Stretch marks.

[Lauren_]

The more weight I lose, the more obvious & awful my stretch marks look.

These are old --- deep, wide, white indented scar tissue marks. Not the red or purple new ones. Also, the skin texture on my belly is terrible AND there's a sort of cellulite there.

I'm hoping that just a bit more weight loss and improving my body fat percentage will help, I'm exfoliating to a ridiculous degree and using all sorts of OTC lotions & potions.

But at this point, I'd be interested in researching what else is available. Has anyone you know EVER successfully resolved old stretch marks? If so, tell us! Expensive prescription creams? Home remedies? Surgery? Lasers? Lipo?

[ashadanzatrice]

ew. no help here, but i will be watching this thread for others' wisdom. i have lost all my baby 2 weight, only to find that my stretched-out tummy didn't snap back quite as well as the first time. the stretch marks themselves are pretty minor, but the center line of my lower abdomen looks elephanty when i roll it.... including, slightly, the skin around my navel. gah.

somebody help us pleeeze...

[elenya]

I also have white indented stretch marks, when they were new (1,5 years ago) they were also wide, wrinkly and red. They will never go away completely, but I've noticed that somethings "work" better than others to minimize them. I've tried a number of creams and lotion, both high and low end, and none of them made any noticeable difference.

Exfoliating will definitely (in time!) improve the texture and discoloring, red or white because it will stimulate you skin to renew itself.
But give your skin time to do this, don't exfoliate every day! It needs at least a few days to heal after a rough exfoliation.

Aloë Vera gel (pure 98% or higher, not the white scented stuff) will help with the healing and regeneration, it's also very soothing and calming for the skin after the exfoliation. And cheap and easy to come by! I use this every day, not only after exfoliation.

I don't like the idea of laser or surgery, chemicals and the likes. And nothing you will do at home will completely get rid of them, but this has helped me a lot. I can still see them, but only up close. The texture is the main things that improved a lot, the white silver color did not improve very much, but it's still better than it was. I don't really mind that because self tanning body lotion and a little glitter on top will take care of that.

I've heard that retin A will help with new scars, it will take the red out.
But I never tried it, so can't comment on that.

Stretch marks really suck, but some of us just can't avoid them. Believe me I've tried. It's genetics for the most part I think.

Here are the pics, first is taken 2 days after my son was born and second I took this morning. The texture has really improved, color not really, it's still silvery/white but less noticeable.

[tamrahennatx]

Souheir Zeki-style tummy covers!

It seems to me that my stretch marks/wrinkly skin is becoming more noticeable recently. I don't know if it's an aging skin thing, or if I need to work out more, but I'm thinking that at some point I'd like to try the coordinating body stocking a la SZ and see if I like that look.

The catch is, the body stocking has to have back darts and maybe even a zipper. The seamless or even side-seamed body stockings don't conform to the curves of the torso enough for me.

[elljay]

Body paint.

Everything I've read and researched says...there is no cure.

[GypsyInara]

I may get booed off the stage for saying this, but I like my stretch marks. I have embraced them as part of me, battle wounds from having a baby. And I think they kinda look like white shimmery tiger stripes. The wrinkle around the navel I could live without, but it is what it is.

[Lauren_]

Originally Posted by GypsyInara

I may get booed off the stage for saying this, but I like my stretch marks. I have embraced them as part of me, battle wounds from having a baby. And I think they kinda look like white shimmery tiger stripes. The wrinkle around the navel I could live without, but it is what it is.

Yayyyy!!! That's wonderful.

Actually, the stretch marks alone didn't bother me when I was thinner and my skin was generally smoother. But after gaining and now loosing weight, it's the loose skin, crinkly texture, etc. that really bother me.

Hopefully losing some more weight and improving my body fat % will also tighten the skin. If that happens, I can live with the 'tiger stripe' effect.

If not, I may start saving for some laser or lipo or whatever might help.

