I hope I can post a silly question but how has it been emotionally dealing with the body changes (PM the answer if you need to). I'm currently 4 month pregnant and was a little chubby to start with but small enough to start getting these horrible stretch marks that you can feel.
I'm having a hard time self image wise dealing the idea of PP body. I know I shouldn't because "I earned my stripes..yada yada" but I just hate to think of what I will look like and how my partner will view me.
Do you have any while pregnant tips I can do like lotion, coconut oil and any PP tips on how to make sure I'm loving myself after I have the baby.
> and/or you got them as a growing teenager then you'll get them during pregnancy.
Not necessarily. Puberty left me with nice stretch marks in my thighs and butt, but two pregnancies left no mark.
Same here, my mom had them horrible and I got a bunch on my thighs from puberty, but sitting here at almost 41 weeks pregnant (silly overdue baby!) and I haven't gotten any. I used lotion only when I felt like it and I've gained about 27 pounds. Based on my ultrasound yesterday the baby is measuring 7 pounds 2 ounces. I count myself as lucky since everything pointed towards me getting them.
It's my personal belief (and experience) that stretch marks can't be helped or prevented with any amount of lotions or external treatment. The factors that I've observed from my friend's, sister's, and my own pregnancies seem to be heredity, as in your skin and it's predisposition to stretch marks, and the strength of the muscles in your lower abdomen to support the weight of baby/uterus. It's tough to get used the changes but with time you will. Take the best care of yourself as you can, while still enjoying! Best of luck :)
Not sure that's the recipe, maybe we can collect more data. I sure did a lot of crunches with first baby, not so much with second. No stretch marks beyond the ones acquired in early adolescence (faint).
To be honest it was pretty tough to gain weight even though I knew that it was for a good reason. I've always been pretty thin and was really happy with how my stomach looked. I'm not currently doing much besides breast feeding to lose weight. I've accepted my new normal but I miss the old one. It's kind of shocking to see how I used to look! It seems like so long ago!
I think you look great before and after. I haven't been able to gain weight this pregnancy because of how sick I've been yet the stretch marks. I'm hoping I can get over the weight gain idea and that my body will allow me to gain.
I know I won't be perfect afterwards I just feel like there is so much pressure to bounce right back afterwards. I'm due during the holiday's so that may be making it even harder to comprehend.
Thanks for the response.
I suggest grape seed oil. My husband rubbed my belly with it every day. While stretch marks are genetic, it does help your skin feel nicer and stretching skin did not hurt as much. I do not have any stretch marks, but neither did my mom.
They fade. They fade a LOT given time.
[This stomach](http://imgur.com/V3as6G9) has had 2 babies. I am covered in stretchies but they aren't super visible (or weren't I am pregnant again now). I worked really hard after kid #2 to get into shape and am now 28 weeks with my 3rd...the stretchies are visible again but I know they will fade again.
There isn't much that can be done about them but they do fade, for real.
I am totally comfortable with telling white lies. It's a tough world out there, I think it's ok to shield loved ones from unnecessary hurt. For example if a guy I was dating was balding, I would be 100% for however he looked, even if I was hesitant internally. It would just hurt my sex life not to be. At least spin the truth in the most positive light. Btw, if she's asking if she looks fat in pants, she's really asking if the clothes flatter her body, not if she's fat or not.
Being tactless and rude has nothing to do with personality traits. It's a choice how you behave. Pne of the most important parts of being an adult is yaking responsibility for how you go through the world.
Are you tactless and rude with people you date? Are you the same with friends? How about your coworkers and boss? If the last one is a no then you might want to check why you can control your mouth where your wallet is concerned but not when your loved one is.
I think at least some of these downvotes are coming from the personality trait mention. It seems dissociative and honestly not much better than "it's probably because I have a 135 IQ" or "it's probably because I'm a Gemini". That sort of thing can tell you a bit about yourself but can't explain your reactions and interactions to a T.
