I am 20 years old have a 8 month old, I am 3 months pregnant and have been pregnant 3 times including now. When I was pregnant with my 8 month old son my tummy was huge I am only 4″11 and before I got pregnant only weighed 130. My tummy grew so quickly and big that I started to show at 3 1/2 months. When my son was born he weighed 9lbs 2oz and was 23in long so he was a pretty big baby and really stretched out my stomach. I had a c-section because my uterus is high. Before and while I was pregnant I believed that after I had my baby I would work out and diet and would go back to “normal”. Well, I didn’t! Months past my skin was loose and my tummy still poked out as if I was still pregnant, I had no idea what was going on. I looked it up and talked to my dr. It still has not gone down. I don’t feel comfortable or confident at all. I don’t get ready when I go out anymore. If I have a baby girl this time I think I am done having children and I am thinking of getting a tummy tuck sometime. But, I don’t have the money and don’t know when I will gather up enough money. To me I think that’s the only way I will feel like myself again.
Having children has a huge effect on our bodies. It takes time for things to go back to “normal” and often times we have to accept our new normal. One trick that I was taught by my mother in law was to tie my tummy. You won’t want to do that now since you are pregnant again but after you can tie you tummy with a cloth and it will help it go back down quickly. Confidence goes a long way so find something that you love about yourself!! Good luck with your current pregnancy.
Lots of women, both with and without diastasis recti end up “pregnant” looking. But with proper postpartum exercises you can flatten and tone your abdomen. Skin does not bounce back, unfortunately.
Since you are pregnant now, you should start strengthening your deepest abdominal muscle, your Transverse Abdominis, or TvA.
This will help to prevent/lessen the severity of diastasis, back pain, and pelvic instability. And because the TvA is our primary, voluntary expulsion muscle, TvA strength greatly aids in labor and delivery.
You can find video demos of safe TvA exercises for pregnancy and diastasis recti at:
https://befitmom.com/abdominal_separation.html
To find out how to recondition after pregnancy, go to:
https://befitmom.com/abdominal_reconditioning.html
I have diastasis recti as well. My first born was the exact weight as your son and just one inch shorter and I also weighed 130 before my two pregnancies.:) You can find my entries here under proudmama.
Anyway, I just wanted to let you know that there is hope. Google Tupler Technique. I am in no way associated with them, but I have started the program and I’m already starting to see changes after less than a week. There is a splint that they sell that helps bring the separated abdominal muscles together while you do the exercises which are actually quite simple. I’m only starting and I don’t expect to see significant changes for months but I think it’s worth a try to avoid surgery. Look up the before and after pictures, they are inspiring. I plan on posting again in a few months when/if this really works for me.
Anyway, I wished someone would have told me before so I wanted to share this with you.:)
You are so young! You have plenty of time to get back in shape. I wouldn’t get any surgery until later in life honestly. I’m 32 right now and pregnant with #3. I have a boy (9) and a girl (7) and thought at 26 I would never have anymore but here I am having another almost 7 years later. At 32 I still feel very young. I would focus on your health for now and be thankful for the children you have and will have in the future. I also have the seperation in my tummy and if I decide to get my tummy tuck I will after 35 when I know I’m done having kids. I like to focus on things like training for marathons and trying to get fit not skinny. In time it will happen. Try thinking of everything positive in your life.
Hi I am the one who wrote this post I haven’t gotten on this website for a while. Now I am almost 8 months pregnant & i am having a GIRL! and my son is about to turn 1 yr old. I want to thank all of you for what you’ve said and the info on how to work on my tummy muscles.
MYA MATERNITY-
I am Hispanic and that is done a lot from where my family comes from but I am wondering will it still work since I didn’t do it the first time? Aren’t my muscles just going to stay like that since its been so long? And I’m also going to have a c section with this pregnancy too can I still do that?
PROUDMAMA-
Is the splint necessary?
KRISTIN-
Yes I am young and already going to be a mother of two and very proud of it & enjoying every minute of it! I’ve been thinking if I’m done having children and to be honest I really believe I am done. I never thought about having any children when I was young(er) or when I decided to live with my now fiancé it’s not that I didn’t like kids or didn’t want any it was just not something I wanted to do ASAP but now that I am going to have my second I feel complete like I don’t need anymore. I want to work on getting my self in shape and since I got pregnant young I didn’t go to collage and I want to focus on that and other things in my life including my 2 little ones and my fiancé and after working on getting fit and school if I still feel like I’m done with having children then I will go on and do the tummy tuck
HELEN BYRNE- thank you I will look at those websites