Do You Need a Nursing Bra? What Pregnant Moms Should Know

Hello and welcome back to the Postpartum Prep Podcast. My name is Ceridwen, I'm your podcast host and your guide to preparing for a smoother start to life with your new baby. Here on the Postpartum Prep Podcast, we talk about all things preparing for life after birth.

We talk about everything from newborn care to postpartum recovery, feeding your baby, sleep, and today we're going to be talking about nursing bras. I'm so excited to be recording this episode, partly because it's the first solo episode that I've recorded in a while and it's my favorite style of solo episode because I'm actually reading a bunch of quotes that have been submitted by real moms. So even though it's a solo episode, I kind of like to think of it as like a collab episode with you guys.

So did I even say we're talking about nursing bras, but specifically we're talking about whether or not you even really need a nursing bra. Are nursing bras even necessary? So I have a bunch of quotes from real moms about whether or not they thought nursing bras were necessary. And if you stick around to the end of the episode, I'll also share a little bit about my own opinion as to whether nursing bras are necessary or not.

I'm kind of somewhere in the middle, I guess, but I'll get to it at the end of the episode. I also think this episode, just based on these quotes, I think it's a really good way to get some insight into some of the realities of just being a lactating breastfeeding parent. I don't want to give away any spoilers.

So I think we should just jump on in with the first quotes. So the first quotes that I'm going to read are from the moms that say, yes, nursing bras are absolutely necessary. This first mom says, I just found it so much easier to nurse in public or at home with a nursing bra.

I could never get my boob out fast enough in a sports bra or a regular bra, and ultimately my boob would be squished in some way, which meant feeding was difficult if I wasn't in my nursing bra. And then I wore them overnight, so if I had any leaking, it just went into the pads in the bra instead of my bedding or PJs. So for me, it was a necessity I couldn't live without.

And I basically wore them 24 seven, even if I wasn't wearing any other clothes. I think that's just for me, this quote just drives home one of the essential reasons why nursing bras can be super helpful is about the nursing pads and leaking. And this is what I mean about how these quotes give us a little glimpse into some of the realities of being a lactating parent or breastfeeding mom is leaking.

I was so not prepared for the amount that my breasts were going to leak. Now, not everybody has significant amounts of leaking, but some moms really do. And I was one of those moms, and I absolutely had to have nursing pads on all the time.

And so this mom, like she mentioned, she wore the nursing pads in her nursing bra. And this mom, she also mentions how wearing a sports bra or a regular bra would make her breast feel squished or it was difficult to get her breasts out to feed. Those are some of the highlights that she gave to why she thinks nursing bras are necessary.

This next mom, she gave us a couple of bullet points. So number one, she says, I fed on demand so I needed to be accessible anywhere and anytime. This was easiest in a nursing bra and tank top or loose top.

This gave me the privacy that I preferred while being able to feed and keep myself mostly covered. So her first point is she found it easiest to breastfeed in public in a nursing bra and tank top or loose top combo. But the nursing bra was always part of that combo.

Her second point, she says, I had an oversupply and let down on the opposite breast when I was nursing. So wearing pads and being able to change them quickly was necessary. I also sometimes pumped or used the hacker on the other breast.

So again, nursing pads, needing to be able to have somewhere to keep the pads to hold them in is an essential point of hers. Her third point is that bras with underwire or too much structure caused clogged ducts that were very painful. I have definitely heard that this can be the case.

A lot of nursing bras are not underwire, but some are. And so that's something that you may want to be aware of when choosing a nursing bra. By the end of this episode, if you decide to go ahead with a nursing bra.

Her fourth point is the nursing bras were more comfortable for my tender breasts. And this can definitely be a point. I think the mom before this one, she mentioned her breast feeling squished in regular bras or sports bras.

And that's definitely can be the case. One of the things that I found was my breasts were changing size all throughout the day. And not every regular bra or sports bra is able to keep up with that without, you know, a lot of normal bras just don't have that kind of stretch and ability to kind of snap back into place, to go back and forth, I guess, between sizes, whereas some nursing bras are able to accommodate that change, that kind of rapid change in size throughout the day more easily.

And then her fifth point, she says, I could never be without a bra due to pretty constant leaking. So again, this is probably to do with needing to wear the nursing pads inside of the bra. So we have one more quote from a mom who believes that nursing bras are necessary.

She says, I believe they are necessary because I co-slept with my son and wore a bra to bed and I always felt like I needed boob support because of course they were filled with milk and to me sagging. So it was easy to feed him throughout the night. Also during the day, I wore buttoned down and loose fitting shirts so it was easy to just clip off overall because of convenience and boob support.

