Supermodel Ashley Graham shares honest photo of post-partum body

Ashley Graham shared an honest post-baby photo with her 10 million followers. Photo / Instagram

She may have just given birth four weeks ago, but that hasn't stopped Ashley Graham from embracing her new role as a mother.

Since giving birth to her first child, son Isaac, on January 18, Graham has candidly documented life with her sweet bub.

Now the supermodel has opened up about the realities of parenthood on Instagram - much to the delight of her 10 million fans.

Her most recent post is a mirror selfie of part of her naked body captioned: "Same me, few new stories".

The photo showcased fresh stretch marks across her tummy while her spare hand covered her chest.

View this post on Instagram

same me. few new stories.

A post shared by A S H L E Y G R A H A M (@ashleygraham) on Feb 17, 2020 at 12:23pm PST

The photo has gathered more than 973,000 likes and over 12,000 comments since it was shared just hours ago — many from women saying they loved that Graham was championing the "real" women's bodies.

"Beautiful," said one, adding: "Love seeing this! I've got none on my tummy yet but getting some new tiger stripes on my hips and booty."

Another added: "You human birthing WARRIOR!!!! Thanks for posting! am grateful for you! Your confidence is such a powerful example! Thank you!"

A third thanked the model profusely for "normalising this sh*t", writing "I'm so sick of seeing celebrities that come out with zero stretch marks or any physical sign of pregnancy and making the rest of us feel like sh*t. You're amazing."

One person simply said: "Relatable", a one-word statement that neatly summed up the thoughts of many.

Other women chimed in to share their experience with stretch marks, telling Graham that over time the scars fade.

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Raise your hand if you didn’t know you’d be changing your own diapers too🙋🏻‍♀️ 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.

A post shared by A S H L E Y G R A H A M (@ashleygraham) on Feb 10, 2020 at 6:14pm PST

"They eventually fade babe and look even sexier than they do now," said one.

Another said although theirs hadn't, they were happy to accept the marks as "a reminder of that beautiful time in my mlm life that I carried and gave birth to my best friends who I love more than life itself".

Proving she has no fear of what people think, Graham recently shared a snap to Instagram of herself breastfeeding her bub in a cafe in Brooklyn, New York.

View this post on Instagram

☕️&🥛

A post shared by A S H L E Y G R A H A M (@ashleygraham) on Feb 13, 2020 at 2:43pm PST

This snap earned the model a whopping 1.4 million likes and 24.5 million comments from fans who were overjoyed at her "realness".

"Congratulations," said one. "You are my mother goals."

Another said: "Ah I love this. Love seeing other women breastfeeding in public because it helps me feel more confident doing it even though I've been exclusively breastfeeding over 4 months now, I still get embarrassed."

Stretch marks are a perfectly normal part of pregnancy and occur when the growing baby causes the skin on the belly to stretch at a rapid rate beyond its natural capacity, according to a report by body&soul.com.au.

The connective tissues and the elastic structure of the deeper layers of skin are damaged, leaving strange scars on the surface.