UPDATE - After over a month of using it, I just slept with it on for the first time and had my first pain-free night of sleep in weeks! I’m actually blown away. Getting up to use the bathroom in the middle of the night and getting up in the morning has been the hardest part of my day. I could hardly get there without nearly falling over because my pelvis was so unstable and the pain was unbearable. Wearing this to bed, I could roll over in bed, get up, and walk to the bathroom without any pain at all. I’m annoyed with myself for just now trying to sleep with it on. 35 weeks pregnant at this point. Changed my rate to a 5-star because while the defect is still annoying, using a flannel cloth has continued to work and is a small price to pay for the relief this brace provides! 10/10 would recommend this for any pregnant mama with SPD!! TL;DR - high quality, discrete, easy to use, extremely helpful for SPD. Has a slight design flaw that can cause some discomfort but can be easily remedied. Worth the money. Bought this for SPD and it has been tremendously helpful! Instant relief! I have SPD so badly that walking is hard and extremely painful, I wake up nearly every hour throughout the night in pain, my round ligament pain is exacerbated by the SPD, etc… all around not pleasant. This brace has substantially increased my quality of life. Not even exaggerating! I can keep up with my toddlers and housework and social life without being in agony. My only complaint is that in order to be tight enough to give my pelvis the stability it needs (which isn’t even tight enough to leave an impression on my skin), the band itself is stretched to be more narrow than the rough part of the velcro. This ends up causing the rough side to hang over the soft side once you attach it in place and rub directly against your skin, which is very uncomfortable. I have to keep a flannel cloth between the band and my skin to prevent this friction. Poor design but the quality of the band and the benefits far outweigh this annoying design flaw in my opinion. Despite other reviews, I find this to be super easy to put under clothing and wear discretely. It’s super easy to pull up and down like pants so I haven’t found it hard to use the restroom or change clothes, etc. The Velcro is extremely secure so it stays exactly where I need in to each time I use the restroom…which at 31 weeks is a lot. Will certainly recommend this to any friend suffering from SPD! Read more
A must for vulvar varicosities! Second pregnancy and I felt like I had a vein about to explode in my vulva any time I was standing/ walking. I was diagnosed with vulvar varicoses at 27 weeks and wore this every day until baby was born. This was the only thing that helped and was worth every penny. I tried expensive compressive leggings, I tried specialty medical pants and shorts, I tried KT physical therapy tape, nope. Just this. Lived in it. Ended up getting two to make laundry easier. Thankfully the vulvar varicosities are MUCH better with zero pain now I’m postpartum. I can hang up my “bum sling”. Best worn on top of shorts with dresses or black maternity yoga pants and long tops. I ordered the XS/ med and my final pregnancy weight was 135lbs. Read more
I am 5'6" and 128 pre-pregnancy and 146 now at 28 weeks. I wore this on and off for the last few days. I have a varicose vein somewhere running from the front of the pelvis under the right buttock to the back that causes me a lot of pain the longer I stand and walk around. This is my 4th baby and I'm 28 weeks. I've been dealing with the varicose vein pain for the last 2 months, and it makes daily life harder. When I put this on, I didn't feel immediate relief, but it did prevent the pain from getting worse. Also, when I put it on in the morning and stood for 5 straight hours helping at a garage sale, I did not feel any pelvic pain from my varicose vein. Therefore, I conclude that it actually does support the pelvis and can prevent pain in the pelvis from varicose veins. Style wise, if you want to wear on top of your clothes, you can wear it on top of black leggings and then put a dress, skirt or long shirt to cover it. In the photo I pulled up my long sweater, which hid the band quite well. I am giving it 4 stars because it's quite expensive, and it can't really be worn under anything but loose fitting clothing unless you simply don't care about how it looks on you. Also, the more times you take it on and off to pee, it tends to bunch up a little at the Velcro where attached in the back. This requires some readjusting sometimes to eliminate little bumps in the band where the back straps attach. Also, it is difficult to sit in it. I feel too much pressure in my pelvis and can't sit up straight in it. To drive or sit down, I usually remove it by pulling it down like underwear. Update at 30 weeks - I seriously do not know how I would make it through the day without this. I used to have to sit down or strap an ice pack to the front of my pelvis every hour because of the varicose vein pain. Now, I don't need an ice pack at all as long as I wear it all day. I have been wearing sometimes on top of regular underwear, and it does make me sweat more, so I change at least once a day. Other times I'll wear black leggings and a long shirt that covers by bottom and it doesn't show. Read more
Dude. I do not typically write reviews, but this is the most uncomfortable brace I've ever worn in my life. I am 35 weeks preggo and bought it for painful varicosities (iykyk). It certainly does the job; however, the list of cons is rather long. It makes me chaffe if I wear it while walking or doing any type of physical activity, I can't really bend with it on or the velcro digs into my belly, if I have to pee or #2 real quickly, it's like panic mode to get the velcro detached in "time", it digs into my butt crack if I don't have it arranged perfectly in the back, and it takes what seems like forever to take on and off. I bought a pair of varicosity "underwear shorts" on Amazon and they work amazingly well and I don't have any of the issues with them as with this painful contraption. The only time that I wear this thing is when my "underwear shorts" are in the washer, as I can't really afford to buy another pair at this time. I am looking forward to burning this thing once my baby is born and this issue is resolved. Read more
