Buying a maternity bra

[tracya]

Good morning out there,

I am 22 weeks pg and I understand that this is the time to buy a mat bra. My breasts have not really increased in size although they do feel a bit heavier and sometimes they are sore to touch. I have always worn a slightly padded bra and my problem with the mat bras (apart from the fact they are pretty ugly) is thay they are thin cotton and you can see nipples through them. If I am wearing t-shirts you will see a nipple shape through these as well. How do I get around this or am I just paranoid that everyone I pass will see the my nipples through my clothes. I do see many women (not just pregnant ones) wearing t-shirts and the like and you can see nipple poke and they don't seem self conscious about it. If anyone can empathise with this problem or provide a solution I would love to hear from you.

Thanks
TR

[rebecca]

Hi Tracey

I too have this problem, and i find that as my chest grows larger the nipples are more pronounced through my singlets/t-shirts. I have heard of women putting bandaids over their nipples to stop this, but I would find that a little uncomfortable and would feel as though no air would be getting to them.
I just bought a new maternity bra over the weekend...Berlei Maternity bra, it is was apparently an Elle Macpherson label that has now been taken over by Berlei. IT is awesome, very comfortable and supportive..it was $55 although after dealing with the cost of it...I am glad that I have bought it...
I also bought a $20 target maternity bra ( it was on sale) it is ok, but nowhere near as supportive or comfy as my new one.

I think we just have to grin and bare the nipple issue....not the best look inthe world!

Congratulations by the way on your pregnancy...I am 29 weeks...

Bec & Peanut

[bubhub]

Hi

We've got a competition running at the moment on our newsletter to win a Fresh Mums maternity bra - which is like a singlet top with an inbuilt maternity bra. To see the newsletter, click this link (& good luck, if you decide to enter!!) http://www.bubhub.com.au/newsletter/dec04welcome.htm

Hilary

[willsmum]

Go to a reputable lingerie shop or department and get a proper fitting. You may find that your size changes after bub arrives too, so get checked then as well. Depending what size you are there should be a range to choose from so you should find one that suits you. I wear Triumph brand matbras and there is no problem with "nipple poking" with these. Good luck.

[Lucybelle]

I think its best to buy only the one type/brand of bra, in the different colours and styles you need. I bought a couple from Target, and couple from Berlei etc, and the worst thing is the they all have DIFFERENT types of release clips. It's a nightmare as I'm always mucking around trying to work out how to undo whichever one I'm wearing at the time.
Not easy when half asleep, in the middle of the night with a hungry, squirmy baby!!
One clip, no stress!!

Lucybelle :)

[xkwzit]

Now Lucybelle, how are we going to know which clips are best if we don't buy a bunch of different ones! I did and found that the easiest one to deal with was the maternity bra by Elle Macpherson. It was the only bra I bought that I could undo and do up with one hand (and that's really important when you've got a hungry squirmy baby in the other hand :D !!)

Cheers

[Lucybelle]

Good point xkwzit, and Happy New Year!
I just made the silly mistake of assuming that all maternity bras would of course have simple, uncomplicated clips.
Anyway maybe next time you try on a matbra in the shop changeroom, ask the staff to turn the lights off and tie one hand behind your back, if it's works then, you have a winner!! :D

[elizasmum]

Hi,

Please correct me if I'm wrong, but I thought all maternity bras had a fold down cup at the front so you didn't have to undo the back of the bra before feeding? I just used to fold down the cup and let my daughter feed that way during the day.

I found the Triumph bras were great. I started wearing those from 3 months pregnant on. They were a little expensive, but they were sturdy. During the first days of engorgement, they provided much needed support.

BTW, I did find that if I wore a light shirt during summer pregnancy, my nipples would show through the bra. On those occasions, I wore a normal white crop top over the top of my maternity bra. Once breastfeeding, I used Avent washable cotton breast pads (the best, I found) and they covered everything.

