Last night I was talking to a friend of mine who is expecting. She was feeling a little self-conscious about the appearance of her growing baby bump. As soon as I saw what she was worried about, I assured her that it happened to me when I was pregnant as well. In fact, it happens to a majority of pregnant women. Like stretch marks, it can seem to appear overnight. One day, your stomach looks totally normal, and then all of a sudden, you wake up one morning and it’s covered in long, dark hair. Gone are the days of freely lifting up your shirt for friends who want to see your popped belly button. Instead, you sheepishly pull the panel of your jeans over your fuzzy bump. Does this sound familiar to you? If so, you are not alone. Search any pregnancy forum for “fuzzy belly” and you’ll find tons of women who are worried about the dark hair on their stomach. Why is it there, they wonder. Will it go away? How can I get rid of it?
It’s not just the hair on your stomach that’s growing more lush, all of your hair grows a little faster (and sheds much slower) when you are pregnant. While you may cringe at the thought of a little extra belly, back and facial hair, you’ll love what it does for the hair on your head. Thick, shiny hair is one of the benefits of pregnancy that I still miss. In the months after delivery, as your body returns to normal, the excess hair will begin to fall out and you’ll feel like you’re going bald, but you’ll get your smooth stomach back, too. There’s always a trade off.
If the hair on your belly is bothering you, you have a few options for getting rid of it. You could reach for the tweezers, the razor or wax; just be prepared for pain and possible shaving bumps. Avoid hair removal creams, as these are not safe for pregnancy. Or, you could just try to ignore it. Other people mostly likely won’t even notice it anyway.