Hi all, I'm new here.

From 1999-2003 I gained up to 50 lb due mostly to my medication but also of course overeating, no exercise. In 2003 I lost about 25 lb. Sure I had a few stretch marks but nothing to get too upset over.

Then in 2004 I gained back 30 lb.

Since 2005 until now I have lost 40 lb. NOW I have horrible stretch marks, and they pretty much all came out after about the 30 lb mark. UNLESS they were there all along and I didn't care or didn't notice.

Of course I am devastated. My boobs, calves and front of thighs were entirely free up until about Xmas 2005 when I noticed them after losing the 30 lb.

Now I stare at them in disbelief and anger and curse myself for gaining the weight the second time which I believe my skin just couldn't handle and hence the stretch marks.

I am:
* excerising 3x weekly (cardio 40 min/weights 15 min)
* water, water, water
* TONS of supplements including Omega 3 fatty acids, Vitamin E, etc.
* rubbing creams, lotions, emu/rosehip oil, massaging, dry skin brushing

I don't want to seem rude but I am sooo devastated and frustrated and I don't want to hear:
* they are battle scars, badges of honor, whatever
* self-tanner will help the appearance - it doesn't, in fact I believe it makes them stand out more

My question is....will they get worse with the next 20 lb loss? Will I get more? The ones on the front of my thigh seem to be creeping downwards - I'm afriad I'll end up at 140 lb with them all the way down to my knees!!! Has this ever happened to anyone?

Thank you all!!!

Hi ChoirGirl and welcome!

My dermatologist told me that if the stretch marks are red and new, there's a prescription cream that can help (sorry, I don't remember the name). She said if they're older and silver, there isn't anything that helps.

It might be worth checking with your doctor?

Hi again,

Just to mention - my stretch marks are ALL white/silver. I have never ever had a red one in my life! Wierd huh. Even my new ones are white.

Hmm, she explained to me that new stretch marks are red, but apparently not so in your case! I still think it might be worth checking with your doctor because she said that stretch marks can be treated if you catch them within something like nine months. Mine were all too old to be treated, unfortunately.

I googled it and it looks like the cream she was talking about is Retin-A. Hope that helps!

Yeah, that may work, I will ask about it. Thanks!

But the question about the creeping down? I mean, I have never seen anyone with stretch marks ALL THE WAY down the front of their thigh to their knee!! Please god don't let me be the first one

I've found that my stretch marks are getting -more- apparent as I lose weight. The fact that they aren't red and new means they aren't exactly "new", just newly seen. Basically, when you've got excess weight, the stretch marks aren't as obvious, because they are backed up with all that fat. When you lose, they lose their fat backing and become more obvious with sagging skin. So these are probably old stretch marks that you're only seeing now, at least by my experience.

That means that they may get worse looking as you lose the next 20 lbs, but they shouldn't get any longer than they already are. Its not like losing weight gives you -new- marks, it just makes the old marks more apparent.

Well, I happen to agree with you, but I have read that people actually develop new stretch marks as they lose weight because their skin is changing. That really doesn't make sense to me, but it doesn't make sense that I am seeing all these new ones now.

If they were there before, at least they would be very faint when I was fat and now more prominent, but it seems like they were never there before and I'm just seeing them now.
All in all, it's very devastating and I'm kicking myself for gaining that weight in the first place.

They will fade in time...but will never completely go away. I have them too. It's just one of those things we will have to live with. You can buy creams to make them less noticable...but they will still be there. Good luck!

I actually have ones in my inner thigh (and they are REALLY faded ~ because I got them when I was 9 or 10) and they extend all the way down to behind my knees and my upper calves. And I actually have a few right at the top of my knees and that's something I never seen on anyone before ever. Don't worry about them though, all women get them. I remember the SKINNIEST cheerleaders in high school would have them on their hips and lower backs. And it's a MIRACLE for a woman to have a baby and not get any. The majority of women have them and those who don't are the lucky minority.