They were also comfier than regular bras. When I went back to work, it was easy for me to go into a room and pump as well. I love that this mom brought up pumping because that is definitely something to consider.

Certain nursing bras are also, you can use them as a pumping bra so it can help to keep the pump in place while you're pumping and you can be hands free. She also mentioned that she found the bras easy to just clip off and that was really helpful for her for night feeding. Overall, from these moms who have said some reasons that nursing bras are necessary, I'll just summarize a couple of the key points.

One point is just comfort. Their tender breasts during that early postpartum and just with breastfeeding needed comfort and regular bras or sports bras just did not make the cut. For them, the nursing bras were the most comfortable thing that they could wear.

A couple of moms mentioned the ease of being able to feed with a nursing bra compared to a regular bra and then one point that pretty much everyone mentioned is needing something to hold their breast pads in place when their breasts were leaking. I definitely agree with that point, but like I said, I'll share more about my experience at the end. Right now, I want to get into the quotes from moms who said that no, they don't think nursing bras are necessary.

I love this first quote. She says, I personally haven't used any of the nursing bras I bought because I'm usually nursing at home and I'll just take the bra off altogether. If I'm out, I just wear any bralette that I can easily lift up or down.

I think this brings in such a good point because a couple of the moms mentioned being out and about, it was easier to have a nursing bra, but this mom is saying she didn't really need them because she wasn't out and about all that much. She mentioned that if she did need to wear a bra, she would just use a bralette that she could easily lift up or down. That's definitely something that a lot of people do.

I'm actually going to talk, in my own experience, I'm going to talk a little bit more about pros and cons of using a bralette. Just going back, one more thing that I wanted to mention about her quote is she did mention that if she's nursing at home, she'll take the bra off altogether. And I think that's a really good point about when it comes to breastfeeding out and about versus at home, when you're out and about, it's not so easy to just take your whole bra off.

So that may be why there's a little bit of discretion between the people who said yes, they do need a nursing bra because it's easier to breastfeed in public versus this mom who said no, she didn't really need a nursing bra because she wasn't actually out and about all that often, so she could just take her bra off altogether. Now this next mom I think is really interesting because she says, I think it's all marketing. They see, well, if mom isn't going to feed formula, let's support her with breastfeeding by making sure she knows she needs a nursing bra.

Do I wear nursing bras? Yes. Are they a must? No, you just need a bra or shirt or tank top that you are comfortable getting your boob in and out of to nurse. I love workout shirts with built in bras for this and most sports bras that are for low impact work great, but by no means do you need a nursing bra.

So this mom I think is really interesting because she does say that she does use nursing bras, but she doesn't think that they are a must. This mom's quote is pretty similar to my own experience, my own feeling about nursing bras, so I'm just going to go ahead now and share my own thoughts and experience and opinions. The funny thing for me or something I find kind of funny is that I actually wore my nursing bras more during pregnancy than postpartum because during pregnancy I outgrew all my regular bras.

But once I actually had given birth, I was really not a fan of these nursing bras like at all. I had a few styles. I had some with like a clip kind of on the shoulder band, shoulder band, shoulder band.

Why did that just sounds, it doesn't sound right. Shoulder band. This is editing Keridan.

The word I was looking for it was bra strap and I could not remember it this entire episode. So let's just pretend I say bra strap whenever I'm saying shoulder band. Okay, back to the episode.

They had little clips kind of at the top of the cup attached to the shoulder band so that I could pull the cup down and another style that I tried was like a crossover style in the front so you could kind of pull it to side. Those were, I think they're kind of called like sleep nursing bras. So they kind of crossover in the front.

Now the reason why I didn't really wear these bras, either style of these bras after I'd given birth, the ones with the clips, I just found the clips too fiddly with one hand and just I actually found them really uncomfortable because they were not, they didn't have underwire but they were just quite structured and just with there being the clip that you pull down and then even once you've pulled the clip down there's still kind of a layer, the second layer underneath that keeps it attached to the shoulder band. We're going with that word shoulder band. It just doesn't sound right but part of me thinks that it could be right.

Okay, let's just say shoulder band and we're going to move on. So there was like two layers essentially to this bra and just having all those layers even though it was thin layers but it just, when my breasts were so, I had really bad engorgement and it was just too much, I just could not have and even just the kind of sensitivity of my nipples and even just the sensitivity of my breasts while breastfeeding, I just couldn't deal with like the extra fabric, the bulkiness of the bra. It was just too much, it wasn't comfortable to sleep in.

