When did you start using your belly band?

SushiNoMore · October 2010

Right now, I can still fit into my pants, but I'm not sure how much longer that's going to last. Since you all are further along than me: What made you start using your belly bands? Did you wait until your pants physically couldn't button anymore, or did you start using the bands when you started to get uncomfortable in your regular pants?

I ask because I don't want my pants falling down if I start using it too early, but I also don't want to wait too long and be unnecessarily uncomfortable.

Thanks!

MrsMackenzie2010 · October 2010

i started using mine as soon as i got it.... like week 8? LOL some of my pants were just slightly uncomfortable. I dont think your pants are going to fall from being unbuttoned. Plus, it doesnt really help THAT much, if you wait to use it it may just be useless, because you'll want to go directly to maternity pants.

cynnnabun · October 2010

I switched over to maternity already, but that's because I was big pre-pregnancy, and so even though I don't have a "bump", my uterus is uncomfortable in normal pants. hahah.

PS- we're due date buddies. yay!

SushiNoMore · October 2010

cynnnabun:
I switched over to maternity already, but that's because I was big pre-pregnancy, and so even though I don't have a "bump", my uterus is uncomfortable in normal pants. hahah.
PS- we're due date buddies. yay!

Awesome! I think there are a few of us on here. I refuse to hang out on the May board - I'm in denial that I'll likely be late! ;-)

MamabirdtoBe · October 2010

I thought I'd use it the whole time but I barely did. At 14 and a half weeks I bought it for a couple pairs of my jeans, but could still fit into some of them fine. When my favorite pair quit fitting, I just bought maternity jeans at 16 weeks. They're much more comfortable and I don't feel like my pants are falling down all the time!

Maybe I didn't have a good band, but I always felt like my pants were just open and about to come off.

Nechie122 · October 2010

I think I started around 13-14 weeks. My jeans still button even now, but my stomach gets so bloated over the course of the day, I start really appreciating it around 3pm. You could always keep it in your car/bag and play around with it at different times of day.

cynnnabun · October 2010

SushiNoMore:
cynnnabun:

I switched over to maternity already, but that's because I was big pre-pregnancy, and so even though I don't have a "bump", my uterus is uncomfortable in normal pants. hahah.

PS- we're due date buddies. yay!

Awesome! I think there are a few of us on here. I refuse to hang out on the May board - I'm in denial that I'll likely be late! ;-)

Hahaha! I'm the SAME way. I haven't even looked over there, because I'm absolutely SURE I'll give birth in April. cause, yanno, it's something I can control and everything ...

MG7 · October 2010

At like 8 or 9 weeks Embarrassed my pants were tighter than I would have liked having nothing to do with a baby. The early pg bloat has at least allowed me to get my full money's worth out of the belly bands. I'm actually using them still now for two pairs of maternity pants that are a bit too big. I feel kind of squished wearing it now but better than pants on the ground.

Once this period of pants limbo is over I'll be a bit happier!

ManiacMcGee · October 2010

I can still button my regular pants, but they are really uncomfortable when I sit down. So I started using the bella band so I wouldn't be fussing with the button every time I sat/stood. It still makes the pants sag, but not nearly as much as my demi panel mat jeans, so its a nice in-between

I've pretty much given up on comfortable fitted mat pants.

SushiNoMore · October 2010

ManiacMcGee:
I can still button my regular pants, but they are really uncomfortable when I sit down. So I started using the bella band so I wouldn't be fussing with the button every time I sat/stood. It still makes the pants sag, but not nearly as much as my demi panel mat jeans, so its a nice in-between
I've pretty much given up on comfortable fitted mat pants.

Thanks everyone! I'll have to at least try out the bands. I haven't even opened the packages yet.

McGee - what are your struggles with maternity pants? I'm small, so that's my trouble. Since maternity pants generally start at Small (instead of real sizes), they're generally too big for me. I've had really good luck at Target and Gap, though. The pants there come in "real" sizes - not just S/M/L. I bought a couple of pairs already - they're sitting in my closet.

Good luck!

ManiacMcGee · October 2010

SushiNoMore:
ManiacMcGee:
I can still button my regular pants, but they are really uncomfortable when I sit down. So I started using the bella band so I wouldn't be fussing with the button every time I sat/stood. It still makes the pants sag, but not nearly as much as my demi panel mat jeans, so its a nice in-between
I've pretty much given up on comfortable fitted mat pants.
Thanks everyone! I'll have to at least try out the bands. I haven't even opened the packages yet.
McGee - what are your struggles with maternity pants? I'm small, so that's my trouble. Since maternity pants generally start at Small (instead of real sizes), they're generally too big for me. I've had really good luck at Target and Gap, though. The pants there come in "real" sizes - not just S/M/L. I bought a couple of pairs already - they're sitting in my closet.
Good luck!

I find them horribly uncomfortable. I have one pair of demi panels from Gap that were great when I was just bloated, but then they sagged on my butt. I had to hitch them up 100x a day and I hate doing that. Now that I've popped outwards, the band hurts when I sit--too constrictive. I can't seem to fold it down enough to comfortably sit under my bump, which is what I want it to do.

I have a pair of full panel pants, but my bump isn't big enough for them so they sag and the hitching up is harder b/c the waistband is so thin.

Ugh. I'm hoping to do some shopping today and try on some other types of styles.

