Mothering Forum banner

The PP body

2K views 22 replies 17 participants last post by  mamaeliz 
#1 ·
First let me say, I'm thankful and feel blessed to even be PG and I already love my unborn babies more than anything. Whatever ends up happening to my body will be worth it ...

But ...

The thought of what I might look like after their birth freaks me out a little.
Is there ANYONE who had a decent looking body after carrying twins to 37-38 weeks?
 
#2 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by *bebe View Post
Is there ANYONE who had a decent looking body after carrying twins to 37-38 weeks?
Well, I'm confident enough (or disillusioned enough!
) to say "Me!"

I have three very wide stretch marks and three smaller ones that make a big star around my belly button and that's pretty uncool. (Of course I have other stretch marks, too. Those are just the big annoying ones and the wide ones are still red even though my twins are now two).

I have too much flab around my midriff and could stand to lose 20 pounds. But it's not really too much different than post-partum with my singletons and it's not that anyone on the street would call me overweight. I wear a bikini in the summer and figure I look pretty average in it.

Take heart!
 
#3 ·
Okay, I was never one to wear a bikini, as I have funky discoloration on my abdomen from when I was on chemo drugs. So, that really has nothing to do with twin pg, but I do think that I look different naked from this pg, and it can improve, but I don't think it will ever "look good". Just watching my belly the first week postpartum was amazing. At about day 3 or 4, I had a really big belly still-- like a basketball was under my shirt. The distension (sp?) of my upper abdomen has been a challenge, and the skin is all wrinkly and weird around my belly button. BUT, I have to say that with just 2 months of yoga, my body is looking pretty good. I do notice that at the end of the day (after eating and drinking), my belly loves to distend a bit more than normal. So..... I guess this is another one of those "everyone is different", but overall, I think that carrying twins to term can be a little "rough" on the body.
But as I was just snuggling my girls to sleep, I have to tell you how freakin' amazing it is to have TWO babies!!!!! Such a constant joy and delight in my heart, even through the hard days. And the funky PP body!!
 
#4 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by mamaeliz View Post
and the skin is all wrinkly and weird around my belly button.
Yah, me too. One of my girls pointed it out (not admiringly! and they are only 7.5 and 6!) Oh well! I'm rarely ever to be out in public in a bathing suit without my kids, so it will be amply clear what my excuse is!

Not that it should be so comforting to live in a society with so many overweight people, but I see a lot of people out there looking a lot worse than I do, at ages where it's pretty unlikely they have any children.

I guess I just figure confidence can carry a lot, and I work with other areas of my body (face, hair) where I know my efforts have more immediate and visible payback.


If one were very concerned, I think even with the craziness of new baby twins, an exercise regime is possible. Just depends what your priorities are. Mine were much more along the lines of internet use and other reading.
 
#5 ·
Mine were 8 weeks early, but I wasn't anticipating that the *twin* pregnancy was going to make a huge difference to my figure so much as the fact that it was the fifth pregnancy past first trimester. You know, it has just sped up all that body starts to drop past 30 thing
but imo I have a FAB bod

I would've been glad for a few more marks to have had full term babies, you know.....
 
#6 ·
It is really hard to know, isn't it?
Some of it is genes, some of it is how tough the pregnancy was...

I will never look the same unless I have plastic surgery. When preggo my tummy stretched out further out than most women I have seen, except for moms of twins. It is now wrinkled, saggy and bulgy - not a pretty sight according to the standards of society, but a small price to pay for having the kids I have.

It is sad that we are conditioned to believe that a "decent body" is not one that bears the natural marks of motherhood. Breasts must be perky, tummies must be flat... it is a losing battle for most moms to aim to have a teenage body again. Why is it so difficult for us to see beauty in a body that shows the sign of living, signs of giving life?

My self esteem is very low because my body does not look like those of women my age who have not had kids. It is even worse when I see women who look fantastic even AFTER having kids. So i am working hard in trying to change my way of thinking.

Edited to add: I shared THIS sight on another forum, but I was very sad with the reaction it got
It is a sight to inspire people to see the beauty in the body of a mother, but the reaction I got was "OMG! I am so happy I don't look like THOSE women" or "Holy cow! Those women look awful!" So it backfired and I ended up feeling worse than when I did before, considering so many of those women look just like me
So my goal to post this link here, is to share the ideal of the maker of the site: that indeed, it is ok and normal when moms bodies look different, and that there is beauty in the shape of a mother.
 
