8.5 months PP, and still breastfeeding our daughter. I started getting stretch marks at 6 weeks of pregnancy, and I gained about 40 pounds. They are still bright red and deep. I also had a C-Section, and I have a lovely apron of skin that I’m told will never go away on its own.
A.T., you have my belly!
I am now 47, and my three C-section babies are 23 (breastfed for 3 months), 12 (breasfed for 3.5 years), and 5 (breastfed for 4 years). And I’m still wearing my apron. :-)
A.T. I have the same belly as you! Contrary to popular belief, the belly skin can get better with regular abdominal exercise. I worked really hard at it after my second but it has returned during this, my third pregnancy. Thanks for sharing and aking me feel much more normal!!!
K.
Wow, some of the comments on this one have disappeared! Mine included…nice to see that censorship is alive and well…even for postive comments.
Thank God you did this!!!
I have been so depressed over my “misshapen” body that has ruled my life.
Thank-you for sharing and letting those of us who have that same appearance after birth;feel “normal” again.
You made me cry because finally I found someone like me. And;not just all those pictures society throws at us every day.
I’m truely grateful…
Bobbee
Oh my gosh – it’s like looking in a mirror – my body looks just like that too!!!
Kris, I did not delete your comment. I merely had not had the chance to approve it. I have this site set so that I must approve all comments because, sadly, there is an occasional truly nasty one. I do not believe in censorship at all, but I do believe in protecting the feelings of the women who’ve posted here. Thanks for understanding.
“Apron of skin” I’ve have that same thing too and never had a name for it.
Now I know, I too have an apron of skin – excelent!
Thank you so much for sharing this! It’s nice to know that I’m not the only one who has the c-section apron and the tiger stripes! I look just like you! It’s totally worth it, but it can still be very depressing. My kids are 23 months apart and I nursed them both for over a year each. I had a c-section and a VBAC and while I might be 26, I feel like I look 86.
My belly looks just like that too! I have had 2 c-sections 20 months apart. I gained about 50 lbs with each one. I hate my belly. I hate my body. I am thankful though for this site and seeing that others look like me too! Motherhood is something to be admired and cherished. I am happy I have 2 beautiful girls to show for it! :)
Thank you for posting your pic. My body looks VERY similar! I never knew what it was called – an apron, it fits! I plan to have a tummy tuck sometime next year, but my husband thinks I would be happier living with the body I’m in. I’m not so sure. I feel like I’m not sexy and while we still have sex I keep as much clothing on as possible. All the wiggling and jiggling is just not attractive in my opinion. Thank you for your pics and your post. – Jackie
you’re a brave and beautiful mama! THANK YOU for posting your pictures here.
Your tummy looks just like mine!!
*hugs!*
your body looks alot like mine! i have to post mine sometime and you will see how similar they are!
Wow I think you must be my twin ,it is like looking into a mirror .
I just found this site and just wanted to say thank you so much! My daughter is 16 months old, born by c-section, and I am 7 weeks pregnant with our second. I too have the “apron” and stretch marks from my first and I am becoming emotional about possibly having another c-section, my body getting worse, etc. Its so reassuring knowing I am not alone. All the woman on this site are truely beautiful and brave for sharing stories/photos. Thanks again!
Wow. That is exactly what I look like, but 10 times huger. But still! Here I am thinking I have the most hideous body in the world and now I find out that it’s NORMAL! It’s people like you that are putting me on the path to accept my body :) Thank you!
I have the same thing, only worse than yours (my first c-section was a big emergency and they cut me open really wide and my second was a HUGE baby, so the overhang really stretches out). I have spent a lot of time feeling ashamed of how bad my belly looks, the fact that I haven’t lost a lot of the weight I had hoped to, and how ravaged I am by the stretchmarks. Then I remember that I gave birth to a frickin’ watermelon of a baby (10lb. 12 oz.) and I try to give myself permission to accept it, even if it’s not like it used to be. My life isn’t like it used to be, either. I don’t like the apron, but it is what it is. And it’s so nice to feel that I am normal for once. Reading this and all the comments below makes me feel so much better about it!
I have had one c-section and one VBAC. My tummy looks very similar to yours. I have that same little flap of skin that hangs over and I have to blame that partially on the c-section itself. I am only 23 right now and my husband and I are not sure if we are gonna have one more child or not but once we do decide I am gonna get a mini tummy tuck. It took me so long to get used to my tummy as I used to be a size 2, but my husband loves me no matter what and my children were so worth it.
