Good sling/wrap/carrier for Plus Size Mamas « Back to Group Discussions

[amysue]

I'm wanting to get a sling/wrap/carrier for this baby, I didn't have one for dd 12 years ago.  I'm sz 20-22 and chesty.  Does anybody have a good recommendation on what I should get? 

[menageriemama]

I really loved the Wrapsody Bali Baby Stretch with my last baby. LOVED. It was the perfect length and just the right amount of stretch without being too heavy at all. I liked it better than the Moby, which I thought was bulky and never draped quite right for me. I believe I got my Wrapsody as a gift and then got another one (the woven one) on ebay for a little cheaper.

For an older baby, I'm a fan of the Ergo. I have a waist extender for mine.

[cristeen]

The Ergo never landed right for me, but I have really wide shoulders.  And I loved my Moby.  But the Moby didn't have really any extra left after tying it.  Although my Moby was broken in when I got it, so I didn't have to worry about stiffness. 

My fave carrier for a baby with head control is my Onbuhimo.  By far the easiest I've found for a back carry - easy up, easy down.  Once my toddler hit 30ish pounds though I couldn't handle it any longer - since it puts all the weight on your upper back/shoulders.  For easy in/out, my RS was great for running errands, in and out of the car, the store, the post office, etc.  Much less to futz with (but make sure you get one that's long enough for you).  I can still use it for short periods (<10 minutes) in a hip carry even though he's over 40 pounds now.  I wasn't crazy about my MT at all - I had a half buckle (buckled padded waist with ties for the upper half), it worked just fine for front carries, but I always had a problem getting it to sit right in a back carry.  It gives me the waist support I need now for DS, but I still can't get it to sit right, so I only use it when I have to. 

You might want to see if you can find a babywearing group near you so you can try out some carriers.  Babywearing International has chapters all over the place.  I'm going to check out a meeting later this month so I can try some carriers I don't have access to otherwise.  Specifically, I want to try a woven wrap.  I'm hoping that a woven wrap will distribute DS' weight better so I can wear him again.  And let me carry the new little one when he/she arrives. 

[menageriemama]

I think the Wrapsody Bali Baby Stretch is a couple of yards longer than the Moby. I measured myself before ordering mine just to make sure. It had a nice amount of fabric on me, and I'm really thick in the waist. Their wovens are sized and I think I ended up getting the longest one they make, which was plenty long. I pre-wrapped with the Stretch so it was a pretty "poppable" carrier for me. I totally see the advantages of the RS, I've just never been able to get comfoy in one.

[southernfriedkarma]

This is my first baby, but I've done a good bit of practicing with wraps and carriers for fit and carrying my nephews.  I like the Ergo Performace; it's straps are a longer than the regular Ergo, and it's lighter weight material.  I've also ordered a Wrapsody and an Ella Belly Mei Tai.  The Ella Belly gets great reviews from bigger parents, and they can be made with longer straps and with our without buckles.  They're also of very good quality, and you can pick most any fabric you want.  

[iixivboots]

I'm so new to all of this, I found this primer helpful:

http://www.thebabywearer.com/index.php?page=bwplus

[cristeen]

Originally Posted by bootsvalentine 

I'm so new to all of this, I found this primer helpful:

http://www.thebabywearer.com/index.php?page=bwplus

That was very interesting.  Thank you for sharing.  It does help explain why I had so much difficulty with pouches.  So not worth it IMO, especially if your weight fluctuates regularly. 

It didn't have the Onbuhimo listed, which is too bad.  It actually would meet her requirements, since it is great for a back carry without putting anything at the waist.  And easier to negotiate than a wrap (and less fabric, so not as warm).  It basically looks like a MT with a set of rings where you would expect to see the lower straps.  Great for a back carry with a crawler/toddler. 

I got my Onbu and my MT from Two Momma's Design, they do stock or customs, and I have 1 of each.  The onbu I had made with my own fabric I sent her from my stash.  And they'll do XL straps - I have plenty of room to negotiate in my half-buckle MT, and even my skinny sitter could wear it (pulled to it's tightest setting on the waist strap).  And so can my 6'4" DH (who wears a 2X). 

