New baby and breastfeeding - what on earth should I be wearing?!?!

[GreatSoprendo]

Please help me

DS1 is just 3 weeks old. He was/is an enormo-baby and i was mostly bmp, so I've gone from having a huge pregnant bump to a pretty small jelly belly. Boobs are currently 40d and am exclusively breast feeding.

Pre-preg I was a size 12, sometimes a 10 on top with a 34b bust, but unsurprisingly none of my pre-pre clothes fit. Trousers won't fasten and while can get into stretchy tops and tees they are all taut over my boobs and therefore not suitable for public wearing! Can't keep my maternity jeans up so they are not an option and am stuck in track suit trousers. I only have one pair of those, and DS has just peed all over them

Today DS and I haven't been out the house as I genuinely felt i had no clothes to put on that I felt happy to leave the house in - I know that sounds vain, and I'm really not usually, but I feel like I'm really losing my confidence. Meant to be meeting a friend later this week in a nice cafe and am already stressing about what I will wear.

What did you wear in this stage? Need stuff that is easy to feed in as I'm far from skilled at the moment. I'm thinking shirt dresses with vests under? Maybe some skinny jeans in a bigger size than normal? With loose long tshirts? Any suggestions of styles and shops? Don't want to spend too much as hope this is a short term issue. Have spent most of the afternoon searching online but just feel a bit bewildered.....

Hope you can help and thanks

Harem trousers for bottoms.

Tops - anything that buttons or stretches down/lifts up, with a spaghetti strap vest underneath for tummy coverage.

Get a nice scarf or two for breastfeeding in public too - muslins aren't so cute!

Congratulations

oh and are you sure about 40D? Who fitted you? Unless you grew massively all over, it's not that common to go up so many back sizes - sure you wouldn't need a bigger cup instead? A correctly fitting bra will also make a huge difference in how the rest of your clothes fit.

YY to jersey trousers that are not joggers , perhaps ones like yoga pants

Or Very soft jeggings .

You will needto buy something, you can't just hide in the house until you loose the weight. for some women it falls off,I didn't lose much until I stopped BF .

No to any type of dresses, until you are a more experinced BF er

Your top options are either long loose tops that you shove the baby up inside

Or more fitted tops with a vest top underneath.you take one up and the other down.

Cardigans, epsieclaly long loose ones ( or the much despised by Mners waterfall ones) are good for draping over boobs when feeding

YY to nice scarves, you can wear them for years .

Basic trousres and tops can look really nice with make up, hair done and accessories. You don't have to be frumpy until you wean your baby

Oh I forgot to say, hazel has a good point about your bra, I suspect it's the wrong size.go over to the bra threads and give them your measurements

Treat yourself to some nursing tops.. it will be worth the money to feel good during the transition back to normality !!! H&M deliver and have them for reasonable prices.
Leggings might be good too. I heard a tip to get lots of long spaghetti style vests for under tops to keep modesty and long floaty tops over them. Congrats on baby :)

I bought high waisted jeans in a bigger size. I wanted cheapies so went to New Look - their supersoft skinnies are very comfortable. H&M do breastfeeding tops which allow discreet access without needing to have one top up one top down.

Inspired by MN I got properly fitted for a nursing bra. I thought I was a 34C but I was a 30F! The difference a good bra makes while feeding is amazing :)

Congratulations :)

Similar position here. DS is 16 days old and I'm pretty much back to my old size (I gained 1.5 stone but DS was best part of 10lb, plus he's BFing so much it's like liposuction).

However, I have an (unexpected) CS scar so the thought of wearing my size 10 skinnies doesn't appeal as it'll hurt and I'll have a 'shelf'. I don't want to wear fitted tops as I have a lovely wobbly tum!

I have been wearing jersey harems from next in my pp size and some nice, thick leggings. I like the fact I didn't have to size up as I would have in jeans so I can wear them when (if) I'm back to normal.

On top, I'm wearing longline vests with a t-shirt over the top so I can pull the vest down/t-shirt up to BF.

I can't wear anything with buttons as my bra size is currently 30J.

