Body changes after baby

[Anonymous]

My body didn't change too much but I never had a great belly to ruin.. was always skinny with a small pooch.

2 kids, youngest is 3, i am back to my Xs size, my rib caged expanded and changed my bra size as other mentioned but I feel like it is slowly getting back to normal. I am fitting again in my older bras.

What has unfortunately been impacted the most is down there I feel like there is a permanent opening in my vagina. TMI: when I wipe I can feel that my inner lips are way too parted. Plus my pelvic floor is weaker (no trampoline for me). Trying to remember to do kegels regularly ...

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:My body didn't change too much but I never had a great belly to ruin.. was always skinny with a small pooch.

2 kids, youngest is 3, i am back to my Xs size, my rib caged expanded and changed my bra size as other mentioned but I feel like it is slowly getting back to normal. I am fitting again in my older bras.

What has unfortunately been impacted the most is down there I feel like there is a permanent opening in my vagina. TMI: when I wipe I can feel that my inner lips are way too parted. Plus my pelvic floor is weaker (no trampoline for me). Trying to remember to do kegels regularly ...

I'm the PP before you, and I didn't comment on down there because I don't want to even think about it... but let's just say it didn't fare any better!!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I was in awesome shape before kids (in early 30s). Naturally slim, very toned, fit. I had no idea how good I looked.

Now, I don't even recognize myself. Literally. I avoid photos like the plague and refuse to buy anything that doesn't come from Walmart because I just can't accept that this is my actual body now. I'm in total shock. I have literally no idea what bra size I am, I just wear a shelf bra top. I think my boobs are a bit bigger (I did breastfeed for a long time if that matters) and my rib cage is way bigger. And clothes size... I do know that I used to get size M (or even S) everything and now the best fit is usually XL. I've had 2 kids and I think I weigh as much now as I did when I walked in to give birth.

It's just the sheer exhaustion dealing with little boys, one with demanding SN and both who still don't sleep through the night. DH takes one at night and I take one. He can't take both because he needs to work and would be a total zombie otherwise.

My doc says blood work isn't bad but she can tell that my problem is stress related and not to do with eating. If people eat too much then they're fat everywhere but almost all of my fat is in my stomach. I look 6-7 months pregnant.

I think money would help a lot though, for people with tons of money to throw at things like nanny, food prep help, etc. And for those with money to spend on a night nurse.... I think that's the key, honestly. Sleep makes everything better, and lack of sleep for long periods (especially combined with other stresses in life) makes people fat.

Hang in there PP. the belly fat you describe seems indeed to be a good sign of a very inflamed body. Stress and lack of sleep will definitely do that.. how old are your kids and how bad are the SN issues? You will be able to get your body back once you sleep better..

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My small boobs got even smaller.

SAME. Omg they're seriously tiny

+1 I am essentially a pre-teen after 3 babies. Rest of my body is smaller too. I was thin to begin with, gained around 15-20 pounds with each baby; was at my skinniest point around the 6 month mark postpartum (thanks to breastfeeding). I always exercised, but added in a lot more weights/abs after pregnancy, which tightened my stomach right up.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:Maybe this is a silly, obvious question - but how did your body change after having a baby, and was the change "permanent"?

I am a healthy, 31-year old mom of a 19 month old. I've always been active and was a healthy, normal weight before pregnancy. Fast forward to now - I still work out and eat well most of the time. I've lost all but 3 lbs of the "baby weight" but I feel like my body is just different. Is this typical? Does your body (not weight, necessarily) ever go back to the way it was before having kids? Does it happen with time/exercise or not at all?

No thing as a silly question, but

OP here - I can take the joke. I SAID it was an obvious, silly question.

Really I just want to feel better about saying "see ya!" to my pre-baby body. The world puts a lot of pressure on women to look like their pre-baby selves so I was looking for some validation that yes, it's OK to look a bit different now, and no, it doesn't mean you're not working out hard enough or eating well enough just because you're still a few pounds up and a few inches out

I'm sorry to say it, but you do not have to accept your post-baby body as a reality - you can change it (ok, maybe not an enlarged rib cage or tiny boobs - unless you want to get enlarged). Even a c-section shelf (which I have, after three c-sections) can be addressed with the right exercises.

