Getting Into Shape – After Child Birth

Becoming a mother is a very special, cherished and profoundly fulfilling experience. But pregnancy and childbirth causes a great toll on a woman’s body. On an average most women gain 10-15 kgs during pregnancy. The weight is stored as fatty tissue in the breasts, abdomen, flanks (love handles), hips, lower body, buttocks and thighs. The breast also grows due to weight gain and to prepare for nursing. As the baby grows, so does the abdomen . This may result in weakening and separation of the abdominal muscles and stretching of the abdominal skin. The stretching may cause a breakage in the skin collagen, also known as stretch marks. These unsightly marks are purple red in colour and concentrated around the belly button and the lower abdomen. These effects often become more apparent after child birth and nursing.

Many new moms do lose the excess weight – eventually, unfortunately, the weight loss is not proportional. That means for some, more weight may be lost from the breasts or buttocks than the abdomen or waist.

Today there are a variety of safe bodies contouring cosmetic surgery procedures available for rejuvenation of a woman’s body after childbirth. They are usually a combination of breast reshaping (via breast lifts/ reductions/augmentation), abdominally (tummy tuck) and liposuction of various body areas. They are capable of dramatically changing the body shape and self image.

Every procedure is as unique as the individual mother and needs to be personalized. Knowing your options is the first step in determining what you want to change. Talking to a plastic surgeon will give you an opportunity to ask questions and find out if undergoing body contouring procedures is the right course of action for you. A specialist can suggest options such as Abdominoplasty (surgery of the abdomen with tightening of the muscle layer & removal of excess fat), Liposuction or any other procedure to sculpt your back, hips and smooth the body contours.

Your plastic surgeon can help you devise a personalized body rejuvenation that targets your trouble areas in one or more procedures. When performing the multiple procedures at the same time, recovery period is reduced and there are more chances of a balanced result. Other times, it is best to break the procedures up over more than one day. The patient’s body type and overall health helps our plastic surgeons to determine the best approach.

The body contouring surgeries are usually advised only after waiting for a period of six months or more after having a baby. This gives your body ample time to normalize. It is important to ask yourself certain questions before deciding to have a body contouring procedure:

• Are you done having children? (If not then wait as tightened vertical muscles during abdominoplasty can separate.)
• Are you at a stable weight? (Lose all your baby weight with diet and exercise as it will help maximize results.)
• Are you finished breastfeeding? (If no then wait because the enlarged ducts and increased blood vessel activity of the breast during nursing can increase bleeding and risk of infection.)

Women devote so much of themselves to their children. What feel good is knowing that every sacrifice is worthwhile to keep their family happy and healthy. But sometimes in all that they do, their own well being gets a little lost. It is important for the woman of today to understand that all can be done by taking good care of oneself too. Give yourself a little attention. You deserve it because motherhood is indeed a beautiful experience.