Now the sleep style that I had, the kind that crosses over, I found those really impractical because my breasts would literally fall out of the side that crossed over the top. I hope that this is making any sense without video but like my breasts would literally just fall out and that meant that the nursing pads were not helpful because if my breasts is not actually staying in the bra, the nursing pad is not catching any drips. So I think part of the problem was the crossover, with the crossover sleep style bras, I think part of the problem was that my breasts were changing size so drastically throughout the day like I mentioned and so even though they would fit me after a feed for example, by the time it got to the next feed, they were, my breasts were so much bigger and fuller that they just were not staying in and these bras just weren't able to adjust accordingly.

Yeah I tried several different brands of nursing bras as well, several different brands of different styles and just nothing was really working for me and I think part of the problem was that I was not a huge fan of wearing bras even before I was pregnant so having to go from not even really wearing bras that much to suddenly I need to wear a bra 24-7 and none of these ones are actually comfortable or working for me was tricky but I needed, I needed to be wearing a bra even for sleep, especially for sleep because my breasts were just leaking so much I needed to have nursing pads and I needed a bra to hold them in and yeah like I said that includes overnight and the overnight part was such a problem for me because of just regardless of you know how easy it was to get my breasts out or how how well they held my breasts in, it was also they just were not comfortable enough to sleep in and the ones that were supposed to be comfortable enough to sleep in were the ones that didn't actually hold my breasts in and I would just end up waking up drenched. I just felt like I was drenched in my own breast milk because the bra wasn't holding my breasts in right and I kept leaking milk everywhere it was just a bit of a nightmare. I actually remember for a while I had to sleep with puppy pee pads under me in the bed because there was just so much leaking and my bras just were not holding the breast pads in place and honestly for all the reasons to be sleep-deprived during postpartum that should not have been one of them but I just could not figure this nursing bra situation out.