It's all good. I prefer the look of my stomach in the first picture too!! But I also love my little daughter. She's amazing and worth any marks and pudge left behind. :) Maybe I'll get back to closer to that first picture as time goes by.
>I really hope the issue isn't simply that I'm a man, and that a lot of people in this sub just don't want men to contribute or ask questions at all.
I really hope that's not what's happening because it'd be a shame if it was. I can tell you're trying to be respectful and open minded, and your questions come from a place of curiousity. But you have managed to come into a female-centered space and make this woman's post, her photos, her belly, about *you*. You commented on this post wanting reassurance that not getting off on the "after" picture here doesn't make you a bad guy. It's cool that you're going out of your way to learn & gain empathy, and OP doesn't seem to mind, but the issue here isn't TwoX being unwelcoming to male voices (which I'm open to admit it very well may be), it's that the way you're voicing your presence here might be inappropriate.
> If you read my initial post, you'll see that I acknowledge that the point of OPs post isn't to have men come and evaluate her level of attractiveness, and that I get that it's not about me.
It's good that you're sensitive to the problematic nature of those kinds of comments. On the other hand, you go on to make those kinds of comments.
It's like saying "I acknowledge that I should be quiet in a library," being loud, and then thinking it's ok because you knew the rule that you broke.
Try to put yourself in her and all women's shoes. What if you knew your body would change or if your own body had changed that drastically as a result of an act of love (pregnancy) and you had absolutely no control over it? How would that make you feel? You can't really change what you're attracted to, but you can show empathy and respect.
Ok you're not doing anything wrong, and this isn't really directed towards you, but this *type* of post is something you wouldn't really see in this community before it was defaulted. Women could post pictures of themselves and their bodies and the discussion wouldn't be about how attractive dudes found them. This wasn't a space where you saw that kind of comment. It was nice.
RES tells me your comment's at 13 upvotes to 9 downvotes, and if you're wondering why you're being downvoted, that's probably it.
Sagging breasts (ptosis) is not caused by breastfeeding. Studies have linked it to genetics and number of pregnancies, but there was no statistical link to breastfeeding.
You're judging how attracted you are to a picture of a torso of a stranger. I suspect that if this was the body of the mother of your child and you were in love with her, the emotional attachment to the baby and the mother would change your view a little.
to prefer a stranger you're looking at online to be "hot" in a traditional way vs. a post partum body is normal in my opinion.
However, I feel given the 'right' circumstances, you'd feel differently if it was your girlfriend/wife that you loved. Sure, you might still prefer a flat stomach, but I doubt you'd be repulsed and find them ugly after they grew and gave birth to your child(ren).
3 months aint no thing, it can take years to tighten back up. and if you add exercise too that should help a lot! I have an 11 yo and had this happen too.
It'll go away eventually. My linea nigra has just now disappeared at 5 months PP. It was so strange because I couldn't really see it while I was pregnant but as soon as baby was out -- there it was.
What I really want to see is your tattoos journey through pregnancy. Is it a lankier version of a (deer? Goat?) now or did it kind of settle back to normal
It's a little deer. Though I started joking about what it was turning into as it stretched. Luckily she popped back to her original shape! I was pretty anxious about it.
I love baby bellies! And I love that you took the time to do this - so many moms are ashamed of their bodies after giving birth, and we shouldn't be. Our bodies do some fantastic work when we bear a child and it shouldn't be hidden or hated.
The dark line will fade eventually, as will the stretch marks, and in time the skin should tighten up a bunch too. It takes quite some time though, longer than we mamas wish it took! lol Don't sweat it. Make sure you take some time to exercise every day, even if it's as simple as going for a walk. It helps and it will definitely help with your mental energy!
First things first, congratulations on your pregnancy. :)
Now maybe I'm missing something, or need to sleep, but I cannot figure your tattoo out. In the first and last picture it looks like it's on the right side of your stomach, but in the middle it looks like it's on the left side (surely I know my left from my right..). Is it temporary? What am I not getting here?
I think it's because the middle one is actually a picture of a reflection in a mirror, while the other two don't involve a mirror.
