How I Avoided Stretch Marks, Swollen Feet, & Other Pregnancy Problems

Much to my surprise, I actually enjoyed pregnancy. Sure, I complained a bunch because you get tons of sympathy, and who doesn’t want that? But in reality, I really had a smooth nine months and I thank God for that.

I will admit that I am not a “Type A” personality, so I didn’t struggle with constant fear and worry, or spend my days planning everything out. Though it’s easier said than done, not worrying was one of the greatest gifts I gave my mind and body. I didn’t keep a list of “should nots” while I was pregnant. I ate basically everything I typically ate, including sushi and salmon. I ate chocolate. I got my nails done. I didn’t stop using certain makeup or hair products. I got a spray tan. I tried to live life practically the same way I did when I wasn’t pregnant. I didn’t stress about every kick or lack thereof. I prayed, left my deepest fears in God’s hands, and set out to enjoy being pregnant. I knew this would likely be the only pregnancy since we’d lost one and struggled to have this baby. So I wanted to make it count.

Swollen feet. Ankles. Legs. UGH….it looked painful and I knew I didn’t want it happening if I could keep from it. I made it all nine months with only two instances of swelling, and one was on a nine hour roadtrip and the other was on a flight. The swelling promptly went down when I was able to stand, so it lasted a matter of hours. But the rest of my pregnancy, all my shoes fit and my feet never grew a size or swelled. I attribute this to one simple thing: I drank TONS of water. Like, a ridiculous amount of water. I took a Swell bottle with me everywhere and drank and drank and drank. Yes, I had to go to the restroom non-stop. But my body didn’t swell and look or feel discomfort because of it, and it kept my face from becoming overly chubby. Want to avoid swelling too? Water every hour, even when you wake up during the night. Your body will thank you. (And yes, you will spend A LOT of time in the restroom.)

Stretch marks. I have heard these can be genetic, so what I tried may not work for you. (My Mom didn’t have any stretch marks during pregnancy either, so it could actually be genetic.) But in case it isn’t, here is what I did that worked well for me: Sweet Almond Oil. It’s cheap, it’s easy, and it WORKED. I heard about French women using this as their go-to method to prevent stretch marks, so I ordered this bottle of sweet almond oil to try around month four. I ended up needing two full bottles of the oil to make it to nine months, and I slathered it on first thing in the morning and last thing before bed at night. I made sure to coat not only my belly, but the sides and also lower pubic bone area. I didn’t have a single stretch mark, even though I put on 30 pounds. (Plus, I avoided spending money on so many of those expensive stretch mark creams!)

Baby weight. UGH. This is one of the most dreaded things about having a baby, and I expected to leave the hospital much slimmer. It didn’t happen. In fact, I weighed MORE after having the baby than when I was pregnant! They pumped my body full of fluids in the hospital and gave me antibiotics that cause some serious swelling and puffiness. And then it lasted for over THREE weeks! I was shocked. I couldn’t fit into any of my clothes, shoes, or regular underwear. I was starting to think this is what I would look like forever. And though breastfeeding isn’t going to be the right option for every woman, I am here to tell you that breastfeeding coupled with drinking enormous amounts of water became my weight loss catalysts. Breastfeeding burns an insane amount of calories, and though you feel hungry constantly, your body is burning it off pretty quickly. It’s definitely work to breastfeed and the first 2-3 weeks are horribly uncomfortable. I was told the trick is to make up your mind beforehand that you aren’t going to give up, even when it’s so painful that you’re crying through every feed. Coconut oil for moisturization, nipple shields, and lots of gritting your teeth helped me tremendously. Having a lactation consultant, night nanny, or friend to cheer you on (thank you, Monica!) is also key to surviving this stage. I also didn’t eat fattening lactation cookies; I found some oat-based bars and protein cookies instead. My clothes finally fit again within the first month, which felt like a huge win. You can’t slim down without sacrifice, and I’m not as thin now six months later because my son doesn’t breastfeed as often, but I did lose almost all the baby weight I’d gained during pregnancy within a month of giving birth. I can honestly say that breastfeeding has become one of my absolute favorite things to do with my son while he’s little. (Using the breast pump is another story, however. But I’ll take the bad with the good.)

One last piece of advice: keep exercising daily during pregnancy if your doctor has cleared you to. It’s good for you, good for the baby, and will prepare your body for birth, whether naturally or via C-section like I did. It doesn’t have to be anything dramatic, but walking a little every day, riding Peloton and doing the Peloton strength classes with hand weights made me feel stronger. I also started doing “wall push-ups” and stretching as much as I could. Some women are out running 5k’s and doing CrossFit, and kudos to them! I took a less aggressive approach, but stayed active all nine months. I think being in shape before birth enabled my body to recover relatively quickly and jump back into work five weeks after birth.