Eventually I switched to a style of bra that was not a nursing bra it was more like a bralette like someone else mentioned or I would call it it was like a bralette that kind of looked or that maybe someone could have used as a very very low support sports bra you know very thin straps a very thin bra and I would just either just lift the bra up or I would pull it down and just lift my breast out to feed and honestly that worked pretty well the only problem was which somebody mentioned was because it was a regular bra it was digging in in certain places that did not make it practical for feeding so I okay that did not make that how do I say it felt like the milk was not able to flow in certain areas and left and so I would end up sometimes having to actually physically take my arm out just so I could get that entire side free also if I was doing any kind of side-lying breastfeeding I definitely would have had to take my arm out and I did a lot of side-lying breastfeeding especially at nighttime so I would rate it like six out of ten using that bralette sports bra kind of style like it worked it did the function but you know there was pressure in the wrong places again it couldn't really stretch and snap back with the change in my breast size throughout the day so that was sometimes tricky I did like that it was thin so it just it didn't feel like it was super bulky but it was digging in in the wrong places and giving pressure in the wrong places which I did worry was gonna lead to blocked ducts which I had had before and I was really worried to have again so it wasn't ideal but it worked and I did I way preferred it over the nursing bras that I could never seem to find the nursing bra that worked for me and most most importantly it was comfortable enough to sleep in that is always the test I think when it comes to nursing bras and I say think about it like it's not just that it's comfortable enough to sleep in but it's comfortable enough to wear all day long and then also sleep in all night long as well like you know how good it feels when you get home of a long day and take your bra off but imagine you're not able to do that and like I'm hoping to pin a picture here for you of why it's so important that your nursing bra is so comfortable also like it's not just about comfortable enough to sleep in and wear all day but it's also about being comfortable enough to sleep in and wear all day while also your nipples and your breasts are feeling a lot more sensitive or maybe you're feeling engorged or full and heavy and hot or cracks nipples or sore nipples so it needs to be comfortable comfort is definitely one of my main boxes to take holding your breast pads in place for me is also another huge box to take and the ease with which you can feed your baby in this bra is another huge box to take now if you're wondering where you might be able to find a nursing bra that does take all the boxes I actually have an option for you before I get into it I do want to be upfront that I am an affiliate for this company but it's only because their bras really do take all the boxes and after that listening to this episode I'm pretty sure you'll understand why so if you're looking for a nursing bra that's comfortable enough to sleep in but also super cute to wear and can hold your nursing pads in place and also supports a really awesome company then a bra that I can wholeheartedly recommend is the alley bra by the little milk bar when I discovered the alley bra I was just like yes because this is exactly the style of nursing bra I feel like I've been looking for it for so long I've used it while breastfeeding and it really is like the kind of bra that I've come to settle on as just the ideal nursing bra just this kind of thin unstructured sports bra by that kind of style but it actually gives you a lot of support it can stretch with your changing breast size and snap back into place without you know becoming over stretched it can also come back which I just love it also does have these little buttons down the front which you don't have to use I often don't use the buttons I just either I usually just pull it down but you can also pull it the bra up but I do use the buttons on the front when I'm in the side lying position and this was actually the coolest thing when I first used the alley bra and I did unbutton the buttons in the side lying position because it was the first time that I've been able to breastfeed in the side lying position like the first time ever that I've been able to breastfeed with a bra in the side lying position and not feel like I needed to basically just take the whole bra off because I didn't feel any kind of digging the buttons are they just give the perfect amount of like leeway so that you can get the bra out of the way enough that there's no pressure for at least this is how it was for me that there was no pressure and I wasn't feeling worried about clogged ducts it was just something I didn't even realize that I needed until I used the alley bra and was just like yes this is exactly what I've been looking for it's also just super soft and comfortable I myself have slept in it so I can confirm it is absolutely comfortable enough to sleep in I just saw that the little milk bar also recently came out with a cotton bra it's not the same style as the alley bra it is a racerback style so I think that's cool because you can't have some options I haven't tried this one yet but I do want to mention it because I love the sound of a cotton bra by the little milk bar other thing that I do want to just shout out is the company itself I kind of hinted to this before but the little milk bar is such an awesome company the little milk bar is woman-owned Latina owned and the little milk bar is mother owned nursing bras made for moms by moms I mean it just doesn't get better than that the founder Lindsay White started the little milk bar from her kitchen table and would set up shop at local markets and since then she's gone on not only to grow her line of breastfeeding essentials but she's also been a fierce advocate for breastfeeding moms and she was even involved with helping social media platforms to change their policies on breastfeeding content because can you imagine this these social media platforms were labeling breastfeeding content as sexual which is just so absurd but I think it's so amazing that Lindsay was involved with changing that I am just absolutely thrilled to support the little milk bar as an affiliate but honestly Lindsay's story is just the cherry on top because it really is their nursing bras that like their products really do take the cake for me because it really is their nursing bras like the products themselves are awesome they really are like I said before made by a mother for mothers it's like she really understands nursing bras are not just like something you wear because you're breastfeeding it's something that you're living in because you're needing to have something to hold the breast pads in place you're needing to have easy access for your baby you need support you need something that can stretch and snap back with your changing breast size throughout the day I can just see all the lived experience of being a breastfeeding mom in these bras so if you are currently in the market for a nursing bra be sure to check them out they also sell reusable nursing pads and some really cute fun breastfeeding clothes too I also just saw that they just came out with some new electrolytes which I think is just so much fun but also so again it's like a company who understands breastfeeding and the realities of breastfeeding because they've been there because breastfeeding makes you thirstier than you have ever been in your life at least it did for me sometimes it would be my son would latch on and it literally felt like if I didn't have water right then I felt like my mouth just became like a desert I would have a headache if I didn't have water right then my doctor explained it to me like every time you're breastfeeding it's essentially the same way that sweating gets water out of your body breastfeeding the same thing you're using water to make that milk that's why hydration is so important so I just think it's so fun that not only is a little milk bar selling breastfeeding apparel nursing bras breastfeeding clothes they're also selling electrolytes to keep breastfeeding moms hydrated because they understand the real need for hydration while breastfeeding so I do have a discount code for you my discount code is mother baby well-being but you can also just use the link that will be in the description of this episode because it will automatically apply the discount code for you at checkout so make sure you use the code mother baby well-being or use the link in the description to get a discount on your order if you have any questions I'm always happy for you to reach out if this is your first time here listening to the podcast please reach out and just let me know that you're listening send me a DM on instagram at mother baby well-being because I would love to connect with you there I feel sometimes like when I'm making the podcast I'm just talking into the void so it's really nice to hear from you so that I can actually connect with you if it is your first time here also please make sure you're following the podcast so you get updates with new episodes and be sure to check out the little milk bar like I said the will be in the description thank you so much for listening today oh before you go if you have an opinion on nursing bras if you do think they are necessary or aren't necessary feel free to send me a DM and maybe we will do a part two of this episode if we get any strong opinions either way alright thank you again for listening and I'll see you next time on the postpartum prep podcast