Glad to hear that diligent exfoliation might have some effect. I'm doing that plus massage right now, but I'm aware it will take time to see results.

[wigglewhiz]

Ah, Lauren - you've hit my personal issue here.

I *hate* the tecture of my belly skin after losing the weight - because now instead of just interestingly tiger-striped, it's really loose and wrinkly and clearly "extra" skin. Makes me sooooo self-conscious sometimes.

Sadly, all of the investigative work I've done suggested that there really IS nothing to do about it, short of cutting it off a la tummy tuck.

[Adishakti]

If there was a cure, I would have never gotten my tummy tuck, Lauren. I lost my weight, exercises out the wazoo, used every cream remedy I could find and my tummy was exactly like you describe.

A visit to the doctor verified the fact that the only "cure" is surgery. I know that's not everyone's answer, but I'm very pleased with the results. I had the muscle repair done as well, which can be quite costly, but just having your skin repaired doesn't cost as much as you might think and recovery time would be no more than a couple weeks.

But before that, I used body stockings combined with draped bras as costume selections... or I did a fancy veil drape... or wore a dress. There are some great two-piece costumes out there that come up in a V with a belt as well.

Losing weight will make the wrinkly skin look worse, but of course the rest of you will look more toned so it's a trade off.

Sorry Lauren, but anyone who tells you there's a magic cure short of a tummy tuck is giving you false hopes. So, if that's not something you think you'll do for one reason or another, the best thing you can do is make peace with your tummy, and remember how much your children were worth the trade-off.

Just incase you haven't seen them or are interested. Here are my before and after photos. Warning - the pictures are kinda graphic. Some were taken before the wound completely healed and my pants are a little low. The password is ZILLS
PictureTrail

[annwyn]

Not that this is a cure but a temp fix! Mary K sells visably fit cream I put it on 2 days prior to a show and it temp lightens the purple marks and tightens the tummy, You could try it.......I also have found that bare minerals helps mask the look of the marks temp of course.....Mary K also sells a 2 part cellu shape cream I own it but truethfully havent tried it yet......This may work as well..........but I feel your pain I am thinging of gettin a rachel brice style tat to cover mine......it is the only thing I can think of to get rid of them........

[Lauren_]

Originally Posted by Adishakti

A visit to the doctor verified the fact that the only "cure" is surgery.

This is pretty much what I thought. Elenya's results are lovely -- and her belly is really nice! -- but my last baby was over 13 years ago, and I've already done that level of healing.

Adi, when you say a skin-only surgical solution doesn't cost as much as you'd think.... how much do you suppose it costs???

The only thing I've ever been told that gave me hope was this: What we think of as 'extra skin' is really skin with a layer of subcutaneous fat -- if you pinch the back of your hand you can see how thin skin alone is. So supposedly if you can get rid of enough body fat, you can see improvement. Not with the white tiger stripes, of course, but with the wrinkly-saggy stuff.

*sigh*

[Uulady]

Thanks Adishakti for sharing this. I was curious to see before/after and the process. You look great! :-D

[Adishakti]

Originally Posted by Lauren_

This is pretty much what I thought. Elenya's results are lovely -- and her belly is really nice! -- but my last baby was over 13 years ago, and I've already done that level of healing.

Adi, when you say a skin-only surgical solution doesn't cost as much as you'd think.... how much do you suppose it costs???

The only thing I've ever been told that gave me hope was this: What we think of as 'extra skin' is really skin with a layer of subcutaneous fat -- if you pinch the back of your hand you can see how thin skin alone is. So supposedly if you can get rid of enough body fat, you can see improvement. Not with the white tiger stripes, of course, but with the wrinkly-saggy stuff.

*sigh*

In my case, the more weight I lost, and the more toned I got... the more obvious the wrinkles were. The skin and underlying tissue were stretched beyond repair. You'll still look better in that you'll be toned everywhere else, and that cellutity-icky sort of fat that lies beneath will be less... so the area will get more compact. Still the extra skin has nowhere to go, and the fat in the area's will not change in consistency, so you wind up wrinklier.