#7 ·
My twins were born a little over 6 months ago and while I am down to my pre-pregnancy weight I am pretty sure the shape of my belly is forever changed. It's just kind of flabby and wrinkled around my belly area. And my belly button is still sticking out - dh keeps asking if I have a hernia
:. I feel pretty good about my body. Sure, it's a bit flabby and my breasts are far from perky but I've grown 4 babies and it's definitely worth it.

Quindin - thanks for sharing that site. I, for one, enjoyed checking it.
 
#9 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Quindin View Post
Edited to add: I shared THIS sight on another forum, but I was very sad with the reaction it got
It is a sight to inspire people to see the beauty in the body of a mother, but the reaction I got was "OMG! I am so happy I don't look like THOSE women" or "Holy cow! Those women look awful!" So it backfired and I ended up feeling worse than when I did before, considering so many of those women look just like me
So my goal to post this link here, is to share the ideal of the creator of that sight: that there is beauty in the shape of a mother.

Thanks so much for that link! It just makes it nice to know that really, very few people are perfect.

My twins were born at 34.5 weeks, I gained 50 lbs total on a 5'3" frame and lost about 40 of it two weeks pp. The other ten was fairly easy to lose since I was so busy and had little time for eating. I used Tummy Honey cocoa butter on my belly twice daily from about 6wks on and I have zero stretch marks, but I've heard that's hereditary too so who knows? I was more concerned how birth would affect my nether regions and kinda accepted that the rest of my body would probably not be the same.

In fact, I probably look worse now than I did then. I've gained that 10 lbs back and just don't have the time to exercise and eat well. So really, I feel my body looks the way it does not because of being pregnant but because I'm not taking care of myself...which I guess is a result of having kids!
 
#10 ·
Breastfeeding, Breastfeeding, Breastfeeding! Your twins will get you back to a pre-pregnancy-or-there-abouts weight in no time. Can't remember how long it took me, 6-8 weeks? But before I knew it, I was 5 lbs lighter than when I got pregnant.

I'd like to be a little lighter, and don't eat as well as a should, but those aren't really pregnancy problems.

And OK, my belly is a little flappy. I don't see a bikini in my future anytime soon. But in general, I'm pretty happy with my PP bod. Did I mention breastfeeding?
 
#11 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Gena 22 View Post
Breastfeeding, Breastfeeding, Breastfeeding!

And OK, my belly is a little flappy. I don't see a bikini in my future anytime soon. But in general, I'm pretty happy with my PP bod. Did I mention breastfeeding?
As my dr was cutting me for c/s, she said, "don't worry, you will still be able to wear a bikini." Uh. . . no I can't! Or I could and then startle young children around me. My concern now is what happens after I am done bf - with milk I am around a d cup, when not bf, I am an a/b. So will my twinskin pooch out farther than my breasts? Probably. Here's to peasant shirts being in style forever!
 
#13 ·
bebe - i will be totally honest and admit that i am completely freaked out about what i will look like. more than anything i'm thrilled to have these babies, and it doesn't make me depressed or anything, but if i am 100% honest with myself i'm totally terrified...


just wanted to let you know that you're not alone!
 
#14 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by Quindin View Post
The thing about having breastfed 5 kids for at least 1 year each is: I got nice D cups from pregnancy, but as soon as I begin losing weight, I go back to a cup B - and the cup D skin remains!

Yah, I have probably experienced that, too - but to a lesser degree. In my case it's been a benefit. I wasn't exactly "ample"before kids (for my frame), so that extra skin just fills out the cups a little more and bumped me up from a smallish B to a C.

Of course, I could bemoan that they aren't as perky as they once were, but I guess I see it as a case of looking at the "cup"
as half-full rather than half empty!
 
#15 ·
I think I look okay with clothes on, and by the time my twins were 3 months old, I was actually 10 lbs below my pre-pregnancy weight (I had trouble keeping weight on while breastfeeding). But now they are five years old and the extra weight I'm carrying can't be attributed to them.

However, to look good naked, I'd have to have a tummy tuck or something, as I have lots of extra belly skin. But, my tummy is reasonably flat in clothes, so it doesn't really bother me too much.
 
