Stretchies

I'll call them stretchies because even though it makes me sound like a two year old it just sounds cuter than saying outright "stretch marks". No body wants them and it's a dreaded part of pregnancy. It's perhaps inevitable for most but it won't stop us from oiling up, rubbing on lotion, hydrating, exercising, or limiting weight gain to try to prevent these "stripes of honor" from showing up. Which, by the way, kudos to anyone who can look at their stretch marks and proudly accept them as stripes of honor. I admire your confidence and your ability to look past some small (or large) physical mark and onto the bigger picture of things.

I once told my husband I think I am too vain to have a child and while I've accepted my fate, whatever it may be, I still would like to wear a bikini for at least the next couple of years before I graduate to a tankini or one piece. I know that stretchies are hereditary and no matter what measures you take to prevent these permanent new beauty marks they are most likely inevitable. It also makes me sad that most women I have talked to said their stretchies showed up in the very end. UGH, are you kidding me! So they are saying I will make it to almost the very end thinking that their is light at the end of the tunnel only for the switch to get flipped and leave me in darkness. Well, that's just darn depressing.

I have spoken with my mother, she did get them. They faded, she said, into what is a manageable & I would assume hardly noticeable especially with a tan, fine lines. My sister in law got them. They both gained about 50lbs with their pregnancy which is more than recommended but not too far off from what I hear the average woman say she gained. Hydration and exercise are key is what I believe my mom said and who knows if their is truth to this but it makes enough since. I would also add a well balanced diet. You can hydrate your skin with buckets of lotions or magic creams but if your skin is not well nourished on the inside some topical applications of goo here and there will not be very beneficial.

My stretchies prevention routine includes saying active, drinking water as often as I can (yes, even if it means peeing 100x's a day), stretching, and oiling up at least two times a day. I use Palmers Oil specifically for stretch marks and I add 100% pure vitamin E oil to it as the bottle goes down. No study has been done on the prevention of stretchmarks that fully supports a specific treatment or preventive measure but vitamin E oil does have great benefits for the skin. Here is an article on the benefits of vitamin E oil for the skin and one on its effects on stretch marks, though this one does state that scientific data is inconclusive.

Since mild stretchies run in my family I am simply hoping for the best but willing to accept my fate. Also since they run in my family I will have to share with you my success or failures with my preventative measures. As soon as my first appears, or if I make it to the finish line with none, you will be the first to know.

Danielle