'I've taken ownership of my body back'

When Melissa Jolly looked in the mirror, she “despised” her reflection and would “feel sick” when clutching her untoned stomach, which once carried her four children.

- WORDS: AMY JONES

In a bid to get her pre-pregnancy body back, the 32-year-old from Manchester tried “every diet under the sun” and regularly exercised. She lost weight, going from a size 16 to a 14, but it wasn’t just about shedding the pounds for her as she tells us, “everything was just very saggy”.

Her body image severely impacted her mental health, took a toll on her relationship and stopped the doting mum from going to certain places with her children — Lucca, 11, Annabel, eight, Reggie, six, and Acer, three.

It wasn’t until her friend recommended a surgeon that she made the drastic decision to go under the knife for a full “mummy makeover”, costing an estimated £15,000.

“I had a breast enlargement with uplift, tummy tuck, liposuction and muscle repair — I don’t regret a thing,” Melissa shared.

On reflection

“I was miserable before, and I avoided the mirror at all costs, I just despised what I looked like. I felt down about it and I was constantly hating on myself,” she added.

Melissa's stomach was the main body part she battled to come to terms with after welcoming her first child at the age of 20 and her fourth at 29.

“It made me feel sick touching my belly. I couldn’t resonate with my body, so what I felt on the inside just wasn’t reflected on the outside,” she said. “I’d stand in front of the mirror and grab my belly and be like, ‘Ugh.’ I would pretend my belly was gone and thought of how I'd look without it. I just did not like what I saw.

“You just become a vessel for carrying children and that’s all I saw. I’m very blessed and grateful for my body to have been able to do it four times, but I couldn’t register that's all [my body] was for, just being a mum.”