No one truly prepares you for what your body looks like after giving birth. Not even close.
That’s what Val Emanuel, a 33-year-old mom and entrepreneur from Los Angeles, learned the hard way. In a viral TikTok seen over 2.4 million times, Val opened up about the first time she looked at her body after welcoming her daughter — and the internet could barely believe her honesty.
“I didn’t rip. I didn’t tear. So I thought everything would look normal,” she said. “Newsflash — it looked like ground turkey. Then for two weeks, it looked like sliced turkey.” Her unfiltered words made thousands of mothers laugh, cringe, and nod in solidarity. “No one tells you this part,” she added. “But don’t worry — it does go back to normal. My slot machine is back.”
While some non-mothers were horrified (“Ground turkey?! I’m clutching my pearls!” one wrote), other moms flooded her comments with support. “Don’t be scared,” one said. “It heals — sometimes even better than before.”
Val’s post wasn’t just shocking — it was real. It reminded millions of women that beauty and motherhood aren’t about perfection, but about resilience. Because behind every new mom’s smile, there’s a story of healing — and sometimes, a brave laugh at what life looks like afterward.
