nursing chair - yay or nay?

[emeraldgirl1]

Just to continue my series of endless questions about nursery furniture (see my earlier thread on cotbed versus cot) I am wondering if anyone has an opinion about the value of a specific nursing chair instead of just any old armchair?

The issue is partly that I would need to buy an armchair for the baby's room anyway as we don't have one spare from downstairs, and I do like the idea of being able to plonk myself down on a chair in the nursery for feeds, even if I don't manage to breastfeed. So I am committed to buying a new chair no matter what.

BUT are nursing chairs worth it? Would I be better off getting a regular armchair that I can use elsewhere in the house when the baby is older? Or are nursing chairs really worth their weight in gold?

I have a chronically bad neck and back and so I do want something supportive. Also I think I can probably buy a nursing chair for cheaper or the same price as a regular armchair as I have seen good deals on kiddicare etc.

But will it be a white elephant and money a bit down the drain because I won't be able to transfer it to the living room or wherever a few months/a year down the line?

Any thoughts, if you have a nursing chair or if you think it's money for old rope, hugely appreciated!! :)

I absolutely love mine - I still use it every day - even though am not BF anymore ( until DC2 arrives)
It is personal taste but I thought this was something I would be happy to have as a piece of furniture beyond the nursery stage. And found it very supportive - I think the back support pump made it really comfortable - and having a ' BF base station helped me to get in a good position for those early long feeds.
Apart from the back support it was the low level height so I could plant my feet on the floor that worked for me.

Here is what I had-
www.mumstuff.co.uk/acatalog/The-Kensington-Breastfeeding-Chair-Standard-Fabric.html

I got this one ikea recliner

Dutailier here and we all love it. Yes it's ugly but it was bliss to feed in and both grannys sit in it when they visit and the children fight over it and it is my 'dinner on lap with glass of wine' treat chair.

Child it was bought for is now 6 and it's still in my front room (see above) Oh, and I bought it for £50 from the local paper. Get it (but don't bother with the footstool)!

I really wished I had bought one while breastfeeding but got one afterwards. I've found it invaluable for my infant/toddler - night time stories, snuggles in the night when teething etc. MUCH more comfortable than the wooden rocker chair I'd borrowed previously! It's a real sink into it and don't want to move for HOURS type of chair.

One thing I'd recommend if you get one is to get a stool and a brake system with it. I also found one on Amazon for about £100 new, and it reclines a fair old distance too.

And it's a worthwhile investment as I'm now pregnant again.

When it's not used anymore it can go in the extension or maybe just stay in one of the bedrooms. Or, failing that, am sure it would resell without too much problem, so win-win in my books. :)

Dutalier - absolutely loved my chair. Used extensively for all 3 dc's. DH keeps trying to get rid of it but not succeeded yet! It now lives in 11 year old dd's room and is her reading chair. I sneak in when they are all at school and have a rock in it sometimes!

Started out seeing these chairs as an unecessary luxury but, two children later, would also recommend a Dutailier (experimented with a cheaper lookalike, but false economy as no where near as comfortable). Fed on demand for a long time - having this chair in the living room was invaluable and helped with back problems. Also rocking motion is calming/relaxing for you as well as babe. In my house we still fight as to who gets to sit in it.

I bought One second hand and hated it!! Bought the popular one from ikea (can't recall the name) and love it! It's now known as the story chair with 19m dd!

Ikea poang and the foot stall

Poang downstairs (for hours on end!- sat in it now) & I feed in bed upstairs (or on bed). Was offered a Dutailier but actually it wouldn't fit in the nursery, & so glad I learnt to BF lying down in bed as its blinking cold at 4am! Up in the night feeding my 2wo DS and sooo much warmer & comfier in bed. Easy & quick.

I would say see how you go, maybe have one picked out but wait till baby is here before you buy.

Thanks everyone - so much good advice.
Will look up the Ikea poang right now.
Liveinthepresent - I am really in love with the look of that Kensington chair... is it as comfy as they claim? I'd find a way to stretch the budget for it if it was a back-saver!!

gruber - I am coming round to the opinion that as you say, it is better to wait until the baby is here and I see what I think would be the best position for bf-ing, ff-ing, whatever I manage. It is hard as it is tempting to get something to have it all 'ready' but I think it would be potentially money wasted.

I'm amazed it took so many osts for the ikea poang rocking chair to be mentioned. Best thing ever.

comradeJing - would you def reccommend the poang rocker over the poang non-rocker? The non-rocking one is cheaper but I would rather get something that was 'right' IYSWIM.

I breastfeed either sitting up in bed (have a sort of slanty headboard and lots of pillows) or on the sofa. The important thing I think is pillows. LO doesn't sleep in his own room yet, so no need to feed there. We still have a spare single bed in his room so if I did want to feed there would fetch pillows and use that!

I have a Dutailier gliding chair and I look forward to using it again for DC2. I managed to get it on eBay for a very reasonable price. I'd say it's more comfortable than a regular armchair, but I guess it all depends on how much you're spending.

I got mine after seeing a friend who'd just had her second baby and asked her what advice she'd give having now done stuff twice. She had got a gliding chair second time around and said she wished she'd had it with her first.

We have an IKEA Poang normal chair, ie not rocking. DS is 14mo and it's been a godsend and is still in really good condition (dark wood with a red cover). We ended up bottle feeding and both DH and I have found it to be comfortable for us and DS. We shall bring it downstairs when we're finished with it.

Got a Duatiler off Ebay for £40 and found it comfy and supportive. Fed my DCs in bed but when they moved to own room at 6 months found the chair really comfy during night feeds. I just use it as a chair in my room now but would recommend one. If like me you can get one second hand you won't feel you have wasted too much money if it doesn't work out.

i would have loved a bed wedge (or two) when i was BFing in bed (cheap version of the adjustable bed they had in the hospital)

Yes, was in it constantly for about the first 3 months of ds life! He was huge and very hungry and fed hourly! Still sit and feed him in it now and he's 19 months.

I got a great one from kiddicare that some on here recommended. It is currently sitting upstairs waiting for husband to assemble it. Can't wait!

Yes, we got one for £100 plus rocking foot stool thing and it was fab for contractions in labour, so comfy to sit in afterwards when I was bruised and sore, great for night feeds or rocking a windy baby. Pg with no. 2 now and looking forward to have a reason to sit in it lots more, still going and in great condition. Unlike a lot of baby junk i think this one was a good buy

Similar to Ikea Poang as others have said - Asda 'Bentwood' chair - got for £30 in sale. I never really used it for feeding but I did for expressing. I bought a cheap old lady footstool (one that you can change into different positions) this made it so comfortable. The chair is still in use for bedtime stories with 2 year old. It was very handy for bouncing baby to sleep as I could sit down and he could be upright as he was a reflux baby. The only issue is the padding is a bit thin and you can feel the slats beneath, but for the price I think it was good. There's always the option of buying extra foam or sitting on a cushion.

I had an Ikea Poang, which I found really comfy, and I plan to use again this time.

Blimey! Never bought a chair to do it - used to use a nursing pillow and then balance whatever paperback i happened to be reading on DDs head til she finished - worked for us :)