far I have gained 16lbs and I eat fairly healthy!

My husband is in Iraq and I sent him a belly pic and all he said was " well, your growing." It was like WWII on yahoo messenger that night lol. I am sooooo scared what my body will look like afterwards."

1 Nicknamed 'The One Who Is Weight Conscious'

One of the things I am a little bit scared about with this pregnancy, is the fact that I'll need to be weighed. I haven't known my weight for about five years, and not having the number in my head does, I think, help to keep me on the straight and narrow. I have a feeling that, like HeavenLee02, the doctor might see me as another weight conscious mom.

"I'm only 19 weeks and gained 16 pounds but geez, I feel huge. Everytime I go to the doctor I dread the weighting. My doctor has even nicknamed me "the one who is weight conscience". I can't help it. I bought a prenatal work out dvd and I have been doing that but I still feel fat. I used to run nonstop but now that I'm pregnant I haven't been doing that much and I feel like a blob."

Sources: Babble.com, CircleOfMoms.com, Reddit.com, NetMoms.com