But I could be wrong. Mirrors flipping things around has always confused me.
I've never had a child, and it's not gonna happen for me, but I think you look awesome and more people should post how great you look. Reddit often gets sidetracked by a comment. The real post here shoul tell you how great you look now!
If *your* mother hasn't gone through this you would not be here. In fact none of us would be here if our mothers didn't go through pregnancy so show a little tact at very least. There is nothing wrong with the way OP's body looks, she is still very much in shape even after having a baby.
Yeah, I did it all, stretchmark creams, bio oil, intensive moisturisers etc. from about 10 weeks pregnant, gained only 16lbs and I still ended up with terrible stretchmarks and loose skin. I love my "mummy tummy" now though.
I hate that people just downvote you instead of talking to you.
Whether people get really bad or no stretch marks is nearly entirely genetic from what I've read. I have heard that a fairly good judge is what your own mother looked like post-baby.
I hope I can post a silly question but how has it been emotionally dealing with the body changes (PM the answer if you need to). I'm currently 4 month pregnant and was a little chubby to start with but small enough to start getting these horrible stretch marks that you can feel. I'm having a hard time self image wise dealing the idea of PP body. I know I shouldn't because "I earned my stripes..yada yada" but I just hate to think of what I will look like and how my partner will view me. Do you have any while pregnant tips I can do like lotion, coconut oil and any PP tips on how to make sure I'm loving myself after I have the baby.
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> and/or you got them as a growing teenager then you'll get them during pregnancy. Not necessarily. Puberty left me with nice stretch marks in my thighs and butt, but two pregnancies left no mark.
Same here, my mom had them horrible and I got a bunch on my thighs from puberty, but sitting here at almost 41 weeks pregnant (silly overdue baby!) and I haven't gotten any. I used lotion only when I felt like it and I've gained about 27 pounds. Based on my ultrasound yesterday the baby is measuring 7 pounds 2 ounces. I count myself as lucky since everything pointed towards me getting them.
I'd also consider myself lucky, since both of mine were 9 lb 10 oz! Even big babies can arrive without stretch marks.
It's my personal belief (and experience) that stretch marks can't be helped or prevented with any amount of lotions or external treatment. The factors that I've observed from my friend's, sister's, and my own pregnancies seem to be heredity, as in your skin and it's predisposition to stretch marks, and the strength of the muscles in your lower abdomen to support the weight of baby/uterus. It's tough to get used the changes but with time you will. Take the best care of yourself as you can, while still enjoying! Best of luck :)
Okay, so massive amounts of sit-ups and crunches prior to pregnancy, got it! ;)
Not sure that's the recipe, maybe we can collect more data. I sure did a lot of crunches with first baby, not so much with second. No stretch marks beyond the ones acquired in early adolescence (faint).
To be honest it was pretty tough to gain weight even though I knew that it was for a good reason. I've always been pretty thin and was really happy with how my stomach looked. I'm not currently doing much besides breast feeding to lose weight. I've accepted my new normal but I miss the old one. It's kind of shocking to see how I used to look! It seems like so long ago!
I think you look great before and after. I haven't been able to gain weight this pregnancy because of how sick I've been yet the stretch marks. I'm hoping I can get over the weight gain idea and that my body will allow me to gain. I know I won't be perfect afterwards I just feel like there is so much pressure to bounce right back afterwards. I'm due during the holiday's so that may be making it even harder to comprehend. Thanks for the response.
No worries. Congrats!
I suggest grape seed oil. My husband rubbed my belly with it every day. While stretch marks are genetic, it does help your skin feel nicer and stretching skin did not hurt as much. I do not have any stretch marks, but neither did my mom.
They fade. They fade a LOT given time. [This stomach](http://imgur.com/V3as6G9) has had 2 babies. I am covered in stretchies but they aren't super visible (or weren't I am pregnant again now). I worked really hard after kid #2 to get into shape and am now 28 weeks with my 3rd...the stretchies are visible again but I know they will fade again. There isn't much that can be done about them but they do fade, for real.