#16 ·
just reading through these comments is lovely - we're made to sag, right, so it's more about perception in the end.....and peasant shirts staying in style

get pregnant again and fill that skin out/ stretch it a bit more


i don't know. i cover anyway, so there is so much less pressure outside the house to look a certain way. and if my friends or family have a problem with how i look they can go elsewhere. lol. my husband told me i look square now and my brother said i look like a gaunt egyptian mummy in my face with purple rings all around my eyes ( i'm tired!) but after the initial
I decided that yeah, damn right I do


:
:
:
:
:
:

so there's a balance for all mamas/ women growing older generally: to keep ourselves fit and well, but also to love our bodies and ourselves underneath the skin.

i go bra-less too btw
 
#17 ·
Twins ruined my body. THer eis no going back, I've even doubtful plastic surgery would fix it all. I got BAD stretch marks. I already had some from my girls, but the boys just kinda made the entire tummy from my ribcage down a mess of stretch marks. It's been a year and I do think ti's improved, but it's not what it once was.
 
#18 ·
The twins were pregnancy #4 for me. I went into it 10 lbs heavier than my normal weight ad I am back to that weight-- but still have the 10 to go as before I was pregnant.

I am going to post some pics I just took so I can just throw it all out there and give you an idea of what a pp (my babies are 7 mo old now) belly looks like that still has 10 lbs of weight to lose. I have a few higher stretch marks and more of the belly wrinkles from carrying 2 babies at one time. And, yes, the more weight I lose, the more wrinkles I get. I am wearing my old jeans BUT they are waaay tight around my waist and I am guessing that is from those last 10 lbs that need to go.

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/k...j/IMG_3533.jpg

http://i277.photobucket.com/albums/k...j/IMG_3532.jpg

Also, I have never had a real weight problem-- but b/c I work at it. I walk regularly and always made an effort to eat healthy foods. I always gain atleast 50 lbs each pregnancy and the weight just comes off with breastfeeding.
 
#19 ·
The twins are #3 and #4 for me - born at 37w 4d. I am 33 years old, so neither a young mom, nor "advanced maternal age". I didn't get stretch marks with any of my pregnancies, including this one. The boys are only 10 weeks old, and I have about 10 lbs left of the 50 I gained with them.

I vote for genetics. I was quite huge, but my skin is really elastic because I don't have any loose/baggy skin. I will have to work on the underlying muscles, because my core no longer feels very strong. I feel the same as I did with my singletons.
 
#20 ·
My body is trashed. I'm not very overweight (I'd be happy loosing some weight but mostly I look average and can wear a size 4 pants). But that's not the problem. The problem is that my body is now (what seems to be) permanently disfigured from this pregnancy. My boobs are just depressing and weird, my belly is *awful*. The abdominal separation I have makes me extremely self conscious. My belly button area looks like it has a hood now (it sort of looks like an elephant's trunk) and if I suck my gut in then my belly button (thanks to all that now loose skin) looks like a cats butt! It's awful! I don't know if I'll ever have surgery to correct it (if for nothing else, it HURTS to have an abdominal separation this big) but I can't imagine that even with the best nutrition (and mine is pretty good) and exercise plan (I do work out) that I can ever do anything to fix the loose and saggy skin.
 
#21 ·
I really appreciate everyone's honest stories and the pictures and the link.

I have to admit that I'm still freaked out by it, and I hate that. But like many of you have said, it will all be worth it. Although I'm still praying that I'm going to bounce back and look great
 
#22 ·
Quote:

Originally Posted by *bebe View Post
I have to admit that I'm still freaked out by it, and I hate that. But like many of you have said, it will all be worth it. Although I'm still praying that I'm going to bounce back and look great

Your words sound like how I felt during pregnancy.
You know what? 8 months PP, my belly looks like one of the worst twin PP bellies that I've seen. My tummy is like 2+twins belly but worse (I know, as we've compared
). Most days I'm okay with it, but not if I fixate on it. I really have had to work on accepting it. Now I'm trying to work to get my abdominal muscles back together as much as is possible, and only if they continue to present a problem would I consider surgery. I am very scared of post-breastfeeding breasts now, though!


And to heck with genetics and belly butters. I had both in my favor. My Mom never had stretch marks. She also never carried twins to 42 weeks!!!

I hope that however your body reacts to a twin pregnancy, that you'll find peace with it.
 
#23 ·
I had a friend who lived two blocks away from me who carried her twins to 37 weeks. She lost so much weight so quickly, that I think she had supply challenges. But I was soooooo jealous that she got TINY!!! I haven't had a look at her bare belly, but she looked better than she ever had. So, there is always that possibility, but there is also the possibility of feeling like you should be able to lose weight and look great too. That's a tough burden to carry. I guess it really is about becoming comfortable in your own skin, twin skin included.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top