This actress just shared a naked selfie 1 week after her c-section

Oct 17, 2017 7:52 AM

Obviously women go through a lot with C-sections (and childbirth in general), but so many don’t discuss it.

Actress Jenny Mollen has been super candid about her recent pregnancy, discussing her placenta previa on Instagram and sharing belly shots along the way. And now, it seems, she plans to continue keeping it real with fans.

Last week, Jenny gave birth to Lazlo, her second son with American Pie star Jason Biggs, and she’s been sharing her post-C-section pics with fans on Instagram. Soon after Lazlo was born, she posted a mirror selfie showing herself wearing hospital-grade mesh panties and a massive bandage around her stomach.

Now, Jenny is sharing a pic that shows what a difference three days can make. In it, the mesh undies are gone but she has a little bandage on her stomach. “One week post op,” she captioned the photo. “Staples out. Steri strips on. #babybiggs.”

In case you’re not familiar with the whole C-section process, here's what Jenny is referencing: After a woman has her baby, doctors may use staples or sutures to close the incision. It seems to be a doctor’s preference—staples are faster and easier to use, which is why they’re used a lot. But a 2014 study published in Obstetrics & Gynecology found that stitches might be a slightly safer option: Just 4.9 percent of new moms with sutures had wound complications compared to 10.6 percent of women with staples. That doesn’t mean you’re totally screwed if your doctor uses staples—it just might be slightly safer to go with stitches.

Of course, if you get staples, you need to have them removed but you’re still probably not totally healed. That’s where Steri-strips come in. These little wound-closing bandages help keep C-section incisions (and other wounds) closed to help them heal after staples or stitches are removed.

Obviously women go through a lot with C-sections (and childbirth in general), but so many don’t discuss it. Props to Jenny for being refreshingly honest about the whole experience.