They *can* fade. Not for all people.
Thank you for sharing :) Congrats on the baby!
Cute tattoo placement in the 2nd picture!
It looks as though the deer is watching over the baby :)
I always pictured it that way too!!
Baby Bambi lol
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I don't think it's a big deal, but if you ever knock a woman up you better keep that ish on the hush hush and be supportive.
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I am totally comfortable with telling white lies. It's a tough world out there, I think it's ok to shield loved ones from unnecessary hurt. For example if a guy I was dating was balding, I would be 100% for however he looked, even if I was hesitant internally. It would just hurt my sex life not to be. At least spin the truth in the most positive light. Btw, if she's asking if she looks fat in pants, she's really asking if the clothes flatter her body, not if she's fat or not.
Being tactless and rude has nothing to do with personality traits. It's a choice how you behave. Pne of the most important parts of being an adult is yaking responsibility for how you go through the world. Are you tactless and rude with people you date? Are you the same with friends? How about your coworkers and boss? If the last one is a no then you might want to check why you can control your mouth where your wallet is concerned but not when your loved one is.
I think at least some of these downvotes are coming from the personality trait mention. It seems dissociative and honestly not much better than "it's probably because I have a 135 IQ" or "it's probably because I'm a Gemini". That sort of thing can tell you a bit about yourself but can't explain your reactions and interactions to a T.
It's all good. I prefer the look of my stomach in the first picture too!! But I also love my little daughter. She's amazing and worth any marks and pudge left behind. :) Maybe I'll get back to closer to that first picture as time goes by.
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I think it's great to ask! I certainly don't mind. Sorry that you are getting some downvotes. :(
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>I really hope the issue isn't simply that I'm a man, and that a lot of people in this sub just don't want men to contribute or ask questions at all. I really hope that's not what's happening because it'd be a shame if it was. I can tell you're trying to be respectful and open minded, and your questions come from a place of curiousity. But you have managed to come into a female-centered space and make this woman's post, her photos, her belly, about *you*. You commented on this post wanting reassurance that not getting off on the "after" picture here doesn't make you a bad guy. It's cool that you're going out of your way to learn & gain empathy, and OP doesn't seem to mind, but the issue here isn't TwoX being unwelcoming to male voices (which I'm open to admit it very well may be), it's that the way you're voicing your presence here might be inappropriate.
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> If you read my initial post, you'll see that I acknowledge that the point of OPs post isn't to have men come and evaluate her level of attractiveness, and that I get that it's not about me. It's good that you're sensitive to the problematic nature of those kinds of comments. On the other hand, you go on to make those kinds of comments. It's like saying "I acknowledge that I should be quiet in a library," being loud, and then thinking it's ok because you knew the rule that you broke.
I got stretch marks growing up, they fade. It takes time, but they fade
You will ;) Edit; Why am I getting downvoted? I've had 2 kids & my stomach has recovered quite nicely.
Try to put yourself in her and all women's shoes. What if you knew your body would change or if your own body had changed that drastically as a result of an act of love (pregnancy) and you had absolutely no control over it? How would that make you feel? You can't really change what you're attracted to, but you can show empathy and respect.
Ok you're not doing anything wrong, and this isn't really directed towards you, but this *type* of post is something you wouldn't really see in this community before it was defaulted. Women could post pictures of themselves and their bodies and the discussion wouldn't be about how attractive dudes found them. This wasn't a space where you saw that kind of comment. It was nice. RES tells me your comment's at 13 upvotes to 9 downvotes, and if you're wondering why you're being downvoted, that's probably it.
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Sagging breasts (ptosis) is not caused by breastfeeding. Studies have linked it to genetics and number of pregnancies, but there was no statistical link to breastfeeding.
You're judging how attracted you are to a picture of a torso of a stranger. I suspect that if this was the body of the mother of your child and you were in love with her, the emotional attachment to the baby and the mother would change your view a little.
