Claire Mysko, one of my blogging buddies at WeAretheRealDeal, is the author of a new book out today called Does This Pregnancy Make Me Look Fat?: The Essential Guide to Loving Your Body Before and After Baby.

For the record, before you start to wonder (as my mom has been questioning me lately, what’s with that?!) I am not pregnant.

That said, as someone who deals with body image issues on a daily basis (really, who doesn’t!?) I admit I am super-excited to read this new “labor of love” … as the book title states, “before baby.”

From what I have gleaned from Claire’s description of the book on our blog, this is the kind of book that every woman really ought to be reading.

In an ideal world, we’d all love and embrace our bodies as they are. But we know it’s not that simple; try as we might, we can’t just click our heels together and suddenly “have” self-esteem.

The truth is, though pregnancy has tons of complex body image issues tangled in it, you don’t hear too much about them … other than regarding weight.  And in addition to ridiculous media pressures to “lose the baby weight fast” or “breast feed like XYZ did and walk out of the hospital in your pre-pregnancy jeans!”, the competitive nature of women often stains our sense of self, smudging our self-esteem when we need it the most.

And that’s why I think a book like Claire’s will be so compelling and ground-breaking. It’s REAL. It addresses much more than just weight.

From the Amazon.com review:

“People might tell you you’re glowing, but you just feel like you’re growing, and perhaps you’re not liking—or even recognizing–the changing image you see in the mirror. If you’re like most expectant women, you’re worried about what pregnancy and motherhood will do to your body, your sexuality, and your self-esteem (even if you don’t want to admit it out loud for fear of the Bad Mommy Police). While the journey to motherhood is truly miraculous and brings forth life, it can also bring forth a myriad of legitimate concerns.

Enter beauty activists Claire Mysko and Magali Amadei, who reveal a much-needed forewarning on what to expect from your changing body, as well as a reality check for each stage of your pregnancy, exposing the myths, challenges, and insecurities you’ll face throughout pregnancy and beyond—and what to do about them. From candid interviews with more than 400 women and men, as well as their own experiences, Claire and Magali help you discover:

– How you can learn to trust your changing body, appreciate it, and yes…even work it!
– Why you should be wary of the Hollywood “bump watch” and post-baby weight loss stories– and how to take the focus off the scale
– How to deal with your raging hormones—in the bedroom and beyond
– The truth, the lies, and sure-fire fixes for sagging skin, acne, stretch marks, and boobs that continue to defy gravity
– How to recognize when your body issues get extreme—and how to get help

With startling confessions of women’s unspoken fears and advice on how to remedy them, this essential compendium of girl-friendly advice will help champion any woman to feel her best about her body, herself, and her role as a mom.”

My husband will be done with his MBA in Dec. 2011, and so I have some time yet to prepare myself mentally and emotionally … to feel good about myself on all those levels will be really important.

Yea, I am definitely looking forward to getting my hands on this book!

How about you? Have you experienced pregnancy? How did your body image change? Any surprises?