Before Molly Sims gave birth to her first child, a boy named Brooks, she posed for a photo. Not your typical "I'm a model" shot, rather, it was one of her feet. On a scale. With the readout showing 204 lbs.

The veteran model had gained 72 pounds during her pregnancy and once her 6 week post c-section moratorium on exercise was lifted, hit the gym with gusto to try and bounce back.

But, unlike many in the media before her (and more like us regular schmos), Sims, now 40, was unable to shed the poundage.

READ: Post-Pregnancy Exercises: Getting Back Into Shape in No Time

"I would workout for an hour and 45 minutes, an hour and 50 [minutes]," Sims, who also wore a trash bag to sweat more while she exercised, told ABC News in a recent interview.

Unfamiliar with not having her body respond to proper nutrition and plenty of exercise, Sims tried some other, less traditional methods to jump start what she thought was a flagging metabolism. Chinese herbs, wearing corsets and acupuncture -- nothing worked. "[I was like] I don't feel right, something's wrong with me," she recalls and gets visibly annoyed remembering that people would tell her, "Oh, it's your hormones. Oh, you just had a baby. Oh, honey don't worry about it. You're in Hollywood and you're putting too much pressure on yourself to lose weight," were typical responses.

Sims wasn't buying it. She knew her body -- heck, she'd earned an amazing living thanks in large part to it -- and something just felt off.

Turns out her intuition was right. After undergoing some tests, it was revealed that Sims was suffering from an inflamed thyroid.

After embarking on a hormone medication protocol, Sims says that after nearly a year, her neck began to "deflate," she got her weight under control and things slowly began to return to normal.

READ: Pregnancy Diets: What to Eat When You're Expecting

Now, while trying for a second baby with her husband, film and television producer Scott Stuber, the model wants to encourage all women at all stages of their lives to trust their instincts.

"My wish is that [women] don't stop asking people what's wrong," Sims says, "I tell these women, I'm, like, 'If you think something's wrong, ask a million people.' Just don't give up."