Age: 24
Number of Pregnancies: 1
9 months Postpartum
I never in a million years ever thought my beautiful belly would be tarnished the way that it is now. Maybe it was naive of me, but I didn’t realize it was even possible to look like this just from having a baby. I found this site when I was in the middle of my pregnancy and I will be honest it scared the living daylights out of me! But after having my beautiful baby girl… and then standing in front of the mirror… I knew I would never be the same.
I struggled sooo much with my new body for the first 6 months. Then I just decided it is what it is and I am going to be proactive. I have been on Weight Watchers for about a month now and am down 10 pounds. I want to lose quite a bit more and I will be sticking with it until I am satisfied and at a healthy weight. I started at 185 and I am 5’5″. I hope to get down to 125-135 lbs. I am also trying to take very good care of my skin and hoping for the best with my stomach. The skin is extremely loose and the stretch marks are very extreme. But what can I do about that? I am going to focus on what I can do and that is get into the best shape of my life. Yes, my stomach may never look like it once did, but one look at my baby girl and it doesn’t matter.
There’s more to life than looks. Unfortunately, in this day and age when there is so much emphasis on how women look it’s hard to always remember that. But I am trying to stay focused and dedicated and to be honest, I am very excited to see the new me several months from now- saggy skin, stretch marks and all! I will be healthier and more toned and quite possibly more happy with my looks than I have been in a long time!! I want to be a fun active mom for my daughter as well, so that is additional motivation to get in shape.
Anywho, these are my pics… be prepared, after seeing everyones I can honestly say mine are the worst, however, it is what it is, right?? I hope all of us dealing with body issues can find acceptance with ourselves in time. After all, bodies are meant for more than just looking “hot.” They are meant to love our children, hold them when they need us, play with them, watch them grow, experience life in so many ways- to the fullest. There’s no way I’m letting stretchmarks or loose skin stop me from enjoying my life everyday. It’s a gift. No matter how it’s packaged. Fragile and fleeting.
Keep your chins up! Acceptance is there. It’s just a matter of changing your perspective. After all, everything changes once you have children!! Let it be for the better. <3 Here I am 9 months postpartum. [gallery]
I LOVE your attitude! I will be honest with you, this is one of the first posting that have made me realize I am beautiful! I am 23 and a mommy of 2…so my body has also been through a lot…they were both cesareans! I am 10 months pp and down to 132…hoping to get to 110-115 (I am short!)…I just want to be as healthy as I can! I also have loose skin, the belly overhang, and LOTS of stretchmarks! I love your attitude, and your daughter is lucky to have you to look up to :)
9 months is still a short time for some people. I don’t think your belly will look like that forever. I carried a large baby and my belly sagged for a while, just now at 18 months it’s starting to look a little like it did before and my stretch marks are beginning to fade.
In addition to the weight watchers you might want to try doing cardio exercises and also the tupler technique. You never know how your belly will look like over the next year, it can get better if you also exercise.
Here’s an informative video about the tupler technique:
https://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=2159058944419489722&ei=MKmCS4TaCIbEqgKyqtyzAg&q=tupler+technique+video&hl=en#
What faded my stretch marks to almost non existant:
Soak in the tub for about 15 minutes. Get out and pat dry. While skin is still moist and soft, take Swiss Apricot scrub and a drop or two of olive oil and one of those nubby toning massagers (like this https://www.amazon.com/eBubbles-Toning-Body-Massager/dp/B0002SQ6UI/ref=sr_1_3?ie=UTF8&s=beauty&qid=1266858245&sr=8-3 ) and scrub in a circular motion for about 5-10 minutes. This should make your skin sort of red and it will be a little uncomfortable like a mild sunburn (you are doing a mini-microdermabaration here. Then rinse that off and follow up with some collogen/esastin moisterizer. 3-4 days a week to start and then once a week week or so. My stretch marks are no longer pink/red and they are quite invisable (compared to what they were). As for your skin it looks like it should go back – drink plenty of water. No it will never be the same, but I think you will be extremely please with it. Mine was stretched so much with my 10+ pound baby that I have wrinkles all over now :( but I have a whole houseful of beautiful babies now and my stretch marks (while still there) are not too noticable. Currently we are pregnant with our FIFTH! Good luck and post an update for sure!!!
