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Taking a Look at Spider Veins
What Causes Enlarged Blood Vessels While Expecting?
By Katherine Bontrager
Shannon Eis was in for an unpleasant discovery during her second pregnancy: scrawling red and purple spider veins nestled just below the skin's surface.
"I have an extreme case of pregnancy-induced varicose and spider veins all over my ankles and legs," says the New York City mom. "My friends and family call my legs 'Incredible Hulk legs' while I'm pregnant."
Eis experienced spider veins during her first pregnancy, and they mostly corrected themselves with time. But now they've returned with a vengeance. "My OB/GYN said it's due to the increased blood flow caused by my body working to create another person, and she recommended that I wear those ... compression stockings, which are neither comfortable in the summer heat nor remotely fashionable – a sacrifice I seem unwilling to make," Eis says.
Eis saw a circulatory specialist who recommended massage and elevating her feet above her heart for part of the day. "It's the only thing that brings any relief at all ... but it's also nearly impossible as it's not a widely accepted position from which to conduct my work at the office," she says. "I'm desperate to find some relief, or if nothing else, to at least recover some self-esteem."
As the director of the Science + Beauty Medical Spa in New York City, Jessica Plotnick has treated thousands of women who suffer from spider veins. And now that she's expecting, Plotnick has some firsthand experience with this unsightly annoyance.
"Telangiectasias, or spider veins, are small enlarged blood vessels near the surface of the skin," Plotnick says. "These veins usually measure a few millimeters, are often purple, blue and/or red in color and can develop anywhere on the body. They most commonly appear anywhere on the legs and face. However, I often see and treat them on the feet, ankles, buttocks, around the bra-strap area and on the waist."
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