Oct 15, 2009

Review: Milking Nursing Pads for All They’re Worth

A couple weeks after giving birth to my gorgeous daughter, I strolled into Starbucks feeling rather good about myself.  Wearing a pre-pregnancy dress and high-heeled boots, I felt like — dare I say it? — a hot mama.  While I waited for my latte, I chatted with the barista about my baby and noticed that he was checking me out.  Wow.  I really MUST be looking good, I thought.

Until I got home and looked down… and realized that he wasn’t admiring me, but rather staring in horror at the fresh milk stains on my breasts.

Hot.

I’ve had the mixed blessing of abundant milk production:  good for baby; not so good for me.  Determined not to give any more Starbucks baristas nightmares about my leaky boobs, I’ve tried out a number of different nursing pads and thought I’d share my experiences (for which I have not received any free product samples, by the way).

Gerber Ultra-Thin Nursing Pads:  Intrigued by the slightly cheaper price tag ($5.99) and the ultra-thinness (my lactating breasts do NOT need extra padding, if you know what I’m sayin’), I tried these pads first.  Unfortunately, ultra-thin meant, well, ultra-thin.  My milk floweth over.  Not very effective for this milk-”blessed” mama.

Glitzy Gals Washable Nursing Pads:   They’re pretty!  They’re reusable!  They’re… immediately soaked, uncomfortable and ineffective.  On the bright side, they make very cute coasters for my iced lattes.

Johnson’s Nursing Pads:  I’d asked my husband to pick up some nursing pads (bless his soul), and he grabbed a box of these — which has become my go-to nursing pad.  They’re bulkier, but worth it.  Super absorbent, they even hold back overnight floods of milk.  The nursing pad equivalent of the Aswan Dams, if you will.  Because of the small adhesive, they do move around sometimes.  Which is why I’ve become a fanatic about making sure they’re in place.  So, sure, I often look like I’m feeling myself up, but at least my shirt is dry.