Like many moms-to-be, the second trimester of pregnancy ushered in the official debut of my growing baby bump &#; and with it, some serious growing pains. It was around this time that I started desperately searching the Internet for the best belly band for pregnancy after my OB/GYN suggested one might help my round ligament pain &#; the sharp, shooting pains that typically flare up after week 14 of pregnancy, as your uterus expands and starts to grow out of the pelvis.
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Pregnancy belly bands &#; sometimes called pregnancy belts or maternity belts &#; wrap around your lower back and abdomen to gently cradle your bump, easing pressure. &#;They can help support the uterus and, if worn lower on the abdomen, can help pull the baby off the pelvis,&#; explains April Dunmyre, D.O., assistant director of UPMC Magee-Womens Hospital Womancare Associatesin Pittsburgh.
I found that wearing a maternity belt significantly helped alleviate my round ligament pain and made being on my feet more comfortable. Plus, pregnancy belly bands can potentially help relieve lower back pain in addition to pelvic pain.
Just keep in mind that these special bands for pregnant bellies are different from pants extenders, which are designed to help you wear your non-maternity jeans for longer and offer lighter support. (Although some belly bands may do both.)
To determine which pregnancy belly bands are safe to use and effective, I spoke to three OB/GYNs: Dr. Dunmyre; Shannon Smith, M.D. a board-certified OB/GYN and partner at Brigham Faulkner OB/Gyn Associates in Boston, Massachusetts and a member of the What to Expect Medical Review Board; and Jennifer Wu, M.D., an OB/GYN and a member of the What to Expect Medical Review Board. These experts helped me better understand how maternity bands work and the features you might want to look for when buying one. I also referenced information from the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) for additional information about pregnancy belly bands and round ligament pain.
Based on their feedback, I rounded up more than a dozen top-rated pregnancy belly bands on the market for consideration. To narrow down this list and select the very best options, I took my own experience into account &#; I&#;m a mom of two who wore maternity belts in both pregnancies, as well as a former parenting editor, so I&#;ve encountered my fair share of pregnancy belly bands over the years. Finally, in order to get a more general sense of what brands and types of pregnancy belly bands moms prefer, I spoke to moms on the What to Expect staff, then canvassed the What to Expect community boards to get direct feedback from moms and moms-to-be who used the maternity belts I was considering.
I combined these real-parent recommendations, along with insight from our experts, into the below list of the best belly bands for pregnancy that are comfortable, supportive and easy to use.
Pregnancy changes your body, and it can take time to recover. Some women use a postpartum belly wrap after having a baby to help their muscles.
For more information, please visit Pelvic Brace For Pregnancy.
Studies show that wraps or binders might help with pain and healing after a C-section (cesarean section). They might also help support your organs and muscles as they move back into place after having a baby.
Postpartum belly wraps are sometimes called a belly band or a belly binder. Doctors suggest binding after major abdominal surgery, including after a C-section. There are benefits to using an after-birth belly wrap.
These include:
Supporting your pelvic floor. Your organs move and change during pregnancy to make room for a growing baby. During pregnancy, hormones also make your pelvic floor muscles relax. This can cause you to leak urine after having a baby.
Using a postpartum belly wrap can offer some compression to gently hold your muscles in place as your body heals.
Diastasis recti. During pregnancy, the two large muscles that run down either side of your stomach area split apart as your uterus expands and pushes against them. This is called diastasis recti. Usually, your separated stomach muscles will go back into place on their own by 8 weeks after giving birth.
Using a wrap can compress and support your muscles as they move back into place. A postpartum belly wrap isn&#;t a cure for diastasis recti. If you still have an obvious gap between your muscles after 8 weeks, you may have a condition called diastasis recti.
Although today&#;s belly wraps are trendy, they have actually been around for a long time, says Donnica Moore, MD, president of the Sapphire Women&#;s Health Group in Far Hills, NJ, and co-author of Women&#;s Health for Life.
&#;This is not a new thing,&#; she says. &#;Belly wraps were used for people with back pain because they increased abdominal support, which helped people with back pain get around better."
If you are looking for more details, kindly visit Pregnancy Back Support Brace.