Bravo to Octomom for being brave enough to bare it all in Closer Magazine.
I know there are a lot of people who have problems with Octomom and her choices and I'm not saying I agree 100% with everything she's done or said, but I do think her stripping down for the cameras can be seen as a healthy experience for all involved.
Let's face it; we don't see too many mothers of octuplets posing in the nude anywhere. I'm sure there are a lot of readers thinking--thank goodness for that!
But why shouldn't all women's bodies be celebrated?
Nadya Suleman's body looks fabulous for being a mother of 14. But what I like best about her photos is that they don't look photoshopped or perfect. She exudes a serene sense of confidence and pride.
How many mothers do you know who would feel confident enough to pose nude? It doesn't even have much to do with what a woman's body actually looks like. Most women over a certain age having given birth would not dream of posing nude.
Again, I can hear the thoughts in readers' minds--that's because a mother should never pose nude! It's embarrassing.
But shouldn't we ask ourselves why?
First of all, Suleman is posing in a nonsexual way. She's showing what her body looks like naturally. This could be very helpful for other mothers who have felt they must hide away their imperfect bodies after becoming mothers.
Secondly, why is that once a woman becomes a mother she is supposed to suddenly become a conservative, playing-it-safe role model?
Just because a mother poses in the nude doesn't mean she's a bad mother or that she endorses her children running around naked for cameras.
I mean, how many parents drink alcohol, some often even in front of their children? Or what about those who continue to smoke cigarettes?
If these parents aren't ostracized for doing "adult" things that their children can find out about, why should a mother posing nude be any different?
Instead of less mothers posing nude, we should have more!
Instead of airbrushed abs on stick-thin models who eat two lettuce leaves a day, we should photograph stretch-marked bellies of mothers who sometimes indulge on cookies.
Let's make real women the new role models for little girls.
And for those who would say Suleman sold out since Tmz reported she posed because she was hard up for cash and this photo shoot was a strictly a monetary decision, which pulled her in $10,000?
Consider yourself in Suleman's position: what is so wrong about posing in a tasteful way for a magazine that may in the long run help other women feel better about their own bodies?
And it's not like a woman with fourteen kids can run out and get an everyday job and afford daycare for her children.
Suleman was given an opportunity and she took it.
She's not even totally nude if you want to get technical about it. We see more skin on magazine covers all the time from models posing in bikinis.
Posing nude may not be for everyone, but I for one am glad that we're seeing some "real" women and their naked selves representing.