Kelly Rowland And Ciara Get Candid About Their Postpartum Bodies And Motherhood

Kelly Rowland and Ciara’s friendship allows them to not only connect through music, but as moms, too.

The two R&B stars recently teamed up with Baby2Baby — a national non-profit organization that provides children living in poverty with diapers, formula, clothing, and the basic necessities — to get hands-on with helping moms in need. Additionally, Rowland visited NYC Health + Hospitals/Kings County, where she and Baby2Baby Co-CEOs Norah Weinstein and Kelly Sawyer Patricof delivered Maternal Health & Newborn Supply Kits to new mothers.

Amid the philanthropic event, Ciara and Kelly spoke with the publication PARENTS about their own experiences with motherhood including how they embrace their postpartum bodies, practice self-care, and more.

Speaking to accepting how her body transformed after giving birth to both her sons Titan, 9, and Noah, 2, the Mea Culpa actress and singer said, “I’m looking in the mirror, going, ‘I don’t know what happened to my 20-year-old self. She’s gone. I hope it doesn’t sound shallow, but I started to pick myself apart.”

The 43-year-old continued, “I realized, like, ‘Girl, you carried a child full term; he’s healthy, you’re healthy, and you get to walk away — shut up.’ After I had my second baby, Noah, I looked at my body in the mirror and I said, ‘Oh girl, you’re just a little bit thicker but in all the right places. I thanked my body because it really did the job and it got me through.”

For Ciara who is the mother to her sons Future, 10, and Win, 4, and daughters Sienna, 7, and Amora (who will be 1 in December), she added, “This go around, I didn’t press as hard to lose all my baby weight. I actually kind of liked holding on to a little bit more hip than I maybe have in the past.”

Rowland and Ciara acknowledged how motherhood can take a toll on one’s mental and both admitted to leaning into self-care and their support systems for assistance. As Kelly revealed she does utilize therapy, Ciara shared that she enjoys her alone time.

“I’m very proud of it. I have so many things going on in my brain, and sometimes they just need to be filed and sorted properly,” the “Coffee” singer expressed. “It’s the best thing ever and I feel great.” The “Goodies” star added, “I do think, as moms and women, we put ourselves second. So, I do my best to maximize the moments when I do get my alone time because that’s healthy, too — being able to just think in peace. Oftentimes, when you have kids, you don’t really have that time for yourself.”

Also mentioning her NFL husband Russell Wilson, the 38-year-old said, “I gotta thank my husband because he’s amazing. Doing this parenting journey with him is such a blessing because he’s so in it. He likes to know every detail like I do. I’m so grateful that I do life with him every day, and we get to raise our beautiful children together.”

With both women raising multiple children, respectively, their experience and expertise could surely help new moms who may not have it all together just yet. Kelly advised mothers to “be supportive of each other,” and “have humility,” as Ciara shared that we “can all learn something and take something from each other,” as “it takes a village.”

Give Kelly Rowland and Ciara’s interview with PARENTS a read in its entirety here.

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