How are your stretch marks?

[LittleLlama]

All through the pregnancy, despite getting such a freaking huge belly and gaining 60 pounds, I thought I had escaped stretch marks. It wasn't until the second trimester when I got PUPPPs that there was anything even resembling stretch marks and even then it was more of the rash than anything else.

So now that I'm getting close to my pre-preg size, I am realizing my folly. It seems that since I had gained weight, my skin was stretched out just enough to hide these horrible things! I don't have any that are wider then maybe a quarter inch, but there are a LOT! I have these horrid looking purple... I don't know how to describe it other than holes on my thighs. I have serious serious stretch marks from the tops of my legs down to my knees!

Did anyone else have sneak attack marks like me?

[xkoliex]

I had three or four on each side of my hips come up after I lost most of my pregnancy weight... I just covered those with tattoos and now you can't see them!

I have a few that came out of nowhere on my left upper thigh, but they are slowly turning that weird white color...

Other than that, I made out like a bandit

[birthjunkie27]

Yeah, I've got a bunch, but not nearly as many as I did with my first pregnancy. That's when I got hit the hardest...since it was my first. Mostly now, I've got extra skin on my belly so then flatter it gets, the worse the skin looks. Ewwwww.

[kir]

My entire abdomen is like seersucker. The linea negra down the middle hasn't even faded. It's not a matter of a certain number of stretch marks; all the skin is all wrinkled and floppy. I'm just trying not to think about it.

But no stretched thighs or hips or arms (yet)...so hey, i guess that's good!

[DesireeH]

My entire abdomen is like seersucker.

me too!

ugh.....its bad. I got the bulk of my stretchmarks the first time but I did get more this time too. I have HORRIBLE skin elasticity. I have tons of WIDE purple stretchmarks on my crotch! lol

[Taedareth]

Reading what other gals have posted, I'm wondering if maybe the stretch mark and skin elasticity thing gets worse after multiple pregnancies? Because I got some light pink stretch marks on the fronts of my thighs and some really little (also pink) ones on my lower abdomen. I suspect that the vitamin E massage oil I rubbed into my skin every day since the 5th month helped a lot. But they're all fading. You'd have to be looking for the ones on my stomach to see them (and I don't wear middriff-revealing shirts, so...) But also, I did moderate exercise during my 2nd and 3rd trimesters and gained only 24 lbs with my pregnancy. Now I'm 7 lbs under my pre-pregnancy weight because of full-time nursing. I feel really blessed all around, but I probably won't be so fortunate with subsequent pregnancies. I'm also 26 years old - that may have something to do with it.

[MistyB]

I got a mini belly patch after Alec (1 inch tall by 4 inch wide). I expected them to go crazy this pregnancy because Ella full term but they are now about 2.5x5 and really pretty faded now. I can wear low rise jeans and you can't seem them as they are all low. If I wore a string bikini and you look closely, you can barely see them . I think they will keep fading to almost gone. I was obsessive about green goop herbal massage while pregnant and after. And also omega 3. Women in my family get them like crazy and I have a few from puberty too.

[Thursday Girl]

it'll be seersucker once my bellies flat again. i thought i didn't get them this time, but it turned out that they were just on the underside of my belly so i couldn't SEE them until the baby was out.some are still reddish, and one got a cat claw init. reat, that oddly happened to one of my stretch marks after jewely was born. I'm only 23, and myskin should be good, my mom had three kids and no stretch marks, it wasn't until she was pregnant with twins (me and sister) that she got stretch marks, varicose veins and grey hair. or something like that. my dad blames his bladness on my twin and i but mostly b/c we were wild daredevil children...like my dd Jewely. they think it's funny.

can you get tattoos well you are nursing??? i want to see pics...please . oh if i canjust save up the money for more tattoos, i want more!!!

courtney

[Turtlemum]

I was going to say that I didn't get any stretch marks but now, after reading these posts, I am very worried...
I haven't lost ANY pregnancy weight (besides the weight of the baby and placenta)...now I am wondering what will happen when I start to loose pounds??!!!

PS Anyone else in my position? I am trying to be positive about weight issues but come on! Why am I not loosing weight?

Kelli

[xkoliex]

Originally Posted by jewelysmommy

can you get tattoos well you are nursing??? i want to see pics...please . oh if i canjust save up the money for more tattoos, i want more!!!

courtney

Yes, you can tattoos ANY time in your life. I even got one while I was pregnant with Tori. (I didn't know it at the time though.) I talked it over with my doctor and she said that the only reason why they tell pregnant women not to get tattoos is because of the possibility of infection. BUT she also said to me that since I obviously go to a good place (I have 11 tattoos and not one of them gave me problems) that I shouldn't quit just because of my pregnancy. But the owner of the shop I go to wouldn't allow it.

Some people think that the ink gets into the blood stream and thats just not true. It goes into your skin, some people bleed and some people dont. But it would never actually get "sucked" into your blood stream.

Oh and I don't know how to post picture links. Can someone tell me?

[mariposita]

"How are your stretch marks?"

my stretch marks are great, thanks for asking. although they have been a little grumpy lately.

but seriously, i haven't noticed new ones this pregnancy. i think my skin got stretched as far as it'll go last time around. maybe i should check in the mirror though. they can hide sometimes...

[DesireeH]

but I probably won't be so fortunate with subsequent pregnancies. I'm also 26 years old - that may have something to do with it.

I dont think so....I think you either get or dont get them. My mom has ONE. I have like a bazillion and I tried all the creams and vit E and even olive oil the first go around. LOL I've also lost 70 pounds since I had her and my skin is SAGGING on top of the ruined skin. I have horrible skin elasticity. I get bad scars easily too. I think it just depends on the skin. I was 22 the first kid and I got the majority then (granted my boobs and hips already had them before I ever got pg). LOL

[LittleLlama]

Seersucker! That's exactly what it looks like! If I didn't have plans for more children, I'd seriously consider surgery to remove all this skin. Evev IF all the chub were gone I'd still hang over my belt. Makes low-rise jeans an interesting fit to say the least.

[hottmama]

I didn't get a single stretch mark with my first son (who was 8.3), but I got a ton this time. They are all small and the same color as the rest of my skin, but they're there. They are all at the level of my hipbones and go all the way across.

[perditafoster]

i look like an atlas!!! I didn't get any new ones on top of my 40 million old ones this pregnancy until the last three weeks...and the new ones go over halfway up my stomach. Sexy. I've lost all but 15 pounds or so of my weight, so who knows how much better i'll look once all the weight is gone! maybe more like a relief map instead of an atlas?