[lifeguard]

I have a ring sling that is the go to carrier in the beginning. I do have a stretchy wrap (a homemade "moby") that I made a little longer but I don't love it 'cause I just find it a lot of work to get all tied & everyone situated. As they get older/heavier I love, love, love my ergo for back carries. I actually really don't like the ergo for front carries at all though.

[butterfly_mommy]

With DS I was a size 20-22 and chesty and I could never get any pouch to work for me. Even ones that I made myself and were the right size.

My fav carries are my lovely 5.2 Storchenwiege German Woven Wrap. This length of wrap I could do any carry and could still carry my 42 Pound almost 4 year old in a back carry with it. I used this wrap daily from the time DS was about 3 months (used a stretchy wrap as a newborn but will use my Storch right from the beginning this time) Wraps have a greater learning curve but once you get some practice they are invaluable. The Storch I have is in my profile pic (I was doing a back wrap with my DS at 18 mons in the pic) I also have a shorter wrap I think a 4.6 or 4.2 which was good fro some hip carries and a kangaroo carry but i didn't use it as often. 

The other carrier I love is my ring slings. I have a ring sling that is made from a Dydimos woven wrap and I adore it. It is super strong and again I have use it the odd time even now with DS but can only carry him for about 30 mins or so in it now as he is 42lbs! It is super supportive and comfy. The trick with a ring sling I find is making sure it is a shoulder style you like, I love a fan style as it spreads out nice on your shoulder and back, making sure it is long enough, especially if you are bigger/big chested (ring slings that do not come in sizes may not be long enough) and making sure it is a supportive, non slippy fabric. A ring sling is nice to nurse in as you can use the tail as a bit of a cover (also helps when nursing easily distracted toddlers)

I used a Babyhawk Mei tai with the longer straps too and it was ok for quick back carries but I found it too dig into my shoulders after awhile.

[iixivboots]

I would love to see pictures of plus size mamas babywearing, if anyone has any!

Found this old thread, has some great pictures!

http://www.mothering.com/community/t/1077248/plus-size-babywearing

Edited by iixivboots - 1/10/12 at 9:33pm

[LivingSky]

I've been researching another carrier for Kayden. The best info I can find has led me to look at the Boba 3G carrier. Supposedly it's awesome for plus sized wearers AND for larger babies, which is a big deal for me, sicne Kayden is well over 20 pounds and he isn't even 6 months old yet.

I love the ease of my ring sling, but with how big K is, it's hard to wear for more than 5 or 10 minutes at a time. I also have a Mei Tai Baby MT, and while I do like it, it seems short in the body for K now, and it's a pain in the butt to put on by myself if I'm, say, outside in a parking lot, because the straps drag on the ground and get dirty.

So, I'll let you all know how the Boba goes!

[menageriemama]

Originally Posted by butterfly_mommy 

With DS I was a size 20-22 and chesty and I could never get any pouch to work for me. Even ones that I made myself and were the right size.

My fav carries are my lovely 5.2 Storchenwiege German Woven Wrap. This length of wrap I could do any carry and could still carry my 42 Pound almost 4 year old in a back carry with it. I used this wrap daily from the time DS was about 3 months (used a stretchy wrap as a newborn but will use my Storch right from the beginning this time) Wraps have a greater learning curve but once you get some practice they are invaluable. The Storch I have is in my profile pic (I was doing a back wrap with my DS at 18 mons in the pic) I also have a shorter wrap I think a 4.6 or 4.2 which was good fro some hip carries and a kangaroo carry but i didn't use it as often. 

The other carrier I love is my ring slings. I have a ring sling that is made from a Dydimos woven wrap and I adore it. It is super strong and again I have use it the odd time even now with DS but can only carry him for about 30 mins or so in it now as he is 42lbs! It is super supportive and comfy. The trick with a ring sling I find is making sure it is a shoulder style you like, I love a fan style as it spreads out nice on your shoulder and back, making sure it is long enough, especially if you are bigger/big chested (ring slings that do not come in sizes may not be long enough) and making sure it is a supportive, non slippy fabric. A ring sling is nice to nurse in as you can use the tail as a bit of a cover (also helps when nursing easily distracted toddlers)

I used a Babyhawk Mei tai with the longer straps too and it was ok for quick back carries but I found it too dig into my shoulders after awhile.

