If you’re reading this article because you are expecting, congratulations! Pregnancy, especially early pregnancy, is a time when you have a lot of concerns and questions. If you already have a tattoo or several, you may be wondering about how they will be affected by your pregnancy.
The good news is that there is no evidence that tattoos that were already present will have any effect on the pregnancy or breastfeeding after the birth.
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The bad news is that being pregnant will probably affect your tattoo.
This information is intended as a guide only, and your individual experience may vary.
During pregnancy, your body changes. You’ll gain weight: apparently the “bump,” but your breasts will probably get at least a cup size more significant, as well. Many women suffer from swollen feet and ankles, especially in the last trimester, and it’s not uncommon to gain weight on other areas of your body as well.
Even if you only achieve a healthy amount of weight, your body shape is changing to accommodate your new baby.
This means that tattoos are stretched with your skin. This can leave them looking spread merely out, or it can seriously distort them so that they are no longer recognizable. Depending on where your tattoo is and the size and design of it, as well as how much weight you gain in that area, it may change only a little bit or a whole lot.
If it’s only stretched a little, on your ankle, for example, it will probably go back to normal in the months after the birth. If it is spread more dramatically though, like tattoos on your tummy, it is quite likely that the tattoo will never look the same again, even if you lose the baby weight.
Sometimes they seem to fare better than others.
One factor that will affect the pregnant and post-pregnancy state of your tattoo is whether or not you get stretch marks. Some women (like me) get stretch marks all up their stomach during pregnancy.
Some women don’t get any. It can help to rub oil and lotion into your skin, but there’s no dependable way to avoid stretch marks.
It has to do with genetics, how much weight you gain, the position of the baby, how quickly your bump grows, etc. Stretch marks, although they fade over time, are permanent.
So if you get stretch marks going through your tattoos, they will probably never look the same. It is worth regularly moisturizing any existing tattoos during pregnancy to try to avoid stretch marks or other damage to your skin.
It’s not all bad news for you expecting moms with tattoos, though.
Some tattoos will make it through looking the same. This is especially likely if they are located somewhere like the back of your shoulder.
Even ones that do look different during your pregnancy may look better after your baby is born and you’ve returned to your more normal shape. If your tattoo does resemble a bad afterward, don’t just despair.
You can still either look into having it removed, or visit a good tattoo artist and talk to them about correcting it.
Let`s see some good ideas with mom tattoos now!
Source of images: Bing
