What happens to your stomach after 2 or more babies??

Getting a little worried about what my tummy will look like after I have another baby :(

After DD1 it mostly went back to normal. I didn't get any stretchmarks so my skin was the same. Took about a year for my stomach to get back to normal but it did.

With DD2 I didn't think I got any stretchmarks either but I could see after the birth that I did. I didn't get the red type stretchmarks that you can see, it's just that my skin now resembles crepe paper, lol. It looks normal standing up I think but if I lean over or sit it's all crinkly and my skin is just really thin! I'm ok with it, it's fine, just a bit weird looking. The skin on my boobs looks the same. I think it got seriously stretched with some crazy engorgement! I assume there's nothing I can do to fix the skin??

Anyway, I'm just worried about what will happen after more babies? I want 2 more. There just seemed to be a big change to my body with my second pregnancy, more than with my first. That's a bit scary. Will it get that much worse each time?? What damage will I do?? Or have I done all the damage already and it's already been stretched so it won't get much worse?? Please be the second one! lol.

And is there anything I can do now to prepare for the next pregnancy??

3rd baby gave me my apron :/ I was similar to you with 1 and 2 but 3.... Oh my :/ I'm only 3kg over my pre preg weight yet my belly just looks fat and saggy. I said to dh just the other day tht it was the price we paid for such beautiful children ;)

Im begnning to get a G-unt now, after baby number 2.
Its a good thing DP's gut gets bigger with each baby too ;)

Mine's pretty flat. There is some loose skin and I suspect that I'll always look pregnant after a large meal but it's nothing that I'm losing sleep over and nothing that some shaping underwear wouldn't sort out if I was fussed about it.

You people are not giving me hope!

Except you onyx, you may stay.

Mine is still jiggly and flabby - but I'm old so it could be caused by that too :lol:

No apron or g-unt though, no stretch marks either :dunno: Everyone is different I guess.

I saw a photo on FB this morning though which made me feel better. I totally look like Cindy Crawford.

This is her tummy: https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net...46798563_n.jpg

Um... mine is pretty much the same as it was pre pregnancy. I didn't get stretch marks or loose skin with any of my 4. I have a little podge after DD3, but its not really noticable & I've just noticed its starting to disappear.

I'm no help, but I don't think anyone can really tell you what will happen to your body IYKWIM? My mum is similar to me, so maybe ask your mum about her experience (although, it could be different for her too!) Stretch marks are genetic :)

My stomach wasn't flat to begin with, but my first pregnancy was what ruined my tummy. I got heaps of stretch marks and the apron :(. My pregnancy with DD, nothing much changed. I didn't get any new stretch marks. I'm hoping the damage has already been done. I know I'll never wear a bikini.

Love that photo! She still has a bloody 6 pack under the wrinkles though! lol
I suppose it is about the work you put into it too. I know people with 4 kids who have the podge, the apron, and look quite bad, and others who have a perfectly flat stoamch still ('tis ok, we all hate her too lol) ;p But she works for it and was very fit pre-babies too.

I suspect mine wouldn't look much different to what it does now. I got more stretch marks with DD2 but it was the cs that gave me teh apron, the gunt, and my iss-ewes! lol

I'm 8 weeks post pregnancy and I think I still look 4-5 months pregnant. It's taking me a lot longer to lose the baby weight this time so I'm not sure if maybe I was eating worse during the pregnancy and put on more weight not attributed to the baby, or whether it's just harder to lose after the third. I've only just started some mild exercising (walking and some wiiFit) to try to budge the weight. I was being a little lazy thinking that breastfeeding three would make the weight just disappear without any work on my behalf (besides the milk making lol). So far my "lazy plan" hasn't worked.

As for the extra skin, I asked my Ob about that because I thought that to some extent it would always remain, but he said that if I worked on my core tummy muscle strength the skin should also become firmer and back like it was. I'm not convinced my belly button will ever go back to being a cute little button rather than the crater it is now though...