At night, I used to wear the soft, stretchy bras you can buy from Babies Galore, etc. The brand is called "New Beginnings Maternity Crop-Top Bra". I used to have to lift up from the bottom as it had no back fastening or fold down cup. But, they were so comfortable, it wasn't a problem. I wore and washed mine so often, it fell apart after a few months! Well worth the money though.

In cooler weather (baby born in April 2004) I could hide all nipple action with a jacket or layers of clothes. Another idea might be to start wearing the cotton breast pads during pregnancy (if that doesn't freak you out too much).

[BJelly]

Hi eliza'smum,

Where can you get the washable bra pads? All I ever see are the disposable ones :( .

PS, I have found the maternity bras at Target are great, especially when on sale for $20. They have some very pretty ones, in different colours. Mind you bub hasn't arrived yet, so I haven't done the real test yet. :p

[Eleni's Mum]

Hi BJelly

I found my washable pads at Target or Big W - it was a while Iago. I use them now my b/f is established but wound it easier to use the disposable in the early days!

[4silvers]

I have bought a few different bras also and found the best one for me was triumph, a bit more expensive then the others I bought but much more comfortable, give great support (and shape) and the clips are very easy to use one handed and I haven't had any problems with my nipples showing through my shirts. My boy is almost 8 months now and the triumph ones are still in good shape unlike the cheaper ones I first bought that are now streatched and ride up my back. I do think you are better off getting something that will last, cheaper in the long run. All the best. :)

[elizasmum]

Hi Bjelly,

I bought the Avent brand and I got them at Woolworths. I think there are 6 in a pack and they are very reasonably priced. Mine lasted for ages.

I found disposables (I used Pigeon) made my breasts too hot and I was worried about getting thrush, etc. The Avent ones were much cooler/comfortable and because one side has lace, they don't 'slip' around in your bra.

[BJelly]

Thanks peoples! :)

[xkwzit]

Hi BJelly
Just one word of warning re breast pads, if you are v leaky (like I was), you may need to go through many pairs of washable pads PER DAY. I found the only way to cope esp in the first 4 months or so was disposables and even then I was going through 3 pairs a DAY :eek: . Pigeon are the best if you a v leaky, they are filled with a material sim to disposal nappies and hold A LOT. But the chemicals in them *may* slow down the healing process if you have cracked nipples. I had no choice, other disposable breast pads wouldn't last 5 minutes into a morning feed :rolleyes:

Cheers

[BJelly]

Thanks xkwzit,

I've got a variety of disposables, including some pidgeon ones at the moment. When the baby arrives, I suspect I might be leaky, as I am leaking a bit of colostrum from time to time already.

We'll see how it all goes, thanks again tho' :D

[StormAngel]

Hi guys
i found a padded maternity tshirt bra at bigW its really comfy and you dont need breast pads under it. ;)

[Mumoffour]

I bought my avent washables from the baby section in Coles supermarkets. Mind u that was two years ago. Hope this helps.... :)

[Kassiasmum]

Hi guys,
On the nipple thing, hestia have just brought out a T-Shirt maternity bra, you can buy them from Big W for around $20.00.

Tracey

[dblmum]

Try the Hestia T-shirt maternity bra, only found them in BigW so far and are only $20!

[ingulita]

Hi ladies,
I'm expecting our first baby, so it's very exciting. I've been trying to follow all recommendations from hospital etc. but I'm not sure about this one:
for my hospital bag I need 4 maternity bras, I found it very difficult to believe, so I've got 2, what do you think?

Thank you :confused:

[xkwzit]

Hi
It really depends on how leaky you are :eek: . For my first pg, I bought 3 mat bras and found that amount really necessary (although I reaaly only had two I liked, but the third was a vital backup). Your milk shouldn't come in until about day 3, so you won't have to worry about leaks until then, but after that feeding can be *really* messy until you (and baby) get the hang of latching on (and keeping up with any forceful let down you might have). To prevent leakage (and minimising the need to do washing ;)) I found that pigeon breast pads were best (and even then I could go through 3 pairs A DAY).

