Pregnancy and herbs part 4. stretch marks, how herbs can help

Stretch marks are a common skin concern that many individuals experience, particularly during pregnancy, rapid growth in puberty, or significant weight gain. These marks occur due to the stretching of collagen and elastin fibers in the skin, leading to visible lines or streaks on the skin's surface. The marks of this stretching most commonly show on the belly but can also appear on the breasts, buttocks, thighs, low back and hips.

When growing a baby, women may experience a common skin condition known as striae gravidarum, or more commonly referred to as pregnancy stretch marks. These marks can develop gradually over time, but in some cases, they can seemingly appear overnight, taking many by surprise. The marks initially start off as being bright purple or red, but they do eventually fade and, after some years eventually appear as silvery white streaks.

During pregnancy, the body undergoes a series of hormonal changes that are essential for the growth and development of the baby. One of the key hormones involved in this process is relaxin, which, combined with increased levels of progesterone, plays a crucial role in preparing the body for childbirth, make the tissues much softer and more flexible. This is so that they can stretch to accommodate the growth and eventual birth of a baby, but it can also lead to more stretching of the skin than would be preferred and the stretch marks themselves are caused by tearing of the outer layer of the skin, the dermis.

You cannot remove an existing stretch mark, but you can do things to prevent or at least reduce them and, as with any kind of skin care internal and external approach works best.

 

Internal healing

Herbal medicines have been used by all cultures throughout history for the simple reason that they really help. Certain herbs are renowned at improving the general health of a woman during pregnancy and what can be seen is that, as well as being extremely safe, they share a quality of being exceptionally nourishing.

Pregnancy tea formula was posted in one of previous pregnancy post and will have perfect use here, as internal healing formula.

 

Nutrition and hydration

When it comes to preventing or reducing stretch marks, there are two crucial areas of diet to focus on. The first and most important step is to ensure you stay properly hydrated. During pregnancy, the body undergoes significant changes, producing more blood and other tissues. If you do not increase your fluid intake accordingly, you may unknowingly experience mild dehydration, which can have a negative impact on your skin.

So how do you know how much water (or cups of tea etc.) you must drink? Listen to your body. If you can go more than 2 hours without needing to have a decent 'pee' you are dehydrated. If you are needing to go more than once an hour, you are overdoing it and unnecessarily stressing your kidneys. A good outflow every 1-2 hours is the sweet spot and to get into that zone you will need to vary your fluid intake according to the weather, the humidity and how active you are.

The second area is to make sure you are getting enough proteins and fats. Sugar is essential for energy (though many people eat more than they need in the form of bread, pasta, rice etc.) but protein and fat are essential for the growth of your baby and the adaptation of your own body and skin to the growth of the pregnancy.

For a host of reasons, including preventing stretch marks, a pregnant woman needs to eat foods that contain plenty of healthy fats and proteins. She should, of course, eat to her preferences, but this includes nuts and seeds, eggs, avocados, dairy products, meat, fish and chicken.

External healing

Taking care of the internal health with good food, hydration and herbal medicine is more than half the battle. If these things are in place, there is every likelihood that the body will respond very well to some nourishing oils and herbs that are applied on the outside as well.

There are a great many skin-care products that are readily available for purchase. I can't recommend any personally but quite few of them are well made with good, safe ingredients and many women will prefer to get something ready-made.

Recipe for the healing oil that follows does require some time and effort to make, and it is just an example. However, these are ingredients that are readily available, the process of making such a preparation is rewarding and I am certain that this would be as good as anything made commercially, and better than the great majority of products out there.

Healing oil

Coconut Oil 50 ml

Cocoa butter 50g

Almond oil 12 ml

Apricot oil 12 ml

Beeswax pellets 12 ml

Vitamin E oil 6ml

Lanolin ½ - 1 tsp

The method of preparation is super simple. Just add all ingredients except the vitamin E oil into a glass bowl or jug. Place the bowl into a saucepan to which you have added enough water to create a gentle heat underneath the bowel. As if you were going to lightly steam some vegetables. As the bowl starts to heat up, gently stir the ingredients together. Some will immediately blend and some, e.g. the cocoa butter and the beeswax, will take some time and stirring to melt. When it has all combined together, take off the heat and then stir in the vitamin E oil as both a preservative and a healing agent in its own. Pour or ladle into any suitable containers and label them clearly.

The smaller or larger amount of Lanolin will make it more or less sticky on the skin, the smaller or larger amount of beeswax will make it a little firmer or more liquid, so go with what you think you might prefer. Place for your experimenting and create one fits you best.

Extras optional do healing oil

Adding some essential oils will make this oil rather lovely to use and will have their own added benefits. If you already know oils quite well, including what you like, then you could add up to 1 ml of any one or more essential oils to the above formula. If you aren't sure, or are open to experimentation, I would recommend having several oils on hand and to simply add a few drops to the oil when you are ready to use it. Lavender oil can be highly recommended, but it is not to everyone's preference. Any of the citrus oils Orange, Mandarin, Bergamot, Tangerine should be very pleasant to use. Advice in this matter is to 'follow your nose!'. The oils that you are drawn to and enjoy the most are the best ones to use, and you are allowed to change your mind as you go, especially whilst in the great journey of change itself that is a pregnancy!

Infusing the Almond and/or Apricot oils with Calendula blossoms would make this an even more healing preparation for preventing or reducing stretch marks. How to make infused oil you can find in my blog about herbs in post herbal preparations.

 

Application

Whether you make an your own extraordinary preparation like the Healing oil above, or you get some other rich, oily and natural product to use, the method of application is as much important as what's in it.

Every day, you need to make a ritual of rubbing your belly, breasts and any other part that is getting well and truly stretched. Take a few minutes with it and don't be in any hurry to get up and going right away afterwards. A large part of the 'medicine' is about allowing your body to stretch and accommodate to the great changes that are happening within it. The more you can consciously relax into, and be with, this change the easier it will be to navigate it.

You can be sure of the benefits of the above approaches, but there can be no guarantee that stretch marks can be completely prevented. Some pregnancies push more skin out in certain ways than others. Some skin can stretch more than others without tearing.

Doing any of the above will help, doing all of it will help a great deal but if, despite your great efforts, some stretch marks still come anyway, I hope that you will think about something found up from one of the great woman's herbals I read not so long ago “that those silvery lines are the the necklaces that adorn a woman who has gone through the great journey of motherhood and now has the jewels to show for it”.

 

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