I've just had our third bub a couple of weeks ago. With number 1 and 2, I didn't get any stretchmarks and my tummy went back to normal-ish, after a year or so. Still a bit wrinkly if I bent forward, but flat when upright. Well, number 3 bubs sat all out the front, didn't she! I'd had a 5cm dram after my second baby (who weighed 4.7kg at birth), so with this one, there wasn't any pregnancy out the sides, I was just bump out the front and therefore got heaps of stretchies :( I think my tummy is starting to get smaller, but I honestly don't think it's going back to where it was beforehand. I also ended up having to have a third c/s and the scar/s tend to pull in a bit. Will wait and see what's happening after a year (?) hmmm

My third is nine weeks and my belly is pretty much back to what it was before (not flat! Im about 10+kg over what I would like to be but this was pre baby) I dont seem to have any extra skin/stretched skin compared to pre bubs

I didnt get stretch marks with any of my pregnancies. DD3 was my biggest, almost 1kg bigger than dd1 but other than a crater belly button like mylitta it hasn't changed much, oh and I still have a line nigra but that lasted almost 6 months with my first two so Im not too worried

I would think the only thing you could do is make sure you have strong core muscles before you get pregnant? dont know if that would help though

I love this picture/poem Birthmarks sorry I wanted to post the image as an attathcment but it would be too small to read

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I saw a photo on FB this morning though which made me feel better. I totally look like Cindy Crawford.

This is her tummy: https://fbcdn-sphotos-a.akamaihd.net...46798563_n.jpg

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are you freakin kidding?? you should see mine then Heaven!!!!! :rofl: it's worse.... ok well the same but more fat..... :rofl:
I try not to look in the mirror while naked anymore.... PMSL mine has looked like that since after DD1!!!

If it makes you feel any better, I have a low blub that looks like a post pregnant belly but I've never been pregnant! I blame it on the bulky uterus they said I have last US! Nothing at all to do with chocolate, nope, not at all.

Nothing good, and my stomach is great compared to my boobs :wall:

The upside is that they suit my thighs beautifully :p

I'm wondering this too.

I look exactly the same as I did pre-DD1 (don't hate me :hide:), so I think stretch marks aren't an issue for me, but more interested in how well the core muscles go.

I go to a postnatal exercise class that really works on those and it's definitely helpful.

Oh very jealous Jen!

Heaven, I'm more impressed with how quickly my vagina got back into shape than my tummy. ;) But the day I could put on my pre-pg pants was a very happy one!

I curse the c/s scar, that's the mark I wish I didn't have.

Lol true. Even after a tear I was ready to roll after only a few weeks :rofl: TMI?? Hahaha.

My poor tummy (and vagina!) will never be the same again :(

After my first I had stretch marks and a softer tummy. After the second I had more stretch marks and a bit of overhang. After my 10 pound third baby it is just ruined - like that photo but add a heap of red/silver stretch marks from about 3 inches above my belly button and all the way down (continuing over my thighs...). Plus my belly button is a munted shape, the tummy skin is all crinkled and I have no feeling in a lot of it. I am pretty sure I could pierce my belly button and not even feel it. I have lost quite a bit of weight and the skin is so stretch marked that it can't shrink down so it just hangs over the top of my pants.

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I curse the c/s scar, that's the mark I wish I didn't have.

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Mine is nearly invisible (don't hate me :hide:)

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My mum is similar to me, so maybe ask your mum about her experience (although, it could be different for her too!) Stretch marks are genetic :)

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My mum didn't get stretch marks either, I think she did get the same as me though, just not the red ones. She had 4 classical c/s though and her tummy was horrible so she ended up getting a tummy tuck. So not sure what it would have been like!

I agree! My vagina returned to normal faster than my tummy :rofl:

My scar's nearly invisible too - and it's a freshie, but that's beside the point.

