Nursing clothes

ldmw

I'm a FTM due in May and am trying to plan in advance for what clothes I'll need for breastfeeding. I will eventually go back to work and plan to breastfeed and pump for 1 year.

What do you ladies where daily? Normal clothes but with a nursing bra? Only wear nursing tops? Or a nursing tank underneath regular clothes? I have no idea what to expect, so any tips on what to buy and not to buy would be appreciated.

PeanettyGoodness

I have nursing bras and nursing tanks. I much prefer my nursing tanks over my bras, because if I have to feed my little guy while I'm out or whatever, my stomach doesn't show. Plus, with it being cold, it keeps me warm. I wear both under normal clothes.

shibelvr4eva

Bamboobies for pads and Undercover mama for tanks. I also have a hands free pumping bra that I love.

bohemianlc

During the night, I wear a cotton nursing bra underneath a button-front shirt or nightie. I really like the Gilligan O' Malley sleep bras from Target.

I would resist the temptation to buy a ton of "official nursing" tops/dresses. I have one Momzelle top that I bought for a good deal on Zulily, but otherwise I just wear regular clothes with a nursing bra and pads underneath. More often than not, I wear button-front tops and dresses, or an open-front cardigan with a tank underneath. I have become a big fan of button-front shirt dresses while nursing! From my experience, I found that tops and dresses that are officially marketed as being for nursing are often overpriced.

With that said, I do have a few nursing tanks from Target and Motherhood Maternity that I do wear quite often. I have found that basic jersey/cotton tanks with a nursing bra underneath have worked just as well for me, too, because I can easily pull them down when I need to nurse. 

As for pads, I really like the Lansinoh ones, but I haven't tried any other brands of disposables, so I can't really speak for them. I tried some of the washable cotton ones, but I found that they didn't soak up a lot of milk, so I was left feeling wet and uncomfortable. 

ldmw

Thank you ladies! I'm so glad you said I really only need some bras and tanks. I can't wait to wear my regular clothes again, and did not want to invest in any "nursing" tops.

Designermomma

I bought a few used nursing tops on eBay for the first few months so I could get the hang of things but I eventually found that wearing loose tops were easier to manage than all the secret panels etc. I bought a nursing shield/cover which was very useful for nursing while people visited us in the hospital as well as in public later. Pads and nursing bras/tanks. You'll need a few comfy "sleeping" nursing bras too. When your milk first comes in your breasts might swell for a little while so the stretchy tanks/bras are good for that until they settle down but when I went back to work I needed more support and bought nursing bras at that time to make sure they fit properly.

Doridoodles

I always wear nursing tanks.. that way im Always covered and can nurse while wearing regular tops.

pamis626

Everyone has great advice, I just wanted to add that nursing tanks are great! Put one under your regular shirt and that can be moved up while the nursing tank goes down and you are still really covered. At home I lived in a nursing tanks with breast pads.