I was v leaky and would actually tuck a cloth nappy into my bra under the nipple for the first 6 - 8 weeks to catch any overflow (there's nothing like watching your baby swallow like a trooper and know that she's not keeping up and eventually she's going to have to come off and you'll have milk pouring out EVERYWHERE! - esp if you're at a cafe ;) ). Of course - you may not be particularly leaky - but its best to be prepared (just in case...)

Cheers

[ingulita]

Thank you Samantha, I'll keep in mind pigeon breast pads, I'm very excited about breastfeeding, I've read and heard so much about it but let's see how it will work out, i want to be able to breastfeed as long as possible.

cheers

ingulita

[shae-matilda'smum]

I only had two pairs of maternity bars and i have coped ok. Being a size 12 F made finding a bra to fit near impossible and when i did they were expensive $60. After 6 months constant use they have nearly had it. but being a poor uni student they will have to last another few months as i still want to breast feed.

Shae

[Rainbowbrite]

I only had two pairs of maternity bars and i have coped ok. Being a size 12 F made finding a bra to fit near impossible and when i did they were expensive $60. After 6 months constant use they have nearly had it. but being a poor uni student they will have to last another few months as i still want to breast feed.

Shae

I have a similar problem. Being a 16DD I am finding it almost impossible to find nice, comfortable MatBra's that don't cost a fortune. Everywhere I look there are heaps of small sizes but none to fit me. Just hope that I don't get much bigger after the birth.

On that, can anyone give any indication of how much bigger i'll get? Before I fell I was a 14DD, have since grown to a 16DD and have 10 1/2 weeks till DD.

Thanks

[Hukuna Matata]

I'm another advocate for the big W T-Shirt maternity bra.... I love it..... so comfy, so affordable... Most of the time I don't wear a nursing pad, cause if I do have a bit of a let down the padding in the t-shirt bra will prevent any embarrassing moments. However, I was VERY leaky for the first few months of breastfeeding and I did wear a nursing pad then. I used the Johnson and Johnson ones. They were nice and absorable. Other one sucked, like persona (coles) brand and the dove brand. I would fill em up and leak right through them.

The other good thing about the t-shirt maternity bra is that if you do where a nursing pad, you can see it's shape, which I hated about other maternity bra's I bought...

[shae-matilda'smum]

To Rainbowbrite

My friends all found out i was pregnant because my boobs grew sooo quickly. (I surf a lot and the girls could see my tan line around my boob from my bikinis) I went from a 10C to 12E by the time i was 4 months pregnant. My nipples were hanging out of the top of my normal pre preg bras. After that i only went up to 12F when my milk came in. So my boob did most of their growing in first 4 months.

Shae

[jackee]

Hi Guys I'm pregnant with my first!! a bit scared and also looking for a maternity bra.
I was looking at Sydney's child when I was visiting my sister she has 3 boys under 5!!! I saw an add for a maternity bra in a nice looking top.
Just wondering if anyone has seen or tried them.
The company was Fresh Mums it was in the middle page it looked really good.
I'm going to check it out at Kidz Expo at the end of the month so will keep you all posted would love to hear from anyone else if they have tried it.

[our little treasures]

I've found that the singlet with the bra in it is fairly comfy but everyone is different even if you don't like the feel etc its still a good idea to get one. I bought mine due to the fact that I hated my post baby belly hanging out from my tops (not the best look while sitting down) Plus I love singlet tops and live in them so this is very good.
After 6 maternity bras with my first I am definetly trying to find other brands this time as most of them were well worn and in weird shapes before too long. I like the sound of the t-shirt bra as I too leaked both before and after dd. :eek:

[alicesmum]

hey ladies
just thoguht i'd let oyu know that bras 'n' things were having a sale the other day: two triumph maternity bras for $60, so i got a couple and they're just as nice as the Elle ones.
This was at Toombul Shopping Ctr in Brisvegas, but hopefully other bras 'n' things stores have the sale as well.

:p

[Kassiasmum]

Target maternity bras are 40% off at the moment in QLD.