Thanks for the suggestions! I def don't want to hide in the house - have a credit card here burning a hole in my pocket for some online shopping as am desperate to get out. Think the bottom half is the biggest issue as nothing fastens so the harems and jeggings are great suggestions as are the high waisted jeans - thanks! As for the boobs, this is based on a totally inexpert home measurement courtesy of my sister . Just need them to settle so I can get properly measured. I'm sure that will make me feel more normal!

sneezy - you sound similar to me although a bit more together! DS is 3 wks and weighed 9lb12 so have lost an awful lot of the weight already but need something I can fold some of the jelly belly inside!

Credit card about to take a hit.....

Soprendo that's only because this is DC2! With DD I took much longer to lose the baby weight and walked around in a variety of ill-fitting, milk-covered clothes for months! I've found BFing much easier this time, so
I'm more confident to feed in public, hence the top/vest combo.

I did have some nursing vests from M&S last time which had a tummy control panel in them. May have to get some more to tackle the Wobblies!

OP I am in the same position. Three week old ds, size 12 before. I went up from 34b to 40c/38d. Measured at 36 weeks at m&s and last week at mothercare. Consistent measurements with regard to back sizes.

It is frustrating. I found some nice bf tops in H&M.
Congrats on your ds!

Clothes.

Whatever you want.

Definitely get measured I was wearing old nursing bras from last time and I went to Debenhams and got measured last week got a lovely well fitting Miriam Stopard bra which I love. Have ordered another!

H and m do some b'feeding tops I'm sure try go to big sizes, wear under "normal" tops if all else fails.

I wore pyjamas for the first month

They were the only darn things that didn't irritate my c-section wound. I was self-conscious at first but nobody ever noticed.

I absolutely don't believe you're a 40D! Where's Sorrell? BRA GURU KLAXON!

Other than that, yoga pants, jeggings. Stretchy vests either doubled up or with a t-shirt over the top. T-shirt up, vest down over boob, bob's your uncle. Agree about nice scarves. Also comfy soft knits.

MumOfTwoCats if both M&S and Mothercare measured you as 38D/40C, you are probably about 32/34 and around an E cup. Both those shops use the out-dated "add 4 inches" method.

OP, check fitting advice here:
thebetterbracampaign.blogspot.co.uk/p/fitting-advice.html

thebetterbracampaign.blogspot.co.uk/p/fitting-advice.html

Should have said. The absolute best stretchy vests are H&M maternity vests because they're really long. I'm still wearing mine for bed although they are full of holes and I stopped feeding well over a year ago.

And I am a passionate advocate for the underwired feeding bra. Just because you're BFing does not mean that you should suffer boobs round your naval for a year. Underwire is a human right I tell you!

so shoot me...

wear what the hell you like, and get a breasfeeding cover

i bloody loved mine! black one

and saves you from the hell of a £29.99 breastfedding vest, fuck OFF!

Those proper breastfeeding vest things are hideous and really uncomfortable. I could never psychologically get past the little slits where your nipples were supposed to come through

Stretchy vests is all you need.

Have fed 3 and this time, with number 3, finally found a solution I was happy with. Skinny jeans or Next body shaper leggings, long vest, tunic top and a breastfeeding cover. Number 3 has been a really faffy feeder from day 1 due to tongue tie, reflux, general personality etc. and having a cover has been fantastic and made it far easier to get out and about a lot.

5mo ds here...

Cord stretch skinnies, (flat) knee boots, vest top and cotton shirt in a size too big plus or minus cardigan and coat depending on weather/sling. At 3 weeks i was still in dp's shirts, have now picked up some pretty ones fiver in the tesco sale i do try and remember to do my buttons up (only need to undo the top few) but the vest covers my bra if i forget or don't have time

And a properly fitted nursing bra!

Thanks again for suggestions! I absolutely will be getting properly measured for bras (and not at M&S or Mothercare -I've read those threads ). However there seems no point until size has settled a bit, which will hopefully be soon. Meanwhile I have Bravado silk seamless nursing bras that can cope with the fluctuation.

Have ordered high wasted jeans, some loose jersey tops, big scarf and long jersey cardigan. Should hopefully get me going!