I got no stretchies with DD1 and back to normal after the baby weight came off. I only gained 8kg with her. Went straight back into my work pants and utility belt.
LOTS of stretchies with DS but he was a whole kilo heavier than the girls. Another 8kg. Again, same as above. Skin went straight back, just with extra patterns :D
No stretchies again with DD2, but I did gain more than 20kgs. This time it feels like it's taking longer, but there was far more (like 3x) weight to lose. I have a slight sag over my scar, but my core is strong, so I suspect the skin is having a rest lol

Actually maybe the scar is relevant. You can't see any of my stretchies from DS, I know they can't go away completely but they aren't visible and they were never red. So maybe it is how well your skin heals?

Ummmmm.......I don't look at my body from under my boobs and down!:lol:

I am carrying a few extra kilos but my tummy looks fine, I have a few faded stretch marks that don't bother me. I think that my tummy will pretty much go back to how it was per kids if I lost these few kilos, it is quite flat. And the CS scar (after 3 of them) doesn't bother me either. I am actually pleasently suprised with the shape of my body after 3 kids and so quickly. Ask me again in March :lol:

I do think it is a very personal thing though as there are others who have only have 1 child and there body has changed a lot.

I remember my personal trainer told me before kids that if you have a CS you will never be able to have a flat tummy again, what a lie that is!

I'll report back in 5 to 9 weeks :lol:

Mine looks fine under clothes but I have to very choosy about what I wear these days. I have some shapewear undies for those occasions when i wear a dress. It resembles Cindy's tum actually! I can say I look like a supermodel now ;)

Its wrinkled and saggy but nobody sees it except DH and he doesn't care two hoots. Honestly if you've got 4 kids people kind of expect that you'll have a bit of a battered about tum!

My tummy is horrible and lopsided (thanks to baby number 3, who was huge and stated to one side to stretch it more then the other. My only option to get it semi normal is surgery and I will still have all the stretchmarks, thin crinkly skin and scaring - but it would be a huge improvement even so. Just need to make sure I'm finished having kids first.

I definitely noticed a big difference postnatally after DD2. my body didnt bounce back as readily...i mean, it bounced...but it shouldnt have lol!

I had the wrinkly skin thing for aaagggggeesss! it was gross that everytime i bent over i copped that sight lol. but after about a year it lessened and all the stretchmarks that i didnt know i had (they were under the belly on the bottom part ITMS) also went away and havent left a mark. I have one small stretch mark above my belly button and some faded ones on my boobs but nothing too dramatic.

Suprisingly, i entered this pregnancy much healthier (not talking weight-wise but just in general ITMS) and i have noticed a HUGE difference. I am no where near as carrying as big and have been ALOT more vigilant about doing my exercises for pelvic floor and am now forcing myself with a crowbar under my bum to go to yoga once a week....my belly scared me THAT much last time :ROFL:

Obviously i have to wait for the postnatal part to start to get a full evaluation, but i am feeling that my body is coping better....

I did yoga after ds2 and I was in good shape for dd. Now, a year later Im 3kg over pp weight- I gained 15kg lost 6 at birth. I think with some core training my tummy will be in good shape.
I'm not ashamed of my stretch marks. Very few people expect you to have your pp body after 3kids. Most ladies bodys change after 1 kid. My hips are different now. Wider and different shape.
Would like to swap my flat chest to flat tummy none the less lol. Miss my boobs

What's an apron?



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unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. its not.
Dr Seuss

2699

DT - post-cs apron - not mine. But the "apron" is the bit that is hanging over where it never used to be! LOL

Bugger I have an apron :( *starts looking for pilates dvd*

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unless someone like you cares a whole awful lot, nothing is going to get better. its not.
Dr Seuss

The apron isn't an exclusive CS thing - mine is exactly like that picture and I have had three vaginal births.

The most disturbing thing is that when I walk fast I can feel it swaying.