I love your positive and awesome attitude! It will definitely pay off in the end. It’s psychological — if you smile when you don’t feel like it, then you’ll be happier, you know what I mean? And you really do look good! Such a flat tummy! And the stretch marks will fade! :D
my tummy looked JUST like that now 2 years later (son is 3) I can barely see the lines. I was also about 24 at that time too. We are lucky to have time on our side. A young body rebounds a lot better. They fade and your skin gets tighter. My best advice is build up your muscle and drink TONS of water. that 8 glasses makes a huge difference with skin.
i gained about 65 pounds with my pregnancy and needless to say definitely gained a few stretch marks along the way… ive recently started going to the tanning bed though and have found that it’s really helped to cover them up and I’m feeling alot more confident about myself… i can see that there really is hope…
Your attitude is great! My stomach looks the same and I am 20 months Post Partum. May I suggest for the stretch marks to use Avon Anew Stretch mark Cream. Mine were the same color as yours and this made them much much lighter. Your confidence amazes me and I wish I had that confidence.
hey it’s me!! I wanted to respond and say that i am actually doing the method that you mentioned, annonymous! I also have a blog where I am posting my progress. I am three weeks in and I can already tell a difference! It’s great to have hope. Staying positive no matter what the end result is though. Thanks for the comments ladies!
Here is my blog: nomorestretchmarks4me.blogspot.com/
Love, Nicole
You and I could be tummy twins!!!! Thank you for posting these pictures I am 6 months pp and have been really struggling with my body and feel uncomfortable in my new skin. And dealing with ppdepression isn’t helping either. But it truly makes a world of difference to recieve optimism from someone in my same situation! I gained 65 lbs with bb and am now down to 178, I am hoping as well as you that if i loose weight I can feel better about the rest of my body at least! And I know that when I’m 65 all of me will look like a half deflated balloon but at 21 I’m still just trying to get used to my belly. I just try to think about how I hated bikinis anyway :p
I just love your attitude! But u will not look like thos forever. With work and time ur tummy will flatten and stretch marks fade. I used and still use lotion twice a day,its esp good to put on right out the shower while ur skin is still moist and use either vitamin e oil or jus buy the tablets and break them open adding to ur lotion and apply liberally. Also exfoliate in the shower,light circular strokes not too rough. Exfoliating really helps. It takes off dead skin cells and rejenerates skin,causing new cells to grow :) it helps trust me.,mine were deeper and darker than urs and now theyre almost non existant. I have a 2 yr old and a 11wk old.,my aunts,mom and grandma all used the same. My mom has 5 kids,7 pregnancies and no visible stretch marks ;) and drink water water water! :) to helo flatten do cardio and strength training that focuses on core like pilates n yoga,they slim and build long lean muscle. hope this helps! Keep ur positive attitude and keep creating memories w ur lil girl!
i am nearly 60 and had my 6lb 4oz baby boy at 17. i had severe stretch marks that ran all the way above my abdomen. i was naive and knew nothing about getting stretch marks as my mother did not have them.
for years i was ashamed and resented not being able to wear a bikini. i sought help through plastic surgery (lipendechtomy) and wound up looking like a freak. i then had a keloid type scar that ran horizontally from hip to hip and a new belly button.
i am so ashamed to get undressed even in front of doctors. this situation ruined my self esteem worse than any stretch marks. don’t do it.
I see your pics and it makes me feel better that there is more women out there without “perfect jeans” i have four children, all natural birth and they have ripped through my body like…..I guess….God intended!ol! My oldest is 16 and youngest 4. I’m about to be 37 and there isn’t a day that goes by that I don’t look in mirror and either hate my body or on more optimistic days can actually find the parts that are ok. My mom tells me I’m way to vain and that I worry about stuff that doesn’t matter, but I’m one of those women that holds on to my youth and I wish that I could be one of those young, all there body parts are in normal places, …kinda lady. But this is what life serves me and I struggle everyday to accept myself. My body might of been different, if I would of been concerned in my youth. But you know where they find mights?… On a chicken’s ass! I have this body now and I have 4 awesome children that will be everything I wasn’t and prettier than anything I thought I could be. I’m glad I looked this up. I like knowing that, most of us, do endeavor the unevidable, the unlikely in our own minds. I don’t want my children to mold me. I’m not at piece with my body because I have 4 beautiful children to admire. I wanna be at piece with my body because its a normal part of every womens life when they give birth. I have to quit comparing myself to others….what the media portrays.
