When I got pregnant I was convinced that anti stretch mark products didn't work and that nothing I did would prevent stretch marks. Despite this I faithfully applied my anti stretch mark products twice a day. I can now say that they work. The reason I say this is because the only place I didn't apply my anti stretch mark products is my bum and that's the only place I got stretch marks. Considering my stomach stretched a lot more than my bum did and it remains stretch mark free, I can confidently say that anti stretch mark products really do work.
I used a combination of different products. During the day I'd use an oil as I found they absorbed quickly and at night I'd use my Palmer's Belly Butter. I used this at night as it's super hydrating and takes a while to sink in. This isn't a product that I could apply and then put clothes over the top straight away.
The products that I used are: Palmer's Belly Butter, Tinderbox's Pregnancy Oil, Belli Elasticity Belly Oil and Bio Oil.
I used Bio Oil in the first few months of my pregnancy. It was great because it's odourless and did a great job of getting rid of the itchies.
Once I finished my Bio Oil I switched to Belli Elasticity Belly Oil. This was another great product. I tried using it earlier in my pregnancy and found it gave me a rash, but once I got to sixteen weeks I could use it with no problems. It has a lovely, light lavender scent that I really liked. Another great thing is that it comes in a pump bottle, which is a brilliant idea as oils can get rather messy.
If you want to try this, don't buy it in Australia. To purchase it in Australia costs $78 (AUD), however to purchase from the US (I bought mine from Skincare Rx) you only pay $38.60 (USD).
For the last few months of my pregnancy I used Tinderbox Pregnancy Oil. This has a very soft, subtle scent that I really liked. I found it to be just as good as the Belli oil and it only costs $18. It comes in a screw top bottle so I decanted it into the Belli bottle so that I could use the pump top as it was much easier.
I liked all of these products and believe they all worked really well for me. If I was to get pregnant again I'd probably use the Palmers Belly Butter and Tinderbox Pregnancy Oil because they're reasonably priced and easy to get hold of.
My MIL swore by olive oil. She had four boys and only got stretch marks on her bum! (Where she didn't put any oil).
ReplyDeleteShe passed the tip onto me and I rub my whole body in olive oil after my shower each day. 8 1/2 weeks away from having bubba #2 and I'm still stretch mark free.
Another tip (from MIL), is continue to use the creams/oils on your boobs if you're breastfeeding. As they can get stretch marks after pregnancy from the change in size :)
I used bio oil on the belly/bum an didnt get any stretch marks there but then stopped after i had the bub and my boobs got destroyed by breast feeding - at one stage they looked like they were covered in zebra print they were so stripy...but then i didnt like putting anything on them as i didnt like rubbing it on my sons face when he fed.
ReplyDeleteI got the breastfeeding stretch marks too. Wish I'd known about the olive oil trick. The oils that I had said that they weren't suitable for use when breastfeeding, so I didn't use anything.
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