After having 4 reasonably large babies, mines not as bad as it could be. I had no muscle separation with any of mine which has been a huge plus in terms of overall recovery. I do have a lot of stretchmarks, but they don't worry me - I'm not in the habit of showing anyone my stomach except dh so it's not an issue. I do have a belly and I do have an overhang, but then I always had a belly - even when I weighed under 70kg I still had a small pot belly because that' what my body shape is. It would be a lot better if I lost the extra 20kg i'm carrying though and maybe that would make it look worse, but meh, it's only skin. There are worse things I'm dealing with atm so a battered looking stomach is the least of my worries.

Hmm interesting thread....

It is hard for me to answer as far as what difference between 2 & 3 because I didn't make it to 'stretchmark territory' with #2 & already had sime from #1 (plus the teenage hip ones!) so even tho I did get a few mire with #3 I think it wouldve happened with #2 if had been a normal gestation itms :dunno: as for what my tummy looks like I still get family/friends/STRANGERS telling I look so good for having 4 children!! Little do they know what myself & dh do about under my clothes lol but I think the skin that 'hangs' when bending over will tighten somewhat if I ever exercise enough to actually give it a work out in between pregnancies haha.

So I wouldn't worry to much ur bodyll do its thing and a couple more stretchmarks isn't enough incentive to not have the baby is like imo :)

I have had 6 babies and with #3 he was a big 'un lol. I got more stretch marks with him but even now after 3 more they are still silver. I had a c/s for #5 so I have the apron (didn't have it before) and it still looks like I'm pregnant 16 months after having the last one. Mind you I don't exercise :blush: so it may improve but I'll always have a saggy belly unless I opt for surgery. Don't get me started on the boobs ;)

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Getting a little worried about what my tummy will look like after I have another baby :(

After DD1 it mostly went back to normal. I didn't get any stretchmarks so my skin was the same. Took about a year for my stomach to get back to normal but it did.

With DD2 I didn't think I got any stretchmarks either but I could see after the birth that I did. I didn't get the red type stretchmarks that you can see, it's just that my skin now resembles crepe paper, lol. It looks normal standing up I think but if I lean over or sit it's all crinkly and my skin is just really thin! I'm ok with it, it's fine, just a bit weird looking. The skin on my boobs looks the same. I think it got seriously stretched with some crazy engorgement! I assume there's nothing I can do to fix the skin??

Anyway, I'm just worried about what will happen after more babies? I want 2 more. There just seemed to be a big change to my body with my second pregnancy, more than with my first. That's a bit scary. Will it get that much worse each time?? What damage will I do?? Or have I done all the damage already and it's already been stretched so it won't get much worse?? Please be the second one! lol.

And is there anything I can do now to prepare for the next pregnancy??

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Interesting topic!

So to try and answer the question-
I think it depends intirely on what body type you have and to some degree how much you exercise/strengthen your stomach muscles.

Re:stretch marks
With baby 1 I only got stretch marks from the labour (none before birth)
No extra stretch marks with baby 2 or 3.
With this pregnancy my stretch marks have lengthened a little as this baby is bigger than any of the others already.
And even now my marks are only silver shadows.

Re: stomach muscles-
I've always been active/sporty.
With baby 1 I was walking everyday, busy all the time etc. With Baby 2 I was ballroom dancing 1-2 times a week until 30+ weeks. Between baby 2 and 3 I was playing netball, then horse riding most days. With baby 3 I was studying at a Uni that was an hrs bus ride away (standing on the Adelaide buses is a workout in and of itself)
After baby 3 my body bounced back super fast (as I was still quite fit) I was back in my pre-pregnancy jeans by 3weeks (don't hate me, it was partially the stress of having a prem that did it)

This pregnancy I've been the least active of all (due to complications) so I didn't know how fast/slow it will bounce back. However I do intend to start playing sports (mostly netball) again either this summer (indoor) or maybe autumn season.

If you can strengthen your core tummy muscles it makes a huge difference.

But like I said I think it depends intirely on what you're body type is.

Best of luck with everything though.

Don't let your body stop you from enjoying more babies. :)


DS1- 2.8kgs 37+4 weeks
DD - 2.9kgs 38+2 weeks
DS2 - 2.7kgs 33+3 weeks
Baby 4 - due sep 14.