SushiNoMore · October 2010

ManiacMcGee:
SushiNoMore:
ManiacMcGee:
I can still button my regular pants, but they are really uncomfortable when I sit down. So I started using the bella band so I wouldn't be fussing with the button every time I sat/stood. It still makes the pants sag, but not nearly as much as my demi panel mat jeans, so its a nice in-between
I've pretty much given up on comfortable fitted mat pants.
Thanks everyone! I'll have to at least try out the bands. I haven't even opened the packages yet.
McGee - what are your struggles with maternity pants? I'm small, so that's my trouble. Since maternity pants generally start at Small (instead of real sizes), they're generally too big for me. I've had really good luck at Target and Gap, though. The pants there come in "real" sizes - not just S/M/L. I bought a couple of pairs already - they're sitting in my closet.
Good luck!
I find them horribly uncomfortable. I have one pair of demi panels from Gap that were great when I was just bloated, but then they sagged on my butt. I had to hitch them up 100x a day and I hate doing that. Now that I've popped outwards, the band hurts when I sit--too constrictive. I can't seem to fold it down enough to comfortably sit under my bump, which is what I want it to do.
I have a pair of full panel pants, but my bump isn't big enough for them so they sag and the hitching up is harder b/c the waistband is so thin.
Ugh. I'm hoping to do some shopping today and try on some other types of styles.

That stinks! I think you can wear the belly bands over the maternity pants - have you tried that? It's supposed to help keep them up.

I've heard the demi ones won't make it through the full pregnancy. Once your belly gets bigger, it starts pushing down on the pants, so they fall down.

Sorry you're having such bad luck!

MamabirdtoBe · October 2010

To the small ladies or ones uncomfortable in maternity jeans - I got a pair called Loved by Heidi Klum at Motherhood Maternity and they are a dream. I wear them almost every single day, and can't stand my other 2 pairs now. They sit under the belly, and don't have a band. They just look like normal jeans, with a band sewn into the inside.

They're skinny jeans, which I never wore before. But they are surprisingly cute with flats, and tucked into boots.

I wore a size 0/2 before, and I'm 5'2. I worried about jeans swimming on me, but these are perfect. I got the XS and they fit great, with a bit of room in the stretchiness to grow.

ManiacMcGee · October 2010

MamabirdtoBe:
To the small ladies or ones uncomfortable in maternity jeans - I got a pair called Loved by Heidi Klum at Motherhood Maternity and they are a dream. I wear them almost every single day, and can't stand my other 2 pairs now. They sit under the belly, and don't have a band. They just look like normal jeans, with a band sewn into the inside.
They're skinny jeans, which I never wore before. But they are surprisingly cute with flats, and tucked into boots.
I wore a size 0/2 before, and I'm 5'2. I worried about jeans swimming on me, but these are perfect. I got the XS and they fit great, with a bit of room in the stretchiness to grow.

I read your post before and I was intrigued, but while I am on the smaller side, I am also very curvy. I tried on Gap skinny jeans and I looked ridiculous. I may still give these a shot, but did they have non-skinny style versions?

MrsB*7*21 · October 2010

I used my bella band for weeks 9 & 10 and then officially switched to maternity pants. I couldn't sit comfortably in my jeans when they were buttoned so I started using it.

kje120 · October 2010

Haven't had to yet, but I assume it's coming in the next week or so.

Hippixie4 · October 2010

I bought a band from Motherhood Maternity and only wore it with my work pants a few times. I hate the feeling of anything tight on my belly right now and it just felt weird and uncomfortable to be honest. I'm pretty small and everytime I sat down, I felt like my pants were falling off! I've already switched to maternity pants and I like how comfy they are. They are a little baggy in the back, but it's nice to know that I can breathe when I wear them!

CatfishAnn · October 2010

I'm at about 14 and a half weeks, and I just started using mine in the last week or so, but not with every pair of pants. I have stretchy, low-rise jeans that still fit under my bump pretty well (although I feel like an old man with a beer gut spilling over when I sit down). Some of my nicer work pants were a bit snug to begin with, and I definitely need the band with them now. With other pants, I can leave the top button unbuttoned and wear a belt to keep the strain off the zipper.

babyjohnsonkirchner · October 2010

I've been using the bella band since about 12 weeks. I don't want to buy maternity pants until I'm really big enough.

virginiagirl11 · October 2010

I used rubber bands on my pre-pg jeans until about 13/14 weeks. At that point, I went out and bought a pair of maternity jeans and my SIL lent me two pairs of hers along with a few belly bands.

I wore a belly band for one day and haven't touched it since. I hated how it rode up every time I sat down at my desk. I've been wearing maternity jeans ever since and much prefer them to anything else.

I was a size 2/4 pre-pg and like both brands of maternity jeans I'm using for different reasons. The Target Liz Lange jeans are a size 2 and are slim-leg, dark wash. I like them because the band is tight so that when I fold it over it holds my jeans up. However, the jeans stretch out throughout the day so by the end, they're a little baggy.

The Motherhood Maternity jeans from my SIL are a size small (one is a pair of skinny jeans, one is boot cut) and I like them because they're flattering and fit really well all day. However, the band is looser so they slide down a lot while my belly is still small.

I need to check out the under-belly brand that MamaBird suggested.

bradyg927 · November 2010

I started around 8 weeks. My pants still fit me then, but I thought it just felt more comfortable and wanted to get use to the band. I bought BeBand from Target. Works awesome! I still use it b/c I'm just trying to hold off buying maternity pants as long as I can. As long as my pants still fit me (minus the belly), I'll probably just keep wearing the band.

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