HELP!!how do i deal with strech marks ????

Question

I'm 21 this is my first pregnancy... I am now 33 weeks and i am begining to get strech marks on my lower tummy just below the belly botton they seem to be getting wider as the weeks go by and the are so tender when i touch them.....i put 100% all natural shea butter and vitamin E serum on my tummy I've been doing this since i was about 4 months.....what can i do to keep the ones i have from getting worst???what can i do to keep from getting any more???? Do stretch marks go away?????

Answer 1

hello there.... congrats on the little one joining your family soon first! :)

your question caught my attention.... stretch marks.... the badge we have no choice but to wear that proclaims to the world we are mothers.... the lines that are left long after the baby that kicked and squirmed and had the hiccups has left the womb.... a badge of honor really... but society dictates, and we are raised with the those same views... flaws are not good..... and that "lines" marks are flaws.....

I am no different.... I have quite a few..... seven pregnancies I guess that yo-yo up and down the scale? lol :)
actually that is exactly what it is... when we gain at a faster rate than our bodies can compensate for...... not genetics..... happens when you are not pregnant and gain or lose very fast too....skin can only stretch so fast... if you are gaining faster than it can keep up? you get marks from stretching the skin there.....

I do not know for sure, but a guess would be if your marks are as recent as you say they are purely from a healthy baby growth spurt! :) and not from twenty pounds all at once....good news!! those usually go away after getting back in shape....

most stretch marks do fade and even vanish, that's the good news! the not so good? the ones that are there for good.... stay.... I religiously applied the stretch creams, cocoa butter, shea, vitamin enriched ones.... until 2005 I had found nothing that helped (sorry) I found one in Motherhood maternity store.... pretty expensive @ around twelve for a bottle of it...but well worth it if you have excessive or unsightly, painful stretch marks... in my case; my older marks faded quite a bit with it.... the newer ones were not as bad.... and almost all the newer ones are gone now.... the ones that are left? I guess I am not so concerned these days about what the world or even my husband were to think of stretch marks.... only how I feel... and
well, sentimentally, I do not want them to go away..... maybe I am the only one in the world.... but fifteen years after having my first baby... seeing the one (or fifty) marks she left on my physical body, it for some reason makes me appreciate that she is here.... that those marks are and always were a good thing that I did not appreciate?

I do not remember who said it to me but a long time ago one mother did tell me the same thing I told you... actually she was chiding me for being so upset, vain, I think she called me... lol... I am not really... doubt any of us are.... she said these were a badge of honor...that no father or sister, or anyone else would wear because our baby did not "touch" anyone else in life the way they touched us.... this was one of those special "fingerprints" only it was left behind on us, not our walls..... she used the words passage into a private club as well..... she also said that I could be upset, embarrassed feel as though I am not as pretty... or I could look at them and realize that my whole being, including my body, had just entered into motherhood and had changed forever.... for the better.... and wear them proudly... and as we grew older and babies grew to adults... their first little imprint could and would still be seen on our belly... in our hearts, on our souls...

forgive me for wandering there in my answer... the sentiment is one that impacted me.... to the point where I want to share it with newer moms to be....
your marks from your description really do sound like pure baby... and from what I have seen, those fade to almost nothing without lotions... the rule I have seen is; the deeper wider redder and angrier the mark? the more likely it is one that will not fade at all on it's own..... and truly it is when you gain/lose at very fast rate..... which at the end of pregnancy will happen with baby growth rates/spurts..... massaging the lotions in should help some... link below to the only one I found worked for me.... good luck and again congrats!!



the store and lotion I recommend for all stretch marks is:

store website link: the clothes are great quality, styles..

http://www.motherhood.com/home.asp?Media=Motherhood


the stretch mark cream link to item: (it is called motherhood... they carry one called palmers too... I did not like it personally.... have not heard bad things mind you.... just did nothing but make my marks look red and angry, every person is different... might work for you) price went up I see on the one I used... to fifteen a bottle... still think it is worth it....


http://www.motherhood.com/Product.asp?Product_Id=45751013&category_Name=Skin+Care&Category_Id=1013&MasterCategory_Id=25

edit added:

my grandmother had no marks, and fourteen pregnancies... my mother has one mark... but hers is a c-section from belly button down from my sister...my mother had five pregnancies.... my sister has a few (eight babies) and I have a road map! and six... I also had pre-ecampsia with five, and gained thirty to seventy pounds over a course of one to two weeks (from the pre-toxemia/pre-eclampsia) and so I can say that it is more to do with weight gain than genes!

Answer 2

Ok I will tell you what I did.....I started using Palmers Cocoa Butter Massage Lotion on my belly and my sides liberally since I was about 3 months along. I dont think it actually prevents the stretch marks but it does incease the elasticity in your skin. Stretch marks start under the skin. I do not have one stretch mark and I am due in 2 days. It could be genetics or it could have been my faithful use of cocoa butter. I have also gained 30 lbs as of Monday and it is all in my belly. So my belly got big and still no stretch marks. I will swear by Palmers brand. I have used it before on stretch marks on my thighs when I was younger and you cant even see them. They fade in time and turn almost silver. There is nothing you can do now that will keep them from getting worse or getting more of them. I always heard that if your mom got them you will get them, and my mom had two kids and had very few and my grandma had 6 kids and had NONE! Good Luck! They are a sign of being a mommy!

Answer 3

You are doing the right thing, but as your stomach grows so will the stretch marks to make room for the growing baby. Keeping putting the creams and lotions, they wont disappear now. After you give birth just keep doing the same thing. Over time, once you lose the baby weight, they should fade. You can still see mine up close, but they are not red any more, they match my skin tone. Just keep rubbing your tummy down with the cream and it should fade.

Answer 4

There is not a whole lot you can do. NOt gain weight to fast, genetics do play a role in it. Stretch marks never really go away they will fade in time. I had my first son at 20 and he gave me some lovely ones above my belly button after 11 yrs. they have faded but still are there. Some people swear by lotion and potions but I think they were just lucky to begin with and not get them.

Answer 5

Stretch marks fade as time goes on and eventually they wont be noticeable unless you're right up on them, but they dont disappear completely.

Theyre genetic, you have already done all you can to prevent your skin from scarring by using the moisturizer.

You deal with them by accepting that they were a fair exchange for your wonderful child.

Answer 6

Keep doing what you are doing. If there was a cure for stretch marks, you would know about it. They wont go away but they will get much lighter a while after you have the baby.

Answer 7

Palmers cocoa butter with vitamin E. Worked for me. And watch the weight gain.

Answer 8

hun, they are in your family genes.. look at your mom! if she has them, your going to get them.. no mater how much coco butter u use, or vitamin e oil.. all that does it soften the skin... and help soften the look of the stretch marks.. but you can't stop them...

i started to get some on my inner thighs, and they became softer after time, but u could still see them..so i went to one of those spray on tanning places.. and did that.. and it helped minimize the appearence..

don't do regular tanning like laying out in the sun. it makes them worse.

Answer 9

I lathered up with all sorts of creams...I still got them. They will not go away .... but will fade with time and become less noticeable. But, rest assured when you hold your baby in your arms....every stretch mark will be worth it. Best of luck for a healthy baby.

Answer 10

They will fade but sadly they are still visible. I used lotions and still ended up with stretch marks, just part of being pregnant.