The Bane of My Existence

Okay, after all the gross stuff I've shared, this might seem minimal - but for me, it's the worst. All the other stuff is either temporary or at least concealed beneath your clothes! But the mask of pregnancy is right out there for everyone to see.

Technically called Chloasma or Melasma, the mask appeared on my forehead, and around my eyes (like a mask) in the form of areas of darker pigmentation. At first, it just looked like a tan. But it quickly became more prominent, leaving the unaffected skin closest to my eyes looking strikingly pale, and the darker patched kind of dirty! It made me really self-conscious, so I was extra pissed when my husband so sensitively asked if I'd used "that self tanner again", because it looked "reeeally bad". Why thank you.

Since I wasn't expecting it and didn't put it together as a pregnancy-related condition for a while, I didn't take any precautions against it. It was summer, it was hot, I was out, loving the rays. NOW I don't leave the house without SPF 100 on my face!

Unlike the ugly linea nigra, the mask doesn't go away on its own! Google it (or click one of the links above), and a doctor will till you it will fade after a couple months post-partum - and maybe it does FADE - but that is not enough! I have now had 4 incredibly painful (think: someone snapping a fat elastic band against your face about 1000 times), and even more incredibly expensive (about $400 a pop) laser treatments on it, and although most people don't notice it now, I still do!

That's not even the worst part. The worst is that, once you've been affected by it, you will always be more prone to it. So any sun exposure increases its reappearance, as well as any increase in certain hormone levels. When I went back on the Pill, the worst of the pigmented areas became more noticeable right away. And the next time I'm pregnant, it will be back with a vengeance :(

My midwife, family doctor, dermatologist, and many random Internet sites told me this condition is very common and affects 80% of pregnant women - but I don't know where these sisters-in-misery live, because I have never seen a one! my esthetician told me she knew one woman whose neck turned black from it, but I don't know about that one... And an almost-due pregnant friend told me the mask had finally made an appearance on her forehead, but I saw her last week and didn't see anything - I think she was afraid my envy of her near-perfect pregnancy might consume me if she didn't come up with something! :p (Just kidding, friend - and good luck! (She's in early labour as I write this!))

Anyhow, doesn't seem like much, right? But if you've experienced it, you feel my pain (vain pain, but pain nonetheless!). So tell me...what was the worst part of your pregnancy? Or if you haven't gone down that road yet, what do you most fear? (Obviously, lost babies and sick babies and so on are much, much more terrible - but I want to keep this light, so let's stick to physical unpleasantries!)