If they are faded/silvery-then they are NOT new marks. They are just "newly seen". I can use current pregnancy as a perfect example of this.

When you actually "get" the stretch marks...it is because weight gain or pregnancy stretches your skin out past the point of its natural elasticity. It is simply a "tear" in the outer skin...almost like a "runner" in a pair of pantyhose.
When you are still fat, or still pregnant-the tear happens over skin that is pulled very tight/taut over the fat or pregnancy-simply because this is what causes them in the first place. Because the skin is so taut-the ridges and the color are not as noticeable until AFTER the pregnancy is over...or after you have lost some weight and the skin isn't stretched out so much any longer.

Right now I have avoided all but a couple of new marks with this baby-but the coupel new ones that I have are *slightly* pink in tint. Once this baby is born and the skin isn't as tightly pulled-the pink and the ridge will be more "apparent".

If you have a balloon around the house somewhere-write something on it in a black Sharpie marker. Then blow it up. When the balloon is deflated, the mark is darker black like when you wrote it...but when you blow it up taut, the mark isn't quite as dark-it is darker and more striking when the balloon is deflated. The same with pantyhose. The "feel" of the ridginess/texture in the hose is smoother when you are wearing them, and they are stretched taut over your leg. The "ridgy" feel is more apparent when you take them off.

It is VERY common to think that the marks were caused by losing the weight...but actually they are caused by the stretching/gaining of the weight-they just become more noticeable as you LOSE it and they aren't stretched so tight.

You should have seen my face the day AFTER I had my first baby when I saw my tummy and hips in the mirror. I thought I had done well with the marks until the "baby was out" and then I saw the real damage.

I've now lost 40 lbs too, and just yesterday I discovered new stretch marks. They keep popping up evey single week as I lose weight. I am not worried about them though, I know they were caused because of my weight gain and that will be here after i am done losing weight. For now I am focused on getting the weight off, and will surely find ways to deal with them later. Thankfully I don't really have them in areas that show, and if they do show, so what, most women, even the skinny ones have them!

I have had stretch marks all my life, so it's not really a thing of "oh my god what the h*ll are these things!" And I know so many other people have them, but honestly all I see (especially now as it's summer) are these beautiful women that have smooth perfect tan skin with not a stretch mark in sight, and I want to cry that they are so lucky - and they probaby don't even know how lucky they are. I used to think "oh, once I get this weight off I can't wait to wear a bathing suit or shorts" and now I feel like I still can never do that. What would it be like to just put on a pair of shorts and have normal nice legs and feel comfortable? What would it be like to even feel like "damn I have nice legs in these shorts".

I feel like I'm mourning my old body where I could actually do these things, and I never knew how lucky I was. Now I'm screwed because of my stupidity. For LIFE.

Now, just to point out - I know I am lucky to be alive, there are people out there with WAY worse things and I know this, and I think about it. But once in awhile I just want to wallow in self pity and write these things to get them out.

Thanks everyone....

PS - While losing weight, make sure you moisturize LOTS all over your body and take lots of Omega 3 fatty acids! Oh, and skin brush! the skin brushign has really firmed up my legs so nicely - it works!

What is skin brushing?

Just because we have stretch marks, why CAN'T we wear shorts and feel good about ourselves?

I think so much of this journey is about learning to like my body and treat it well. I know that I won't look like a model at the end of it, but darn it, I will wear shorts and short sleeves and even a bathing suit and if I have stretch marks, well, so be it.

Choirgirl~I understand your frustration! Fortunately for me, the stretch marks I have are on my belly from very big babies, BUT, I do have spider veins on my left leg (just below shin on front and then all across front of my ankle) that are purple! Regardless of how much weight I lose, that will not change on its own, therefore no shorts for me either. Maybe someday I will look into laser surgery for that, we will see. I beat myself up often over gaining weight that caused that problem, but the only thing that I can do about it now is get the weight off and worry about a fix for those vanity issues later.

Heather~I commend you for your confidence, I need to work on that!