Whether it’s swelling, abdominal strain, back pain, varicosities or ligament pain, most new or expecting moms experience at least one negative side effect of pregnancy or postpartum that could be reduced by some form of support wear or other specialty product. But how do you navigate the multitude of products that are available on the shelves – belly bands, support hose, compression underwear, groin bands, support belts, etc?

Below is a quick review of some of our products that help support your body during pregnancy or postpartum and alleviate or prevent some of the discomforts that you may experience:

Problem: Varicose veins

Solution: Solidea Support Knee Highs

Why we love it: Comfortable, sheer knee high support hose that help reduce symptoms of varicose and spider veins through graduated compression. May also help prevent DVT (Deep Vein Thormbosis).

Problem: C-section incision discomfort

Solution: C-Panty: The After Cesarean Underwear

Why we love it: The C-Panty was especially designed by a c-section mom and surgeon team to address post-cesarean recovery concerns including scarring, swelling, sensitivity and discomfort. An interior silicone panel increases moisture content to help address scar formation issues. A compression panel offers support while protecting your incision.

Problem: Back strain, vulvar varisocities, groin pain

Solution: Baby BellyBand

Why we love it: This super comfortable band gently wraps around your lower torso and can be used during pregnancy or postpartum to alleviate swelling, back strain, vulvar varicosities, uterine or bladder prolapse and abdominal strain. Use in conjunction with the groin band or shoulder straps for extra support.

Problem: Lower back pain

Solution: Gabrialla Maternity Support Belt

Why we love it: This belt can be used during the prenatal or postpartum periods to offer firmer support to the abdomen and lower back. Promotes proper posture and balance, allowing you to maintain an active lifestyle. Also contains a back pocket for hot and cold therapy.

Problem: Lower back pain

Solution: Backjack

Why we love it: Yes, these are the ones you see in all of our Isis classrooms! This “floor chair” is perfect for a new parent or a pregnant mom chasing around a toddler.

Problem: “Mummy Tummy”

Solution: Belly Bandit

Why we love it: For postpartum only, this belly wrap can help you look slimmer while reducing discomfort and offering support while breastfeeding. The fabric is made of bamboo which is antimicrobial, moisture wicking and more durable than cotton.

Problem: Weak abs and back

Solution: Gymnic Ball

Why we love it: This physio ball is fitness club quality—thick, durable, and anti-burst. Pregnant moms can sit on this ball to alleviate back pain and even use it during early labor. This ball does double duty after birth—bouncing with your newborn is one of our favorite ways to soothe and settle a fussy baby.

Problem: Uncomfortable waistbands

Solution: BellaBand

Why we love it: When you’re too pregnant for your regular clothes but not pregnant enough for materinity wear, this is an excellent compromise. The Bella Band goes on over your unbuttoned jeans to keep you comfortable as you expand. Use it postpartum as well to keep that baby belly in check.

Interested in checking out any of the products listed above? Just ask our center associates to help you find the product of your choice next time you are at an Isis center. They are always more than happy to help you out.

Chris Just, MSN, CNM
Executive Director of Prenatal Education

During the last hour of many of our childbirth classes, we instructors divide the room into pregnant moms on one side of the room, partners on the other. Each group makes a list in answer to the question:  “How will your life change when you have a baby?”  One of the reasons we take the time to do this exercise is that parenthood, like marriage, is romanticized.  If you only paid attention to the commercials, you would think that the first six weeks of your baby’s life is all sweet and snuggly and powdery smelling.  And yes, if you ask most people who have been there, they will tell you it is all of those incredible things – most parents report feeling a love unmatched by anything they’ve ever felt.

But those same parents often admit that there are intense emotional and physical challenges that come with the transition. One of my clients said it best: “You need to be serious with your classes when you’re talking about postpartum– remind people that sleep deprivation is used as a form of torture in some settings.”

Part of my responsibility as a childbirth instructor is giving parents permission to feel whatever they feel in the first years of their children’s lives – the sublime, the frustrated, the exhausted, the grateful, and everything in between.  No pressure to have it be like the magazines!  I remember well the stark contrast between the postpartum period I envisioned as a first-time mom (sweet, quiet, slow-paced, full of joy) and the one I actually experienced when my son was born (completely in love with him and full of profound gratitude, also often anxious, overtired, and at a loss for how to soothe him when he was crying).

