Melissa Harris Perry Talks Motherhood and Body Image

By Jamilah King Jun 18, 2014

Earlier this year, MSNBC host Melissa Harris Perry wrote bravely about her path to surrogacy and the birth of her youngest daughter. Now, in a recent essay for Essence, the mother of two opened up about how she’s struggled with her body image while trying to juggle motherhood, work, partnership and travel:

Sleepless nights led to exhausted mornings. It was easy to trade a run for a nap. The all-consuming cycle of feeding, changing and soothing made it difficult to prepare healthful meals, but a cupcake and coffee were quick and easy. I stopped using my iPhone to count calories and started using it to keep track of how many ounces AJ was eating and how many wet diapers she was producing. The weekend I returned to hosting my MSNBC show, I was disappointed by the fact that I was wearing a size larger than I had worn the day AJ was born. Bouncing her on my lap, I’d get distracted by the cellulite on my thighs. Pushing her in the jogging stroller, I was irritated by my dramatically slower pace. When Parker put on an adorable sundress for Easter, I felt a tinge of jealousy because I had been unable to fasten the dress I had initially chosen that morning.

Read more at Essence