Pregnancy - tips for your body during and after

[Jennika]

Hello ladies,

as a newly pregnant woman (almost 10 weeks) I'm very excited but also a bit anxious because I hear so many horror stories of women who felt their bodies were damaged from pregnancy from stretchmarks, weight gain etc.

while I'm certainly of the mind that this baby is worth anything it does to my body, I think there's no harm in being mildly vain and wanting to look good during and after to be best of my healthy abilities.

therefore, I'd love to hear any tips form TFS'ers on your body/skin and pregnancy and how to take care of it during and after both for health and looks.

thanks!

PS- if this topic for some reason violates forum guidelines or would be better off in a different section mods please delete or move it

 

[FashionGrrrrl]

I would apply plenty of body lotion every day...as for a specific kind I'm not sure...but I used to have stretch marks on my breasts and just using body lotion every time I shower has made them completely disappear. I think if you are careful about it during and after your pregnancy they don't have to be a permanent thing, if they show up at all.

 

[Bella_Lass334]

^^Yup. I hear you're supposed to apply Palmer's Cocoa Butter Lotion and it will work wonders. Evidently it's also good to eat foods that are good for you but high in calories to help keep you filled up, but won't fatten you, such as nuts and to do yoga.

 

[Womanolo]

First of all - congratulations! I hope you have a lovely pregnancy. I joined the forum on emmasdiary.co.uk - if you're not in the UK and don't want to join this there are loads of other sites out there. It's a great way of chatting to other women who are as baby-fied as you especially when you get bigger and can't / don't want to move round as much.

So as not to gain weight I was told not to eat more than 300 extra calories a day which is apparantly all that the baby needs to grow. I also started to take the pregnacare vitamins after I started getting cuts on the side of my lips (Vit B deficiency of some kind or other). I was lucky in that I didn't get cravings, but if you do I guess you just have to go for it! I've always been a big walker so I just carried on with that.

For the stretch marks, I didn't like the Palmers as it seemed to be like thick vaseline. I just used an aqueous cream - they're really cheap and totally the biz. I used it twice a day, before getting dressed in the morning and before going to bed at night. They say it's genetic but I really believe it helped me to not get stretch marks. I didn't bother to put it on my legs, which swelled at the end of my pregnancy and I now have (barely) visible stretch marks at the tops of my thighs.

After you've had your baby, using your own breast milk is really the way to go to lose the weight. I couldn't bare the pain of breastfeeding so I expressed. (I gave up doing that after a month but that's another story...).

 

[Jennika]

thanks for the tips womanolo, I'm gonna try and find some of that Aqueos cream. I've never heard of it before but I'm sure I can find it here in Canada.

 

[Womanolo]

Just go to any chemist or wherever and ask for it. I was put on to it by my chemist when I went in to buy a cream for my hands one time (before I was preggo). It's like £1 for a big huge tub, non-scented etc. We also have cream E45 over here, but not sure if you call it the same over there.

 

[ShannonMc]

Congratulations! I hope to be pregnant by the end of summer, we'll see. I'm glad you started this thread, I don't think it's vain - I think the better you take care of yourself, the happier the pregnancy. I can't wait to see more responses Take care!

 

[Jennika]

Good luck ShannonMc, it took us a year to get pregnant so I hope that it goes faster for you.

I'm three months now and my jeans are just starting to feel a bit tight. it's really scary to feel your body changing so much. the fuller boobs are great, the belly... not so much. I know it's worth it but I'm still scared of the physical change.

 

[Jennika]

Oh, and if you're going to start trying for a baby in the summer make sure you start taking folic acid every day starting now, since it can take up to three months for your body to build up it's stores.

 

[snowqueen]

bio oil works well so i have heard .. and palmers coco butter do a special baby bump cream to help preent stretch marks...

but if i was you i would not worry to much about stretch marks .. they happen .. you will be very lucky indeed if you dont get any ... just enjoy being pregnant and congratulations btw

 

[Jennika]

Oh, my friend in Ireland is sending me Bio Oil since you can't get it in Canada. glad to hear that you've heard good things about it.

 

[scandinavianchic]

The Body Shop has this great cocoa stick that's supposed to work miracles

I also have this oil made especially for pregnant women that I use every evening. And I take 1000 mg of Omega 3 every day which makes your skin more elastic.

So I guess I'm doing everything I can to avoid those strech marks... Lol ...

 

[Deborah]

SWimming is meant to be a good exercise when pregnant.

 

[TUGA]

I also applied a vitamin E and aloe vera combo cream every morning and night on breasts and belly, during my pregnancy - I don't think I missed a day, that's how obsessed I was. My baby is now 4 months old, and no stretch marks!!! I tried the cocoa butter, but had an allergic reaction, so it's not for everyone.

 

[e-v-elina]

i want lots of babies when i'm older but i'm getting kinda worried about my boobs getting saggy, isn't there some kind of exercise i can do to avoid this? just regular working out while being pregnant?

 

[scandinavianchic]

I just read some research saying that smoking makes your breasts saggy, not breast feeding. Going through a pregnancy can also make your boobs sag, but not breast feeding itself. I don't think there's anything you can do about it, except for surgery? (which I think is going kind of overboard. Totally depends on the state of the boobs, though..)

 

[e-v-elina]

yes i read that too ^ thank god i'm not smoking =p but i plan on having at least 4 kids when i'm older, so imagine what my boobs are going to look like then haha

 

[Annabel]

If you are worried about your breasts and how they will look once you've had the baby/finished nursing, go to an acupuncturist!! My acupuncturist is working on my breasts to even them out (one is bigger than the other), and he works on many pregnant women. This probably sounds weird if you don't already go to an acupuncturist, but I've heard that it works from several of his patients.

 

[Chrisdesigner]

Apologies if this is wrong thread to post in.

A lady friend is confirmed pregnant.Around two months.
She suspected she was having a miscarriage, but upon examination at hospital, its been established she has a blood clot in her womb, bigger than
the un born child.
Im not after medical advice, but could anyone tell me anymore about this please?

 

[Chrisdesigner]

^ Update.
Just had a phone call....Blood clot has dispersed!
Miracles of the human body.
Amazing.