A new mum has warned other mothers not to fall into this common Instagram trap.

A new mum has posted a #nofilter photo of her stomach to Instagram to warn other mums-to-be not to fall into the same trap that she did.

Ruth Lee wrote that she followed so many pregnancy models on Instagram during her pregnancy, that she began to believe that she would be ‘pool-side 5 minutes postpartum’.

“I was 25 when I gave birth. I was healthy. I was young. I stayed active during my pregnancy. I took the best prenatals, went to the gym, used every kind of stretch mark prevention you could think of. I took hours of birthing classes, read every book under the sun, and studied natural childbirth my whole pregnancy,” she wrote.

A post shared by Ruth Lee (@baybayruth) on Feb 23, 2017 at 10:32pm PST

“I STILL ended up with a traumatic labor, cesarean section, scars, stretch marks, and unfortunately the inability to breastfeed long term.”

Lee explained that she took the photo a few days after she gave birth, when she first started suffering from Postpartum Depression.

“I took this and actually was horrified. I couldn’t believe it was me. I’m sharing it because I know in my heart that there are people out there that struggle with inadequacy. That might think they are not beautiful, that they might be ruined, less worthy, or not good enough,” she wrote.

Would you snapchat your birth? on Mamamia Out Loud. 

“Yours might not actually be physical scars, but maybe, a failed relationship, a difficulty in your career, a mental struggle, money issues, or just feeling lost in life,” she added.

Lee ended her post with an empowering message to other mums who might be going through the same thing.

???????????? To all my new followers, THANK YOU from the bottom of my heart. I shared a post last night that actually I was terrified to post. Since then, I have received numerous messages and comments and countless women have shared their similar stories with me. THANK YOU. ❤️ you are all so beautiful and amazing. Thank you for letting me share and THANK YOU for supporting me. Being a momma is the best and most difficult journey of this life, I still don’t have it all figured out. All I know is that I love this little babe and that WE ARE NOT ALONE. ???? #motherhood #empowerment #raisestrongwomen

A post shared by Ruth Lee (@baybayruth) on Feb 24, 2017 at 7:03pm PST

“Be kind to yourself. And know that you are not alone. Comparison is the thief of joy. Don’t let social media taint your view of what is beautiful, what is REAL. And above all, know that if you are struggling, I am here.
I have an open inbox or (if you actually know me) an open door.”

She signed off her post #stopcensoringmotherhood.

Have you ever fallen into this trap?