Own Your Stripes
I sat on the floor of my childhood bedroom, mourning the loss of my stomach. My body would never be the same. My life would never be the same. Everything was changing and it was happening fast. I wasn’t sure how I would ever find a husband who would want me, my baby AND my zebra stripes.
See, my mom had just told me that all the lotions and oils in the world won’t completely eliminate stretch marks with my pregnancy. Looking back on my 19 year old self, I feel empathy for her. She didn’t know it then, but her life wasn’t nearly over. She would wear a bikini again. She would even get her own set of abs and be in the best shape of her life after her baby arrived.
However, she didn’t know all that yet.I now have four kids, and three of them came from my body. Each baby left its physical mark. It was difficult – at first. I was embarrassed and felt shame around my “imperfect” body. But now I see each mark as a warrior moment. I can literally tell which of my kids gave me which stretch marks.
I am so proud of what my body has been able to do.This confidence is new, and one that stems from looking at myself through the eyes of those who love me: My God, my husband. This doesn’t mean I didn’t try every product in the book to help prevent stretch marks. It turns out, though, my mom was right. I was prone to stretch marks and I earned more stripes with each pregnancy.In fact, after my last baby, my stomach was a hot red mess. The scar tissue made me want to scream because it was itchy and irritated.
So here’s what I would do: Roll up my shirt and let my skin get some fresh air. I would spritz After Shave Mist and let that dry for a minute. The lavender oil in this mist helped calm my angry skin. Then I grabbed my Stretch Mark Minimizing Oil and spritized the s@!# out of my belly.
Not only did my skin irritations calm down, I noticed that the reddish/purplish scar tissue started to become less noticeable. It was becoming more skin toned. I officially became a believer in miracles. (Okay, that’s a little bit of an exaggeration, but you get what I mean, right?)Stretch marks still race across my stomach.
However, I hardly even notice them. They are white, just like me. (Never thought I would be proud to match up with Frosty LOL) Even though my body is back to being one shade, I still use my oils in the mornings. I find that scar tissue flares up even years down the road and my oils really help me when that happens.Do you have a story about stretch marks finding their way across your body? I would love to hear from you!