Well, my full Tummy Tuck, muscle repair and lipo cost $7500. That included aftercare and bandaging. (You'll wear a compresing bandage for a while). Without the muscle repair, a mini tummy tuck (tuck under the belly button only) the quote given to me was between something like $3500-$4000. Of course you'll end up with a scar, but a good doctor will let you choose where exactly you want that scar. Mine hides under low-rise bikini panties. I should update those pictures because the scar has faded a lot in time and with the use of scar minimizing cream.

I know surgery is an extreme avenue, but I have to say I am SOOOO happy I had it done.

If you can get past it, that's ideal... because really, we're all beautiful - all shapes, sizes and imperfections... but I couldn't get past it, unfortunately.

You're welcome, Alana. And thank you!

[Lauren_]

Thanks for the info, Adi. That's about the same as other options like laser-lipo that might not even produce desired results. More than I can afford, of course, but anything can happen...

[Adishakti]

Originally Posted by Lauren_

Thanks for the info, Adi. That's about the same as other options like laser-lipo that might not even produce desired results. More than I can afford, of course, but anything can happen...

Check into your health insurance, Lauren. I have heard of people both from the US and Canada that have proven their case for a need for a tummy tuck. ie. bad rashes, dreadfully uncomfortable... etc, etc and were able to have it paid for. Any excuse you can come up with.

Plus, I know my surgeon had a payment plan option...

I highly doubt lipo would work. That would take care of the fat, but not the extra skin and it might wind up looking worse.

There are some seriously sexy dresses with cutouts out there. I know it's hard to accept the fact that they're here to stay, but you really could look just as hot in a dress or one of those skirts that go up in the front with a belt...

[nasila]

Wow, Adi, your before ones look a like my belly...thanks for sharing the photos and the numbers. You really do look wonderful!!

I was told microderm abrasion is a good option for alleviating some of the color in stretch marks, but it doesn't do anything for the skin ripples. I have yet to go for a consultation (supposedly our insurance might even cover part of it). Anyone know anyone who has had this done?

[Lauren_]

I don't have any health insurance. -- I'm a self-employed American!!!

Smart lipo is supposed to work really well for tightening the skin, because of the laser. I agree that regular lipo seems likely to only make it worse.

[Linnyg]

As someone who is the definition of yo-yo weight, there is no way to completely get rid of your stretch marks. There are some things that can diminish the color and so forth but they will always be there. The texture part is all about patience. If you recently lost weight, it can take time for your skin to shrink back to the right size. I know that there are toning lotions out there but I have never tried them. I don't like the idea of surgery but I know for some that it is an option. Who knows, the closer I get to my target weight, I may be singing a different song.

[shimmy21]

I don't have cellulite, but I do have stretch marks from gaining weight during high school and college. They are white now, and the more weight I lose, the harder they are to see. I did a lot of exfoliation and moisturizing to help them fade. It really just takes time, and they will never fully go away. On the original Discovery Body Challenge, there was a woman who had very loose skin from having kids, and she went to a massage therapist during the entire show and at the end of the show her stomach was nice and flat! Here is a link I found about it How to Do Anti Cellulite Massage - wikiHow

If you aren't already, you should consider taking a multivitamin and up the amount of water you drink. Your skin is constantly losing moisture from evaporation, and it can really suffer! It is also the last in line for vitamins and minerals, so if you have any deficiencies, your skin will show it. You could also try body brushing, which is supposed to help clean out your skin's lymph system. Skin is actually considered the 3rd kidney because one of its jobs is cleaning toxins out of the body through the lymph system.

Hope something helps!

Rachel

[Nat242]

I've heard that some people have success reducing the appearance of scars and stretch marks using cocoa butter, but I've never used it myself. It might be worth a shot.