Hey! That’s what *I* look like! Only my boobs are floppier.
Wow! I have heard moms say they know what I mean, but I looke EXACTLY like that your skin might be a tone darker then me. It’s good to know I am normal! Thank you!
We look just alike. I feel a lot less freakish now! Thank you.
Seeing your pics is like looking in a mirror and it makes me feel so much better to know that I am normal. I am mum to a beautiful 4 month old baby boy who takes my breath away everytime I look at him. I felt bad for being so concerned about my body but this site and your pictures have made me feel proud of what my body has made and now I will wear my ‘apron’ with pride! thank you x
your chest shpe looks great!
A.T
I came across this post whilst searching for Tummy Tucks to get rid of my apron. Your tummy looks a little like mine (Yours is actually smaller :) ) after my emergency C-section.
The surgery didnt go well, my baby stopped responding, hence me being rushed to surgery. The epidural didnt work and i felt everything.
I suffered Post-Partum depression, i believe due to the traumatic birth, and my figure and skin apron afterwards. As time has gone on, i have not been able to get rid of my flappy apron, and it hangs almost 3 inches over my c-section scar.
You have been so brave in posting this picture, i no longer feel as bad about my tummy, knowing other Mummy’s have the same issue. Your chest is amazing, and you have a lovely shaped waist Hunny. All i can say is focus on the positives.. and that includes the wonderful job your body did in growing a wonderful baby :)
My tummy looks just like that, but I didn’t have a C-section. What I had was an emergency appendectomy while I was 3 months pregnant. The surgeon said I’d never recover my shape or tone because the muscle and skin would keep tearing and regrowing as the pregnancy progressed. I’ve never been able to make it go away and was feeling pretty depressed about it. Thank-you for showing me I’m not alone out there with the stretch marks and apron.
I have a double wammy. I have a vertical c-section scar and a hysteroctemy scar so mine looks like your with a vertical indentation in the middle–my front butt.
Thank god for you!!my tummy is the same although i have no stretchmarks.My daughter was born by c section she weighed 9st5ounces and as a rare syndrome which made her a big girl..she is 2yrs old now and fat just seems to stick to my belly regardless of wot i eat…at least i feel more normal now,thankyou so much for making me see im not abnormal xx
Thank You! Thank You! I truly thought I was the only lady in the world (minus my grandma) who had a belly and body like your picture. I am not alone. Thank you again.
at 55 I still have this apron only now it has started to have skin deteriation that burns, BUT I would not give up my twins for anything in the world! It is hard to feel un atractive to hubby but thankful he is a realistic guy and not obsesed with perfectionI think bookmarking this site would be helpful on low days.
top it off with stage 4 breast cancer! Docs saY no surgery because of past radiation. I am thinking they are putting my in the she is going to die anyway file.
i love everyone on here to know i am not alone only would you believe mine came from a complete hysterectomy now how do you make it go away? my man doesnt seem to mind but i sure do but how can you make your man happy when your not. its terrible living with these thoughts
You are my heroes.
I am 26. My husband would not touch me at all when I was pregnant with our son. He then left when baby was 5mths old. He is now 9mths and still breastfed, after a horrifically difficult start. I thought it was all because my body was not the same anymore, I was no longer attractive.
I didn’t really care though, I had my beautiful boy.
Since then, I have started thinking I need to do something to fix it, to be beautiful myself. Searching the internet for solutions, I found this site and saw your wonderfully honest photos and frank stories.
I think you look fantastic, but more than that I think you are an uncommonly brave and inspirational person to choose to post these pics and demonstrate the true beauty of the process of motherhood.
And especially for reassuring what I know to be true, there’s nothing wrong with how I look.
Thank you all so much.
I know that this is an older post, but I just came across this blog when looking for any tips or ideas on how to help my stomach. After 3 children, all 3 c-sections, my stomach has seen better days. I’m so glad to know that I am not alone. There have been good and bad days, and when I get upset it seems like nothing helps. However, There is some comfort in knowing that other mothers have the same battle scars as I do.
I know that I will never look the same, but my life will never be be same either- I have 3 wonderful children and I am proud to be a stay at home mother. Anyone else who reads this, please know that you are not alone.
Keep your head up you are beautiful!
Thank you for sharing, I feel relieved!