In honor of International Women's Day, Ashley Graham took to Instagram to share a powerful picture of her in labor with her first child, Isaac.
"This is the face of my greatest strength. The greatest pain I’ve ever known and the greatest accomplishment that I’ve ever achieved. On this International Women’s Day understand that despite whatever pain or trial we have all experienced as women, we are also strong, powerful and capable of accomplishing greatness. Happy International Women’s Day! Let’s all celebrate our, and each other’s strengths today," she captioned the snap.
This is not the first time that the 32-year-old has been candid on social media about motherhood. Last week, Ashley posted a video of her pumping breast milk in an Uber, and broke taboos surrounding breastfeeding in the process.
Watch the moment below:The plus-size model shared a video of her manually pumping her breasts, disclosing that pumping-on-the-go has become part of her daily routine. "Use[d] to answer emails on my uber rides, now I pump before my breasts explode," she captioned the post, which has since garnered over five million views.
And people were certainly impressed by her candour. "I’m pretty sure the more ppl complain about Ashley breastfeeding/ nursing, the more pics she posts I’m here for it [sic]," wrote one Twitter user, while another added "Movie remake opp: Riding in cars with breast pumps [sic]."
"If you are uncomfortable with this post, you are the reason WHY it’s important that Ashley is posting content like this. Breastfeeding is still not normalized by so many people. There are still masses people who sexualize breastfeeding and are offended by seeing it in public. Breastfeeding is natural and the primary function of the breasts. It should be no different than seeing a baby take a bottle or eat from a spoon. If it’s such an issue, unfollow her. Guarantee you, she doesn’t care," added a third.
This isn't the first time that the new mom has opened up about the less pleasant aspects of motherhood.
Ashley gave birth to her first child, Isaac Menelik Giovanni Ervin, with husband, Justin Ervin, in January, and took to Instagram to share a photo of her postpartum body, explaining that the last few weeks have been "tough"
"Raise your hand if you didn’t know you’d be changing your own diapers too," she wrote. "After all these years in fashion I never could’ve guessed that disposable underwear would be my favorite piece of clothing but here we are!
"No one talks about the recovery and healing (yes even the messy parts) new moms go through. I wanted to show you guys that it’s not all rainbows and butterflies! It’s been tough, but my friend Chelsea @cmrh and ceo at @fridamom is making waves and starting honest conversations. It’s unbelievable the obstacles we still face talking about what women really go through. All their stuff she sent me has been a life saver [sic]."