kitbag Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Hi guys! I am 15 so am still growing, but I have the most awful stretch marks on my hips and the backs of my knees. It's really getting me down and I feel really self concious about wearing shorts or cropped trousers. I don't know what to do - I use Bio Oil, and have been for about 3 months twice a day. Has anybody got any advice? I will post pictures later if I have time or can find a camera! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alis girls Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Bio oils s'pose to be good for stretch marks and scars etc. i think its in most chemists Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Nicola H Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 I do feel for you Kitbag my 18 year old son has them on the tops of his arms, tummy and back and he feels so self concious, he has been using Bio oil for a long time now and he has noticed an improvement they have faded and are not as red.........I hope somebody on the forum has some other suggestions..... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Happy-Mama Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 not sure what is the best thing to suggest, I am currently using bio-oil to try to prevent stretch marks. I have used palmers cocoa butter cream before as a moisturiser (I think some of them claim to prevent stretch marks) as I have quite dry skin but now I use diprobase. I had stretch marks when i was younger but they have now faded into silvery line so not that noticeable, I think that is what happens with most people... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BeckyBoo Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Oh hun, they will fade, promise, and I bet if you looked at a lot of people you'd see that they have them too. It's only when you grow too fast and your skin can't catch up! Not that I'm advocating you staring at the back of everyones knees or thighs, but if you do you'll see loads of people have got them, you just hadn't noticed. And even though yours probably seem really obvious to you, probably "Ooops, word censored!"ody notices yours either. I was going to suggest cocoa butter but I think that those oils really only help improve the suppleness of your skin, not necessarily improve the ones that are there - time will do that all by itself BeckyBoo Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Looney Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 I have stretch marks too on my thighs and the backs of my knees. They do fade. Sooooo many of my friends have stretch marks - we're all different so we have them in different places. Some on their tummy, some on their boobs, some on their arms.... you name it, we've got it! No idea how to really reduce the appearance but moisturising can't do any harm! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Olly Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 they will fade, just as BeckyBoo says it's your skin not keeping up with you growing ... it's a horrible shock I know, when you realise your perfect body is letting you down! They are probably not nearly as obvious to others as they are to you. Bio Oil is good, keep using it - they will fade. I know that feeling though, can still remember when I first discovered them Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
theherd123 Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Stretchmarks are such a pain arent they?! As well as the Bio Oil have you thought about taking a supplement like Oil of Evening Primrose as thats very good for the skin? Obviously you'll need to speak to your parents about adding a supplement into your diet but it may help Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feleena4 Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Hi Megan, Advice from an old wrinkly (40 year old!) I can remember my first stretch marks behind my knees and inside my thighs...I was 15 and exercising in my bedroom when I first spotted them! They were purple but soon faded to silvery lines. Over the years I have used all sorts of cream and oils but I've come to the conclusion that you can't really prevent them completely because some peoples skin is less elastic than others and then stretch marks will occur. It doesn't help with all these air-brushed celebs in every magazine! Believe me, boyfriends/partners don't see them like we do! Once your hormones settle down you shouldn't have too many more. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kitbag Posted July 7, 2009 Author Share Posted July 7, 2009 Thanks for your replies guys! I had shown them to a couple friends and they told me that they are the worst they have ever seen. I must be honest, I hadn't noticed them before really, although I knew they were there. I only showed them because one caught a glimpse whilst trying on clothes in town! I wish I had been more careful now! Feleena4 - I completly agree with you about the airbrushing in magazines! It drives me mad to see all that fakery! Theherd123 - I think I will talk to my Mum about those supplements! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