So I’ve always felt lucky when I’ve found authors who are brutally honest about their experiences of new parenthood.  Anne Lamott’s Operating Instructions is one such book.  And I just read another – Bad Mother: A Chronicle of Maternal Crimes, Minor Calamities, and Occasional Moments of Grace, by Ayelet Waldman.  Waldman’s main premise is that it is all too easy in today’s society to feel like a bad mother, to question your parenting decisions, and those of others.  She points out that media and the internet make this even easier, offering ready forums for people to judge each other anonymously.

I am reminded of a time on a local moms’ listserv when a woman was chastised for getting hit by a car (while pushing a baby stroller) in a crosswalk, as though it was her fault for crossing the street.  The internet can be an incredible resource for new parents, but there is also the danger that other peoples’ passionate opinions will make you question your own.  I tell my childbirth classes to take every (often unsolicited) opinion offered to them with a grain of salt. Pregnancy is a good time to practice making choices that you determine are best for your family. Period.

When Ayelet asked women their definitions of “a good mother”, they almost always gave descriptions that were logistically impossible for humans to attain – one of my favorites:  “‘She remembers to serve fruit at breakfast, is always cheerful and never yells, manages not to project her own neuroses and inadequacies onto her children, is an active and beloved community volunteer;  she remembers to make playmates, her children’s clothes fit, and she does art projects with them and enjoys all their games.  And she is never too tired for sex.’”  Get real!

And while most of us real-life mothers would find that definition comical, most mothers I know are trying to measure up to some unattainable standard for how mothers should be that we’ve somehow gotten into our heads.  We worry that we work too much, or not enough.  We question our decisions to get an epidural, have a natural childbirth, cosleep, or Ferberize.  We read baby magazines that chastise us for wearing sweatpants and a ponytail, and we wonder why we don’t feel more energy for our children or our partners.  Waldman is eloquent in her description of the expectations that so many of us have to surrender in order to just live in the moment, parent the best we can, and accept that there’s no such thing as perfection.

That goes for our children as well– though mothers are often the ones blamed when their children have tantrums, underachieve, or don’t measure up. I still remember a friend’s initial response when my son’s preschool teachers questioned whether he had some sensory issues:  “Y’know, you’re just so busy…”  As if my schedule was part of the cause.

I tell pregnant parents that if they have sweet little quiet angel babies who hardly ever cry, they should feel free to take credit for it, but if their babies cry more than they expect them too, well, then they are in the majority of new parents. They can practice reminding themselves that there’s only so much over which they have control.  Waldman has a brilliant chapter on our expectations that our children are going to be at the top of their class– remember the bell curve, she cautions.  Which reminds me of another incredible author, Richard Weissboard, who wrote The Parents We Mean to Be: How Well Intentioned Adults Undermine their Children’s Moral Development.  He has a whole section on the overfocus on children’s achievement.  But that is a different blog entry…

So during the beginning of your child’s life, when you find yourself judging yourself or others, or questioning your parenting decisions, take a deep breath and read Bad Mother, poignantly written and brutally honest.  Most of us are making our way, doing our best, and it is not always graceful.  But even though this blog entry didn’t focus on the rewards, they will speak for themselves.  I promise.

Jennifer Averill

Isis Childbirth Educator

My due date was May 8, the day before Mothers Day. But it came and went. My first daughter Katie (2 years old) was fully prepared to see her sister but all we could tell her was, “Your sister is not ready to come out just yet.” I had been having contractions for the previous 4 weeks especially around 1 AM so it surprised me that we passed our due date. I walked and ran up and down our neighborhood hills but it didn’t work. So every night at 1 AM I woke up with contractions and to use the bathroom but it was always false labor. We were scheduled to be induced on May 12.

When I woke up on May 12 at 1 AM, I thought it was the usual nighttime contractions. But I was so wrong!

By 1:37 AM the pain increased, and I called out to my husband since I couldn’t get up from the toilet due to contractions. I asked him to pack up the car because contractions were 5-6 min. apart now. We were going to be induced that morning so we had everything set near the door and my mother was staying with us here to watch my older daughter. Every time Greg would try to pack up, I called out to him because my contractions were getting more painful and I felt so much pressure.

