When you are pregnant and breastfeeding, your breasts need a lot of support, during both the day and night. In order to reduce back pain and prevent stretch marks and future sagging, you should wear a sleep bra for nighttime sleeping and nursing sessions. 

Sleep bras are nursing bras designed to be worn for sleeping and any late night breastfeeding that interrupts your sleep. A sleep bra holds your breasts in place throughout the night. Its soft, comfortable elastic under the bust cushions and supports your breasts and its thick straps support your increased bust size without digging into your shoulders and back.

Although a sleep bra is important throughout your pregnancy, it is basically essential starting at month six, when your bust begins its biggest growth spurt. It may even be used for low-impact exercise. Your own comfort is essential when you are nursing, since it benefits both you and your baby. The sleep bra’s soft, stretchy cotton spandex material cradles your bust without compressing it. Since, it contains no underwire, you do not have to worry about clogged milk ducts. It keeps nursing pads in place throughout the night and its pullover, wrap design makes it easy to wear.

Ideally, you should own a total of three sleep nursing bras: one to wear, one to wash, and one to have ready.

As previously mentioned underwire bras may not be suitable nursing bras since if they are ill-fitted they may cause plugged ducts or mastitis. However, if you are a large breasted woman, underwire nursing bras may provide the best support. You should never sleep in an underwire bra and you must make sure that the wire puts no pressure on your breasts. If you are unaccustomed to wearing underwire bras, you should wear wireless nursing bras. Ones without underwire may be more comfortable, but if you are big-busted, they may not provide you with enough support. 

Most nursing bras now include front flaps, which may be detached, without unclasping the bra, for your nursing convenience. These bras are designed for discreet nursing and certain models have adjustable flaps to accommodate changing cup sizes. These bras make nursing easy and are ideal if you have to nurse in public. The flaps either connect at the top of the bra cups or in between the two cups, near the band of the bra. Before you purchase the bras, you need to make sure the flaps clasp and unclasp easily, otherwise trying to nurse will be very frustrating.

Other nursing bras have no underwire or flaps, but are made so that they may be easily pulled to one side with one hand. These bras tend to be made from softer materials and are thus very comfortable; they are suitable to wear while you are sleeping. They are also generally less expensive than other types of nursing bras, but they may lack the proper support that underwire and flap nursing bras offer.

Choosing the right nursing bras really depends on the size of your breasts and personal preference. To learn more about nursing bras, including how to have other types of brand name bras converted into nursing bras, visit BrasNYC.com.

Nursing bras may not be the most glamorous undergarments you own, but they may well be the most important. You do not want to wait until after your water breaks to buy nursing bras. 

Most of your breath growth during pregnancy occurs during the first twelve weeks, although some women’s breasts may continue to grow until 20 weeks. After this period, really only your rib cage grows due to your expanding stomach, so you should purchase your nursing bras then. The majority of women wear ill-fitting bras; if you think you are one of them, it is particularly important that you get measured for an appropriately fitting nursing bra.

During pregnancy and when you are nursing are the two most important times of your life to have proper bras.  Ligaments in your chest wall support your breasts and without the proper support, they stretch as your breasts get larger and heavier. You may not notice any resulting sagging until you are no longer pregnant or nursing.

Nursing bras also promote better breast health, since wearing either the wrong size bras or wired bras while breastfeeding may put pressure on your breast tissues and cause health issues such as plugged ducts and mastitis (breast infection).

BrasNYC.com offers a wide selection of nursing bras, so you may find the nursing bras that best suit you. BrasNYC.com will even convert any other type of brand name bras into nursing bras for you!