I would love a Storch or a Dydimos! Either one of those sounds like an awesome splurge for a third baby. Too bad I will likely be buying 3 (!) new carseats instead. :)

[iixivboots]

Some questions:

Which is the coolest carrier for an August AZ baby?

Which is the best for a plus size mom to use for nursing?

Speaking of that: Slightly off topic but:

For big mamas: Boppy or My Brest Friend?

[Breathless Wonder]

I really used to love my size large Maya Wrap, but honestly, now that they have added the padding in the shoulder, it doesn't lay right.  It's very uncomfortable!  I can't spread it well over my shoulder.  If you could find and older, unpadded version, and have used a sling with success before, I'd give it a try. 

[grizzlebee]

Originally Posted by bootsvalentine 

Some questions:

Which is the coolest carrier for an August AZ baby?

Which is the best for a plus size mom to use for nursing?

Speaking of that: Slightly off topic but:

For big mamas: Boppy or My Brest Friend?

the "coolest carrier" is something on my mind as i will be spending a lot of time walking around nyc this summer with a little strapped to me!!

as far as the boppy/my brest friend pillows...neither of them look big enough to go around me in the way they're supposed to??? unless i've got the wrong idea about them, that is. i would love to hear more about this too. 
 

[butterfly_mommy]

I've never tried The Breast Friend but I had a Boppy and I could never really get it comfy. I mostly used pillows.

[scowgirl]

I haven't tried it for this purpose yet, obviously, but I ordered the "Snoozer" body pillow from A Pea in the Pod because I was having trouble sleeping on my side. The packaging shows an alternate use where you can sort of wrap it around your waist and use it in the way that you would use a Boppy. I don't know how easy this would be in practice, but it should be long enough... maybe something like that is worth a try? I'm hoping to use it for nighttime nursing too.

[MadiMamacita]

here is a visual of some asian-style soft carriers: http://thrivingbabies.com/ABCs.html

[iixivboots]

I think I might get the Bosom Baby nursing pillow. It looks like a good multipurpose pillow and I wouldn't have any trouble with feeling like it wouldn't "fit"

http://www.amazon.com/Bosom-Baby-BB-7084-Pillow-Giraffe/dp/B003BL0VL8/ref=sr_1_1?s=baby-products&ie=UTF8&qid=1327182305&sr=1-1

[cristeen]

Today I went to the local BWing meet-up, because I wanted to try out a woven wrap.  I was able to get 40+ lb DS onto my back, and wore him for an hour before I started getting sore.  I'm so excited!  It was a 4.6 (she thinks), and it was a little short, and it was definitely too heavy of a fabric for me (since this LO will be a summer baby), but I'm so excited about being able to wear DS again.

Originally Posted by bootsvalentine 
Speaking of that: Slightly off topic but:

For big mamas: Boppy or My Brest Friend?

Neither.  Really.  I have a Boppy, and while I made it work, it was crap.  I think most likely what I'll wind up doing is just using my Boppy and putting a waist strap on it.  I have to use the Boppy around my side and nurse in the football hold (I couldn't nurse in a cradle hold, and the Boppy fits even worse around my belly).  But the curve of it is not big enough for me (and I'm only an 18/20), so it was constantly sliding away from me creating a gap for the baby to fall into. 

The LLL meetings in town here are held in the back room of a kids store, and they had MBFs lying around for our use.  And I hated them.  True they couldn't slide away from my body to create that gap, but they're so hard and stiff that I still needed a pillow on top or I felt like he was lying on a board, it doesn't conform at all, and if you need a higher elevation/lower elevation in one area you're out of luck.  And you can't get them on/off with one hand (at least I couldn't). 

One that I didn't wind up trying with DS because we did have so many BFing problems, but that I do want to try with this one is the Utterly Yours breast pillow. 

I'm still looking for a good nursing pillow.  I know one mom at LLL had something like 10 different brands of nursing pillows, so I know they're out there, you just have to look.