'No, of course not!' I replied, 'it must be eczema or something'. I couldn't see very well as it was on the underside of my bump, but I had a quick look at it didn't seem too bad so I didn't pay much attention, convinced that I wasn't going to get stretch marks since I'd never really had a very flat stomach (despite numerous attempts to try and tone it!) and always been able to stick it out making it look I was pregnant long before I ever was! This must mean my skin is already quite stretchy so why would I get stretch marks? After all, there must be some benefit to not having a flat stomach right???
Unfortunately my theory was totally wrong as by week 41, despite continued application of the cream, the dark redish purple stripes had spread all over each side of my bump, and once the pregnancy was over, and I was left with a huge scar and stretched sagging skin... I was feeling a lot less positive about the whole 'pregnant bodies can be beautiful/sexy too' attitude and more thinking 'aargh my stomach is like a deflated stripey balloon! *sob*.
Alhamdulillah my cute little baby did take my mind off it a lot, and, even though I really did not want a c-section and still wish I hadn't had to have it, I am very grateful to have such a beautiful baby. However, this doesn't mean I don't want to just leave things the way they are! So after the birth I continued to apply Palmer's cream until it ran out about 3 weeks ago so I went to Boots to look for some more. I decided to try out something different. Perhaps Palmer's cream had made a difference and they would have been worse without it, but I didn't have much faith in it at this point! I'd heard that Bio-oil was supposed to be amazing so thought I'd try that. However, I found that it was only one of many different products available for stretch marks and scars. I decided to buy Cussons Stretch Mark The main reason was because the Cussons looked so much easier to apply! I've tried using oils on my skin before and I always get fed up when it gets on my clothes/drips onto the carpet/the bottle gets all greasy/you have to wait for a long time for it to be absorbed/you hands get all greasy etc. I wanted something easy so that I could keep using it for a long time without any hassle (trust me, when you have a new baby the last thing you want is another thing to do every day!).
So, finally, onto the review! I really like this product! I love the applicator - it's a smal metal roller which means you can apply the serum directly to the areas you need to and massage it in with the roller (I tend to roll it back and forth around 20 times for each application). The metal feels nice and cool against your skin and you don't have to waste any on your hands. It's a serum rather than an oil so it doesn't drip or spill or anything, it moisturises and absorbs quite easily. It also smells nice. I've been using it twice a day for 3 weeks (almost!), I leave it out by my bed so I won't forget and my stretch marks and scar definitely seem to be paler. The redness has reduced a lot and in the bedroom light I can hardly see my stretch marks any more. Even my husband has noticed, which must be a good thing!
Whether my stretch marks have faded due to the serum or it would have happened anyway is question I can't answer, but it says on the bottom they've done some proper trials on this product which have shown results, and I have no reason to disagree. I figure it must be doing some good to moisturise and massage my skin regularly.
My stomach has also gone down a lot since giving birth and now I look back to normal when I have clothes on. I've been exclusively breastfeeding since Isa was born so I'm sure this has something to do with it. Unfortunately my skin is still stretched and my abs are not exactly in great shape having done no exercise for months and months (my plan of antenatal exercise sadly failed, but at least I had an excuse then since I worked full time up till 39 weeks!). I
am well past the '6 week post csection' mark now (my baby is 14 weeks!) so now I really need to start working on core conditioning exercises, and exercises in general! I want to get back in shape and also help my muscles to recover from being cut into, especially if I want to try for more children in the future inshaAllah. I've been meaning to do so every day since week 7 but so far haven't had the motivation to really get started so that's the next step! But yes, using this product is definitely a good thing! And now I'm going to work on my next goal - going to bed early!!!
Summary
Pros :)
My stomach has also gone down a lot since giving birth and now I look back to normal when I have clothes on. I've been exclusively breastfeeding since Isa was born so I'm sure this has something to do with it. Unfortunately my skin is still stretched and my abs are not exactly in great shape having done no exercise for months and months (my plan of antenatal exercise sadly failed, but at least I had an excuse then since I worked full time up till 39 weeks!). I
am well past the '6 week post csection' mark now (my baby is 14 weeks!) so now I really need to start working on core conditioning exercises, and exercises in general! I want to get back in shape and also help my muscles to recover from being cut into, especially if I want to try for more children in the future inshaAllah. I've been meaning to do so every day since week 7 but so far haven't had the motivation to really get started so that's the next step! But yes, using this product is definitely a good thing! And now I'm going to work on my next goal - going to bed early!!!
Summary
Pros :)
- Ease of application
- Reduces appearance of scars and stretch marks
Cons :(
- None!
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