Thanks so much for your blog.. I have 2 wonderful kids my second is just 9 months and I was looking at my inner thighs and tummy just now for the first time I really looked in the mirror and felt horrible Google help me find this and I’m thankful for it I’m inspired to get my lazy butt off and work out and even with breast feeding I still can take care of me an be a full time feeding pump!
Hey guys :). I have had my tummy like this and I gave birth nearly 11 years ago…I train 4-7 days a week at home in between working and although I got my abs rock hard again…you would not tell unless u poke them! I use military pressups, weights, yoga, and started using my cycle again too…It looks like I am in the catagory of “without a tummy tuck forget it” so I went looking for others who had the same problem…I have to use 12 instead of a 10 now as my training bulked me up but I have the excess tummy when I sit so 10 is not comfy anymore. I do more exercise now than I ever did and it just shows we aren’t all made of elastic. My mother has four of us girls…she has no stretch marks and you can see her abs at the age of 57…not bad huh? She never used to train either! It’s nuts but this this story really made me see just that we are all beautiful and mothers are so e of the hardest working people on the planet. Love you all, thank you :)
X
I am 18. I had my son (9 lbs 3 oz, 22 3/4 in.) 7 months ago at 17. My stomach looks like yours and isn’t improving, either. I am hoping since I am young that my stomach will eventually improve. I am 5’4 and 120 lbs. I have visited multiple doctors who have told me that nothing will help the loose skin except a tummy tuck. They did, however, recommend Mederma for stretch marks. It is $20 dollars for a small tube, though. You are not the only one who is struggling with this!
Ladies, let me introduce you to the queen of stretch marks and loose belly skin lol. I love all of your positive attitudes. However, after 5 kids, I am on a mission to rid myself of this and to be bikini suitable one day (hopefully sooner than later). I’m tiny and in pretty good shape but this balled up paper bag around my waist has got to go lol! I don’t want to have any surgeries, despite what has been recommended, so any advice or tips would be greatly appreciated. No worries though, I am not depressed or insecure, I just want to actually see the abs hidden in there somewhere lol. Have a blessed day ladies!
Hi Nicole – I am now just over a year pp after one pregnancy. I had a very similar shape to your stomach. My stretch marks are mostly below my belly button and are numerous but more narrow than yours.
So far I have treated the skin only with a high potency vitamin e cream. However, I have been seeing the physiotherapy outpatient service at he hospital where I had my baby. They have been treating my diastasis (separation of abdominal muscles) and the gradual improvement is fantastic.
Everyone needs to remember that the state of our belly post baby has two components: the function of the abdominal muscles and pelvic floor as well as the aesthetics of the overlying fat and skin. First you have to work on get the muscles recovered and rebuilt. This takes a knowledgeable and experienced medical care provider. After that (and all your children) then you can deal with the skin – either surgically or non-surgically. For me the skin is both aesthetic and comfort, after all who wants loose saggy skin hanging over your running tights.
This website has been wonderful for me as it has helped to normalise the state of of my stomach after pregnancy. I am trying to adopt a balanced approach, remembering that I love my daughter so much that any day of the week I’d take this over not having her but also knowing that I want to recover my stomach as best I can, just like any other impairment from pregnancy like weight gain etc.
Thank you for an inspiring story. I’m too struggling with my post natal body & I must say hearing your story really inspires me to do the same! I love strong women like you! Thank you thank you thank you for bringing my own inspiration back! X
My lil 1 is 2 years old and I hate my stretch marks im struggling loads to come to terms with how I.look iv tried every cream every scrub going even laser treatment didnt work my next step is skin tighting id have a tummy tuck if i wasnt scared lol.Im very active and lost my baby weight quiet quick but to me still look no better its great to hear stories that im not the only 1 in this situation I will carry on trying lotions and potions and hopefully 1 day ill be happy with my body :)
Same as me :(
6m post pregnancy and my streach marks are wayyy worse than that. Thank you gor giving me corage. Also, were you able to get them better. Please tell me hie