A Port Coquitlam photographer is creating a photo book project to raise money for the Post Partum Support Society (PPSS).
Candice Tizzard said she'd heard of a similar project that was done in the United Kingdom and wanted to recreate it here with local moms. The photos celebrate a more realistic version of a mother's body, for all its changes, and aims to break down the stigma of the post-baby body and post-partum depression.
"I've had three children myself, and my body is not the way it used to be," Tizzard said, aged six, five and three. "I took it to heart and I'd love to be able to give that power back to women."
Another inspiration for the Beautiful Me Project came from a TED Talk given by Amy Cuddy, a social psychologist who researches body language and encouraged women's use of the "power pose."
"I wanted to give women that - staying open, putting them in poses making them beautiful," Tizzard said, so that women can "see the beauty that is in their body, rather than the marks the baby has made, which in my opinion should be loved because every mark is a story."
Tizzard, who also works as a birth doula, said she still lives with post-partum depression and has found a great deal of support from PPSS. The book is her way of giving back to the people that helped her heal.
Women have three ways of participating in the project: for $50 their photo and a story or quote will go in the book; for $75 they can keep the photos themselves; or, donate in any amount they wish.
A volunteer hair and make-up artist will style women for the photo shoots, which Tizzard expects to schedule this month. Depending on the level of interest they may continue in November, with the book launch tentatively set for January.
All women are welcome to participate, and Tizzard notes it's not limited to mothers.
"It's open to any woman who has had a baby or survived something - one woman we're in contact with survived cancer, another lost a child at birth, it can be pregnant women, women with cesareans. It's for all walks, all women who need to love the scars and the skin they're in."
Tizzard is also welcoming donations for a raffle draw at the book launch.
For more information visit www.beautifulmeproject.com.