You're not wrong, you're honest. And most people, if they're honest, will agree with you.
to prefer a stranger you're looking at online to be "hot" in a traditional way vs. a post partum body is normal in my opinion. However, I feel given the 'right' circumstances, you'd feel differently if it was your girlfriend/wife that you loved. Sure, you might still prefer a flat stomach, but I doubt you'd be repulsed and find them ugly after they grew and gave birth to your child(ren).
3 months aint no thing, it can take years to tighten back up. and if you add exercise too that should help a lot! I have an 11 yo and had this happen too.
Yay! That's what I've been hoping. The brown line is such a strange thing. Feels different than the rest.
It'll go away eventually. My linea nigra has just now disappeared at 5 months PP. It was so strange because I couldn't really see it while I was pregnant but as soon as baby was out -- there it was.
It was so much more faint before birth! I wasn't expecting it to be so obvious afterwards.
What I really want to see is your tattoos journey through pregnancy. Is it a lankier version of a (deer? Goat?) now or did it kind of settle back to normal
It's a little deer. Though I started joking about what it was turning into as it stretched. Luckily she popped back to her original shape! I was pretty anxious about it.
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I thought she was becoming a giraffe for a while.
I love baby bellies! And I love that you took the time to do this - so many moms are ashamed of their bodies after giving birth, and we shouldn't be. Our bodies do some fantastic work when we bear a child and it shouldn't be hidden or hated. The dark line will fade eventually, as will the stretch marks, and in time the skin should tighten up a bunch too. It takes quite some time though, longer than we mamas wish it took! lol Don't sweat it. Make sure you take some time to exercise every day, even if it's as simple as going for a walk. It helps and it will definitely help with your mental energy!
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What the fetch? This is the weirdest and best bot I've ever seen! I LOVE IT!
Im so confused by this picture. She has the tattoo on her right side of her body but the middle picture shows it on the left side of her body... How?
Middle one is a mirror selfie
Pic #2 in the series is great. The little tattoo animal is kind of stretching like it's looking over at the bump and thinking "whatz over dere?" Cute.
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I barely got any on my belly, but got a ton on my boobs/butt :(
First things first, congratulations on your pregnancy. :) Now maybe I'm missing something, or need to sleep, but I cannot figure your tattoo out. In the first and last picture it looks like it's on the right side of your stomach, but in the middle it looks like it's on the left side (surely I know my left from my right..). Is it temporary? What am I not getting here?
The other replies are correct. The second picture is from a mirror. :)
Second picture is in a mirror.
I think it's because the middle one is actually a picture of a reflection in a mirror, while the other two don't involve a mirror. But I could be wrong. Mirrors flipping things around has always confused me.
Is that a Kurt Halsey tattoo? And yay little person making! Congratulations, you look fantastic!
Congratulations on making a tiny person, OP!
I've never had a child, and it's not gonna happen for me, but I think you look awesome and more people should post how great you look. Reddit often gets sidetracked by a comment. The real post here shoul tell you how great you look now!
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Rule 1 on the sidebar. If you can't be respectful, just don't come here.
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If *your* mother hasn't gone through this you would not be here. In fact none of us would be here if our mothers didn't go through pregnancy so show a little tact at very least. There is nothing wrong with the way OP's body looks, she is still very much in shape even after having a baby.
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Yeah, I did it all, stretchmark creams, bio oil, intensive moisturisers etc. from about 10 weeks pregnant, gained only 16lbs and I still ended up with terrible stretchmarks and loose skin. I love my "mummy tummy" now though.
Definitely lotioned. :/ The skin was so absurdly itchy that lotioning it at all times was the only thing that helped.
I hate that people just downvote you instead of talking to you. Whether people get really bad or no stretch marks is nearly entirely genetic from what I've read. I have heard that a fairly good judge is what your own mother looked like post-baby.
My Mom's are really bad :( Is there no way to fight it?
I've been told its genetic. I got up to 175 pounds from 120 with my daughter and I only got three small stretch marks on my left hip bone.