Finally I was able to get out of the bathroom and sat on our couch waiting for my husband to help me down the stairs but then my water broke!!! This was around 2ish now. I yelled out “Get me to the bathroom again!”  We had just had our carpets redone and I was so worried about the mess!

The contractions after the waters broke were the most painful experience for me. Contractions were back to back at this time. It felt like I was being ripped in half. I sat on the toilet again and looked at him and said “You’ve got to call 911”. He said “Do you mean, call the hospital?” I replied… “No! 9-1-1!” The dispatcher talked to my husband and asked if he needed directions on how to deliver the baby. My husband thought, NO, just get the ambulance here now!

Then they asked him to see if the head is out. He looked and Lauren’s head was already out! He yelled to me to get on the bathroom floor as the dispatcher was yelling the same to him. As I managed to slide down, I had another contraction and Lauren was born!!! After Lauren came out, my husband and I looked at each other, speechless.

All you hear was our breathing, and then Lauren cried for the first time.

A few moments later we heard the Hermosa Fire Dept. banging on our door. My mom and daughter, Katie, had slept through all my yelling and screaming! My husband Greg was so calm throughout our whole labor. Shock came on after he saw us in the ambulance and then he forgot how to get to the hospital.

The placenta was delivered at home too. The paramedic had only helped birth one other baby–during his training. They had to review the APGAR scores with each other while in my house. I held Lauren in the ambulance-it was her first ride! We wrapped Lauren up with our bath towels on the way to the hospital. We did skin to skin at the recovery room. She was 8 lbs 4.4 oz and 19 inches at birth. A bit smaller than her big sister.

We have the copy of 911 call too! I requested the CD since on news they always say that 911 calls are public. We contacted our local police and got the number for the 911 headquarters to request a copy of the call. We went back to the fire dept few weeks later and took pictures with our paramedic and ambulance.

Hope you enjoyed reading this as I enjoyed writing and reliving it again.

Faye, Greg, Katie and Lauren.

Q. Compared to her fingernails, my daughter’s toenails barely seem to grow – is this normal?
A. Toenails actually do grow at one-third to one-quarter the rate of fingernails due to air exposure, usage and blood circulation. Think of it as ten fewer trims to worry about each week!

Q. Is it okay to let my young baby stand upright?
A. Babies are thrilled to be upright by 4 or 5 months and love to stand and bounce around 6 months. These actions actually help strengthen their leg muscles. Try your best to position baby’s foot so that it’s flat on the floor rather than on tiptoes.

Q. My baby seems to be bowlegged. Is that normal?
A. Babies are naturally bowlegged because of their loose ligaments and this wider stance gives them more balance as they learn to walk.

Q. What kind of shoes do you recommend buying for my baby?
A. Research shows that “barefoot is best” for almost-walkers and new walkers, and that socks, booties and shoes should simply offer warmth and protection from rough surfaces. Thin and flexible non-slip soles are important to offer sensory input which helps coordination. Early shoes should be breathable, soft and bendable, not stiff.

Still curious about baby’s feet development? Check out the American Podiatric Medical Association’s Children’s Foot Health brochure.

As many new parents know, we’re big fans of babywearing here at Isis Parenting. Our center staff are trained to help parents choose a baby carrier or sling that fits them well, fits their baby well, and fits their lifestyle. We have written in the past about the different types of slings and the benefits of babywearing.

So we’ve been disheartened by the recent recalls and concerns about baby slings that have caused new parents to be skeptical about babywearing. As Sylvia Pagán Westphal recently expressed in her Boston Globe opinion piece, “Part of the problem is that recall announcements don’t explicitly distinguish between problems with products that are truly dangerous and defective versus products that. . . when used properly, pose little risk.”   Slings, like car seats, baby swings and other gear, are safe when used correctly.

In this video, newborn care expert Nancy Holtzman, RN, demonstrates how to safely position a newborn in a sling.

Come into Isis today for a sling and carrier demonstration and fitting. Through August 27th, Isis Members enjoy 20% off all Maya Wrap slings and Hotslings (nonmembers save 10%).