chunei not cutting the mustard!

[dalia]

bummed about my new ihosa chunei. feels like ds is gonna fall out the bottom, plus when he is on front I can barely breathe. also do not see how anyone could nurse in it. am I doing something wrong?

ds is 20 lbs and I have upper back pain. I need a versatile carrier that is easy to get him on a back carry and he can be nursed if he is in front. I liked the way his weight is distributed in the chunei a lot but it is so hard to adjust and just not what I was expecting. ladies, what is the best soft carrier out there???

[alia]

Just saw it's been a couple of days on this...

I've never used a chunei (though I have used the chunei back carry with a wrap... ), so I may not be the most help here (maybe if you posted over at thebabywearer.com, you might get a few more experienced eyeballs?). That said, "best" will always vary from person to person. Sounds like you might like any of the more padded soft-structured carriers (SSCs)... generally easy-to-find brands include the Ergo and Beco... other favorites off the top of my head that you can find online and in community-specific FSOT forums include Olives & Applesauce and Kinderpack... there are SO many. I prefer half-buckles or mei tais because I find them to be more wrap-like... more infintely adjustable than buckle-based carriers, but many others swear by them.

Have you tried contacting the vendor or manufacturer to see if they have specific advice for you? Watching YouTube videos of others using the carrier to see if there are any little tweaks that may help you with getting the comfort just right? Is there a local babywearing group you can visit? Sometimes these things are intuitive, and sometimes just having one more experienced person try a few things can be magic.

Barring that, if you are at all interested in troubleshooting the chunei, can you post a pic?

[dalia]

Thanks so much for your reply. I ended up buying a Boba carrier! It comes tomorrow so we will see. I love the way the Chunei looks but nursing in it is really not an option for me and that's kind of a deal-breaker. Oh well, I had high hopes for it but I think I need to stick with something that puts the weight on the hips rather than across the torso. It really hurt my back!

Thanks again!

[dziwozony]

So sorry to hear the chunei did not work out for you! I am a big fan of it myself, got one when my second son was 3 months old & really wished I had it from the beginning with my first son.

I never felt like he was going to fall out the bottom. The waist belt fit snuggly against my body. It is difficult to adjust the straps, but I found that once I got them the way I wanted them, I didn't need to mess with them again.

I did feel a bit annoyed at the suggestion you could breastfeed in it though. I managed once or twice, but only with the top bit unbuckled & with me sitting down, so it was more like I was using it as a nursing cover! Though it did mean once he was asleep, I could easily slide him in without waking him & go on with doing things. If wanting to nurse on the go, I would just use a ring sling instead (which wasn't hands free, but gave me one hand!).

Maybe the comfort of it has a lot to do with your body type & the shape of your spine. My lowerback is really flexible, so mei teis are no good for me, gives me back pain & encourages bad posture for me. But the chunei was great because it didn't stress any one point, but distributed the weight evenly. I wonder if breast size is part of it as well? (mine aren't especially voluptuous!).

Oh well, hope your new one works well for you!