feleena4 Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Megan, your friends have high-lighted an imperfection you didn't seem aware of before. If these friends of yours are around your age, then they cannot have seen too many people to give a balanced opinion! I saw a girl at my ante-natal class years ago and her stretch marks were so deep and covered so much of her body that she looked like she'd been run over by a tractor! But she didn't give a hoot and showed off her belly with pride Please don't be embarrassed about them and hopefully your friends will keep their comments to themselves! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Snowy Posted July 7, 2009 Share Posted July 7, 2009 Oh Hun, that wasn't a nice thing for your friend to say - if they are the worst she's seen, she probably hasn't seen very many We ALL get them, no way of avoiding them (the oils help but don't prevent them). Their turn will come, so take no notice and don't listen to them! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cinnamon Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 Megan, have you ever seen 'Shirley Valentine'? If not, you must watch it now.....look out for the love scene on the boat We all have them, my eldest has them on her hips.....they do fade from that dark colour to a silvery sort of colour & I know how horrid they can make you feel. I have read that some peoples skin is just more prone to them than others, so keep plugging away with the Bio Oil & try not to get too down about it PS - Girls can be horrible to each other,just try to ignore her. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Alis girls Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 I'm sure your friend has something shes hung up about, it makes her feel better going on about something you worry about. I think its better to keep stum about anything as people can latch on and torment you about it. No ones perfect and I assume youre a teenager - believe me my 13 yr old son is always moaning about something - his mo"Ooops, word censored!"row, hairy legs you name it hes got it. To me hes perfect Enjoy these years, get your mom to get you the oil and get on with life. You sound a lovely sensitive person and beauty comes from within. forget you stretch marks, and any other things. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Looney Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 Yup, not the best comment to hear from a friend! We are all programmed to believe that these "imperfections" are dreadful and unsightly and something to be ashamed of......yet the majority of women I know have stretch marks. Hmmm, figure that one out! And my friends and I are all different shapes and sizes, so it doesn't mean that stretch marks are a reflection of being too fat either... ...it's a strange world we live in Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
girlsmum Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 Hi Kitbag Please dont worry about your stretch marks. No one notices these things as much as you expect them to. Stretch marks occur during puberty when the body grows as well as in pregnancy and with weight gain. They are normal and incredibly common. As a massage therapist i see lots of bodies of all shapes and sizes. It is very rare that i massage anyone without stretch marks - male or female. Many men get them during puberty and have then across the hips and waist, the calves and the tops of the arms/shoulders. They do fade and become less obvious. As other people have said you can use bio oil and cocoa butter to improve the appearance. Celebrate your body and focus on all the good things it can do Girlsmum Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aunty e Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 I got them on my hips and boobs at your age, and they faded very quickly to silvery, almost indistinguishable lines. "Ooops, word censored!"ody has ever noticed them, not even my husband, so don't worry at all! It takes a bit of time for the colour to fade, and you're doing exactly the right thing by massaging them twice a day as it's the action of encouraging circulation as much as the bio oil which helps the skin to patch itself up. Not a very nice thing for your friend to say, but try not to let it get to you, it's the nature of teenagers to find something to pick on about each other. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jules. Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 I thought I was the only person in the world to have stretch marks on the back of my knees before reading this thread. I got them when I was in my early teens too, & would always wear school skirts that were calf length to hide them, & I hated PE skirts with a passion. I can't write anything that will make you feel better about them other than what everyone else has written, and the marks do fade. Bio oil wasn't around when I was a teen, but I'm using it on my pregnancy stretch marks & it works really well If you're using it now it can do nothing but help & be good for you. The worst bit about any "imperfections" is the psychological effect they have, I have a triple whammy of bad legs- stretch marks, bandy legs and a big scar on my right knee from a bad gash I got when I was 10. In this world we are led to believe that any imperfections are a bad thing, but let me tell you that my husband doesn't notice at all any of these 3 things about my legs which I think are wrong with them- he really doesn't. Sending you (((hugs))) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bronze Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 I have them everwhere too I found that it was coincidence that bio oil seemed to fade them. They just fade over time anyway. Plus bio oil is pretty dear. I now just use hemp oil but I use it to moisturise anyway. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jules. Posted July 8, 2009 Share Posted July 8, 2009 Bron , Bio oil is dirt cheap in Home & Bargain Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...