My Brest Friend?

[msemmafarr]

I see it on the advertisement up there and wonder if it's really that different from a boppy?

Why do LCs not recommend a boppy?

Just looking for info.

[Bellejar]

Personally, I think boppy's suck for many people. 1st I am very large chested and bought a boppy which never seemed to work. It didn't boost the newborn high enough, didn't help if I wanted to football hold and just wasn't large enough to comfortably support an infant. At the Baby and Family center at the hospital where I birth, they had the best nursing pillows!!! Man what a difference it made. I am convinced they are the best thing since sliced bread.... IT was the Viva nursing pillow. It was so much better for me. It also held the baby higher and saved my back a ton. I think boppies are fine if you are a size 6 or 8 and a B cup, but honestly, for the rest of us trying different pillows probably would help more!

[Peppamint]

I had three Boppy pillows (the seams would burst open after a year or so of use) and then bought a My Brest Friend.

For one thing, it seemed sturdier... as for whether it's better... well I think it fits around mom a little more snugly. It does have a part that goes behind mom's back, which I both liked and disliked.

Do LCs not reccomend Boppy in particular, or just nursing pillows? I wasn't aware of that.

[msemmafarr]

I'm not 100% sure if it's boppy's in particular...a friend of mine who was having breastfeeding issues earlier this month said her LCs recommended to get rid of it entirely, that they "don't recommend boppy's." Whether or not that was all nursing pillows, I need to double check on. Thanks for making me be more clear!

[msemmafarr]

Wow the Viva looks even better to me. Are those straps adjustable, or does the pillow generally stay snug against your body?

[hipmummy]

Originally Posted by msemmafarr

I'm not 100% sure if it's boppy's in particular...a friend of mine who was having breastfeeding issues earlier this month said her LCs recommended to get rid of it entirely, that they "don't recommend boppy's." Whether or not that was all nursing pillows, I need to double check on. Thanks for making me be more clear!

The reason's being many. Since Boppys and other breastfeeding pillows have been used there has been an increase of reflux and many other ailments from mispositioning can occur. The way the baby would naturally curve into you is affected they should be at angle not on a serving platter. I used one but in a modified way. My mom is an LC and does not like them. They are great for twins and premies but they need to be used with care.

[msemmafarr]

Originally Posted by hipmummy

The reason's being many. Since Boppys and other breastfeeding pillows have been used there has been an increase of reflux and many other ailments from mispositioning can occur. The way the baby would naturally curve into you is affected they should be at angle not on a serving platter. I used one but in a modified way. My mom is an LC and does not like them. They are great for twins and premies but they need to be used with care.

Would your advice be to simply use regular pillows? Do you think all nursing pillows are flawed or just boppy's?

[Ak Mom]

Originally Posted by msemmafarr

I'm not 100% sure if it's boppy's in particular...a friend of mine who was having breastfeeding issues earlier this month said her LCs recommended to get rid of it entirely, that they "don't recommend boppy's." Whether or not that was all nursing pillows, I need to double check on. Thanks for making me be more clear!

Tell your friend not to get rid of the boppy!

I never had much success using one either, I had to hunch over too much. I just stuffed lots of pillows under my arms or laid down on a bed mostly when they were really little. BUT boppy's are great for propping the baby up when they are almost sitting or for a modified tummy time.

[AZgirl2207]

I love the Breast Friend pillow because it's harder and flat on top. Baby always seems to roll/slide away from me with the boppy. I found Breast Friend much easier to use (more foolproof for tired momma), maybe that's why LC recommended it.

[Bellejar]

the straps do adjust, but it stays snug even without it. It also has a firmer top than the boppies, I found that easier with a very young infant.

[dewi]

I'm a trained LC (I don't practice).

I highly recommend that you use a regular pillow if you need a pillow,
then practice the ancient method of holding and supporting your baby with your arm.

[sacredma]

boppy's are just not the right shape for most moms. the babies tend to roll and they are too low down. if you have one, you might have to put a pillow under it, or on top.
regular pillows work better, a great lc i know says 4, one under each arm on the sides of the mom, one on her lap and one behind her!

[msemmafarr]

Some people were also curious as to the LC opinions -- thought I'd share some that I got from the DONA boards for extra info:

"It's best if the baby is nursing with as little intervention as possible, including pillows. Not having to rely on a pillow is also important because when they want to go out, if they use a pillow, they feel like they have to have it with them, and therefore are unlikely either to go out or to nurse when they are away from home. To me, pillows are just another thing added to the 'must have' list of stuff pregnant women buy."

"I like to teach moms to position the baby and themselves correctly first, then have a support person come in and place pillows, blankets, other "tools" where it is needed to support mom, AFTER baby and mom are in the right position. In my experience, when new moms rely on "aids" to help with positioning, they "position" the aid then try and fit baby and their own body to the way the "aid" is fitting, instead of getting into the correct position and supporting that. So I often see moms leaning forward to get their breast down to baby's position on the boppy, because that is how baby ended up being positioned using the "tool"."

Makes sense to me now! Hope this helps someone else.

[turtlewomyn]

I bought my Brest Friend from the IBCLC who was also an MD who fixed my DD's tongue tie. I had gotten a boppy from my BRU registry and never ever used it. Oh, I do think that we used it to prop up DD for pictures or something. That was about it. Eventually I stopped needing the Brest friend (maybe around two months or so, I even kept it in the car with me when I needed to bf on the run, perhaps next time I won't need it as long).
I like the back support of the brest friend, it wraps all the way around, has a pad for the back, and buckles on. It had a little pocket to store things, it allowed me to perfectly position my baby and protected my c-section scar. The boppy would have been just too awkward (it didn't wrap around much of my waist, and I am not a woman of size either, I think you would have to be waif thin for that, and who is waif thin just after giving birth??).

[Limabean1975]

I had a My Brest Friend, and tried the bobby at various LC clinics. Neither was great, but I did like with the My Brest that it could be tightened into place...but I still felt the need to put other pillows under it. On the one hand, I totally agree that having nursing pillows can become a crutch and interfere with good positioning; on the other hand, my DS would nurse for HOURS, hours and hours at a time, and my muscles would JUST NOT HOLD UP for that long. I *had* to have some support, and a nursing pillow is a big improvement over regular pillows alone. I couldn't manage with a sling or sidelying in the early days, with latch problems and whatnot.

[notjustmamie]

Am I mistaken, or is the woman hunched over her baby on the homepage (here) not in a good position for breastfeeding?

Maybe it's just the angle, but it looks like it would be killer on her back.

[paintedbison]

Wow... I never knew there could be any issues with using the boppy. I loved mine so much with DD that I took it to the birthing center with me to have for the first four hours of DS's life. I take it with me when I travel. I take it with me if we go to a friend's house for the day. I love it. When DD weaned, I cried when I put the boppy away in a closet.

[Peppamint]

Hmm... I'm not sure I buy that nursing pillows become an awful crutch. I'm not saying that's impossible but I think they're more helpful than anything. Like PPs said, it's nice to have some support for your arms when you're nursing frequently or for long periods of time!

But then again, I don't spaz when someone says they are using a nipple shield either... I used one for a few weeks until I got dd1 nursing well and we avoided needing to pump and use bottles until I went back to work which made me very happy.

[MamaRabbit]

busymom, see it's good for supporting the arms, but not the baby. I was using mine wrong with my first baby because I was under the impression that the baby should be on the pillow when in all actuality, I should have been holding the baby with the pillow supporting my arm. I believe it's a common mistake with boppy users.

[Peppamint]

That makes sense...