Ahhhh. Thanks Renee.
I also have to say alot of you have HUGE breasts!! Im a 32 DD. :( lol
I am a fan of the motherhood maternity bras they don't carry them in the store, but they do carry sizes up a 46 H if you order them iI am a 40 F and find their styles very comfortable and still nice enough looking.
Ziggy- that is AWESOME! Well, your husband may get a kick out of it, too. You know never know!
Lucey- a nursing bra offers support as well, as breasts full of milk are fuller and heavier. They are not like typical bras. There's usually enough flexibility in the fabric to accommodate a nursing pad as well. A nursing pad helps absorb any leaking milk from your breasts so you don't soak and stain your tops, much like a pad for your periods. And also, it does fold down to make breastfeeding easier. When you're a more experienced nursing mom, then you don't HAVE to have a nursing bra. But it makes it so much easier when you're juggling a newborn and have a blanket thrown over you to cover you up, etc. until you get used to nursing.
Whitney- great idea! I'll have to see if we have one around here.
Is the only point of a nursing bra so its easier to breast feed? Ya know with the foldy down bit? (Can ya tell Im not a mommy yet! lol) Ive had a crumb or piece of sand in my bra and its not hard to pop it out over the top to get it so I would think breast feeding like this woudnt be too difficult. But Im not the experienced one yet. (Hopefully soon!!)
I would definitely go to Nordstrom, try on some different brands and get professionally measured. They do a really great job with that, and at least you will know which brand you prefer. I bough 2 of my Anita nursing bras on Ebay once I knew my size.
I don't have anything really helpful to add here, just a little story, lol. I have 3 kids....but I have never breastfed, so I never had the need for a nursing bra. Well, my favorite bra was breaking(the under wire was sticking me) and I was in target and I wanted to quickly pick a bra in my size and go. So I am looking at just the normal lightly padded push up bra end cap, find my size on the hanger, throw it in the cart and don't give it another thought. The next day I rip the tags off and put the bra on. As I am putting it on I think to myself..."hmmmmmmmm the inside of this cup is a little different looking, I wonder if that's a push up device or something".....OK, so bra on...I brush my hair, I look down at the tag I just ripped off and see "nursing bra" . Anyway, I paid for it and I cant take it back so I am wearing it until I get a new one....but I like it, lol.
I have heard Nordstrom has some good ones but didn't know what they were called. Thanks! I'll check into those. Hopefully I can find them half the price, LOL! That's a pretty steep price.
I too have a rather large chest (34 F) and LOVE LOVE LOVE the Anita bras. You can get them from Nordstrom for $70 or on ebay (new) for about half the price. I have worn the 3 I own for over a year (being prego and now nursing) and they have yet to show any wear.
Yeah, Bravado is expensive but I'm hoping I'll catch a sale! LOL! I figure it would be worth it to pay an extra $5-10 for a really, really good bra, though. I can't skimp on bras or I look like a frumpy, nasty mess.
Nicole- at least on the Bravado site (and I'm sure other nursing bra sites) they have a way to calculate your measurements so that they'll fit post-birth.
When your milk first comes in you will probably go up 2 cup sizes but once your milk supply regulates and you aren't engorged I would say the norm is to be 1 cup size larger. Nursing bras are pretty good at accommodating an ever changing cup size.
i'm gonna piggy back off your question joyrenee, i want to get one or two before my little guys shows up too, but how do you know what size to buy before your milk comes in?? my breasts have definately gotten bigger, but i know that they are gonna get much larger after he is born, but this is my first baby and i don't know how much bigger or how to plan ahead on bra size?? any suggestions? or do i just wait and see?
lll . org has bras really reasonably priced and a wide selection...
too bad you can't wear the target ones, I have expensive ones from mothhood maternity yet my two cheapies from target are my favorite!
My midwife gave me a folder with tons of info and there was a site for nursing bras. I bought 2 and returned one because it didn't fit right or look right. The one I have now is so comfortable, yet supportive. It cost about 23 dollars. I was looking at Bravado bras, they were a bit pricey and the one I have now is very similar to them, but half the price. I still need another one, may just get a really nice one from Bravado afterall! They have some nice patterns.
I absolutely love my bella materna bra, I am bigger up there too (38e) and it works great. They are on the pricey side but worth it IMO.