You Need To See This Mom's C-Section Instagram Post

There is nothing easy about motherhood, and every mom handles the job differently. There are crunchy moms, silky moms, stay-at-home moms, working moms, single moms, and about a million other self-described mom "types" out there. But there is an one kind of mom that has often faced especially unfair judgment over the years, and frankly it's about time for society to chill out. Because while there are many different ways that babies are brought into this world, moms who either choose or must resort to having a c-section are frequently second-guessed or subjected to lectures about why their decision was some sort of cop-out (hint: it isn't). Now, one mom's viral c-section Instagram is proving to the rest of the world that it's definitely not the "easy way out," as some might believe.

In an Instagram post shared last week, Australian blogger and mom of two Olivia White delivered some major truth bombs about the stigma behind c-sections, and the harsh reality that comes with them.

"To anyone who thinks it's the easy way out, well try having a 6 inch gash in your abdomen like a gutted shark who had the body parts of the surfer it ate retrieved!" White wrote in the caption of a photo featuring her still-fresh c-section scar, medical tape, stitches and all. "That's then sewn back together with fishing wire while it feels like your vital organs are trying to escape!"

White didn't stop there, though. "Look I know it might not be my best angle (or is it?) but who wouldn't take selfies hours post birth so they can see where they sliced you open and yanked out a whole person (if you couldn't tell I still couldn't see past my still inflated uterus)," White wrote, referring to her post-pregnancy "bump."

Since she initially posted the photo on her Instagram and Facebook page, White's photo has received over 1,000 shares and countless comments.

Speaking to the Huffington Post, White said she mainly posted the image and caption to let people "know the reality of a c-section and make those who had c-section know they don’t need to defend themselves!" And good for her. All births are difficult, and one way isn't better than another (especially since a lot of c-sections are done as an emergency procedure — though moms who choose to have a c-section ahead of time are also equally badass).

White's reminder of the painful reality of c-sections is sorely needed. In the end, hammering home her point, she wrote, "If it wasn't for the ability to deliver my babies this way they might not be here today." In an email to Romper, she added, "It doesn't matter how you birth your baby, it's still birth, you're still a mother and we should all be sticking together and not categorising ourselves based on a technicality!"

A baby is a baby, no matter how it entered the world. Olivia White is right — we'd all do well to remember that much.