However, of course it's fine to be happy with the way you look after a baby, but know that you have the ability and power to change, if you make it a priority!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My small boobs got even smaller.

SAME. Omg they're seriously tiny

+1 I am essentially a pre-teen after 3 babies. Rest of my body is smaller too. I was thin to begin with, gained around 15-20 pounds with each baby; was at my skinniest point around the 6 month mark postpartum (thanks to breastfeeding). I always exercised, but added in a lot more weights/abs after pregnancy, which tightened my stomach right up.

NP and this was my change as well. My breasts shrank after breastfeeding to a full size smaller than they had been pre pregnancy. I had breast augmentation and along with Lasik, it's one of the best medical decisions I've ever made!

[Anonymous]

My ribcage also got bigger and none of my old shirts or dresses ever fit right again.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Your lucky husbands.

Wow.. if my lucky husband has carried our baby amd his body changed I would love his new body too.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My small boobs got even smaller.

SAME. Omg they're seriously tiny

+1 I am essentially a pre-teen after 3 babies. Rest of my body is smaller too. I was thin to begin with, gained around 15-20 pounds with each baby; was at my skinniest point around the 6 month mark postpartum (thanks to breastfeeding). I always exercised, but added in a lot more weights/abs after pregnancy, which tightened my stomach right up.

+1
And my right side is uneven. So, not only am i an A cup (if that), the little breast tissue I have is uneven. I wear a pre teen sports bra bc nohingelse fits.

The price I paid for bfing 4 kids

[Anonymous]

My ribcage got wider and I felt like my teeth changed. A bit more spacing and an overbite.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:My small boobs got even smaller.

SAME. Omg they're seriously tiny

+1 I am essentially a pre-teen after 3 babies. Rest of my body is smaller too. I was thin to begin with, gained around 15-20 pounds with each baby; was at my skinniest point around the 6 month mark postpartum (thanks to breastfeeding). I always exercised, but added in a lot more weights/abs after pregnancy, which tightened my stomach right up.

+1
And my right side is uneven. So, not only am i an A cup (if that), the little breast tissue I have is uneven. I wear a pre teen sports bra bc nohingelse fits.

The price I paid for bfing 4 kids

Seriously: I didn't think it was possible for my boobs to get any smaller. I was wrong! And I have broad shoulders, too, so it feels very noticeable.

Beyond that, though, I feel lucky that my body is mostly the same. I'm naturally fairly muscular and also have a long torso, both of which I think helped, if in different ways. I also work out damn hard, which doesn't hurt.

[Anonymous]

My babies are now 13 and 10. My body is back to how it was pre baby. Probably better as I now have time for exercise. I didn’t even have them particularly young. I was 35 when I had my youngest. It was definitely a mess while they were toddlers. Small children are so exhausting - we had limited money, I got no sleep, I was working full time.

Hang in there - it really does get better.

[Anonymous]

Well, I’ve had 6 so where to start?

[Anonymous]

I had a baby at 36. Before that, I was 5'8" and about 140 my entire life. Gained 54 lbs during the pregnancy. Lost all but 5 of it by 5 months post-partum.

My boobs got a bit smaller, which sucked because I was barely a B cup before. My rib cage expanded and some of my shirts no longer fit. I don't fit into most of my pre-pregnancy jeans so I had to buy new ones - in the same size, weirdly. My feet got a tiny bit larger.

The post-40 metabolism shift hit me hard and I gained 13 lbs in 4 months. Thyroid is sluggish. So I've kind of resigned myself to being 150+ for the foreseeable future.

[Anonymous]

First at 31, second at 34. Currently 9 months PP with #2. I'm 5'6 and same exact weight as when I conceived (124) but body feels very different. Way more flabby, especially my stomach. I had a big perky booty which is definitely flatter now. My C cups went to saggy B's. Stretch marks on my hips, a varicose vein behind my knee. Lost a ton of hair post-partum with my second, which is slooowwwllly re-growing but looks insane because it's sticking STRAIGHT up around my temples and part where the new growth is sprouting.

My husband wants a third. Me, not so much. Not sure I want to find out what's gonna happen with another pregnancy!