Do you wear them 24/7?

It just occurred to me that once baby is born and the milk kicks in, there is bound to be some leakage. Does this mean that we have to be wearing our maternity bras 24/7 so that we can stick in the breast pad? I'm curious coz I normally dont wear my bra when I'm home. It's just a preference n I like the 'freedom'. ;)

Sorry if it seems like a silly question but it's been niggling at me....

I did for the first few weeks (actually, it was probably a couple of months come to think of it LOL.. altho not always around the house towards the end of the leaky stage)... but I bought a comfy night time nursing bra, which was great for night time (of course) and for around the house.

Some people wear little tank type tops which would hold breastpads in place as well. You'll work out what's comfy for you :)

I'm pretty sure your milk supply adjusts after the inital milk comes in etc. and your body gets used to feeding. But i think we will need to wear them until our milk supplies do settle down. I have already taken wearing my bra's night and day because of A. leakage and B. support even whilst sleeping.

Actually - I'll just add, now that I think about it, that I mainly leaked whilst he was feeding.. I didn't have that much leakage between feeds, so I guess you could get away with just 'catching' those leaks as they happen.. but I felt better knowing I wouldn't leak all over my tops, so wore a bra & pads for a while. heh.

Most women do for the first few weeks...until you know how leaky you'll be. Everyone leaks a bit to begin with, especially when the milk first comes in. Also, if your breasts get very heavy & full, you may want the support. You don't know until you're doing it :) Just follow your own comfort level. It's not very nice to wake up in a milky top with milky sheets, LOL.
I never needed pads after about 3-4 weeks. Hope you'll be another non-leaker!

hahaha!! thanks ladies....the thought of milky sheets n tops - hhmmm....wonder if the man would appreciate it!! *lol*

it's the sour milk smell that's yuk! LOL. Oh gosh - it's bringing it all back now - something for me to look forward to at the end of the year! LOL.

I had to wear a maternity bra 24/7 and breast pads till the day my DD refused to b/f anymore at 7 months. I also had to put a towel down in the bed for the first few weeks because otherwise I left a puddle!

goodness me!!! i'll have to wait n see what damage this leaking is going to do to me.. ;)

Great question Mistyeiz, I hadnt even thought this. Sounds to me like the best thing to do is wear a bra and pads 24/7.

I have been wearing my maternity bras pretty much 24/7 since my daughter was born, but I only used breast pads for a few days as I found them uncomfortable and itchy. I also did the towel under me in bed in those first couple of weeks when my milk was just starting, but now I dont have leakage unless she sleeps through when she would normally have fed.

I wear a bra pretty much 24/7 now! And I will wear it right up until teh new bub stops b/f. That's what I did with DD.

At night I tend to wear a lighter support sports crop thing (which will change to a light suppport feeding bra). During the day I need a good supporting bra. I am about a DD-E at the moment.

My advice - if you want to try to eliminate the possibility of strech marks, wear a bra as often as possible.

I am still wearing bra 24/7! I am wishing for a nights sleep without one though!! What bliss that would be...lol. I'm too afraid to try going without though cos as mentioned I don't want a wet bed the next morning!! My milk just recently readjusted and my boobs were VERY full and sore for a few mornings and probably leaky... so yeah, not game to try it!

I too wore a bra 24/7 for at least 5-6 months - just until my breasts sorted themselves out. you might find that they are really heavy and you may need to wear a bra all the time to ease the pain - I know I did!
My husband was so excited the first time I didn't wear a bra to bed!

I wear a bra 24/7 now and did during my prg with DD as well from about 15 weeks. I read that having support even when you're sleeping can help to prevent stretch marks in bigger breasted woman (that's me!!) I didn't get a single stretch mark so I thought I'd stick with it this time too! And they are so huge I just find the support more comfortable.

I b/fed DD for 16 months and I wore a bra pretty much 24/7 then. But if I were smaller breasted it would probably be a different story.

For the first 2 weeks i didn't wear a bra to bed, i slept on a towel to soak up leakages, but every time i got up to feed during the night i would leak all over my dressing gown i just didn't even think to wear bras to bed. When DS was 2 weeks old we went away for a week so i had to wear bra to bed so my milk wouldn't soak everything. next bub i will be wearing a bra 24/7 to start with, much easier and cleaner i reckon.

kirst11 - ooo...your remark would definitely get me wearing my maternity bra for a long time!! i'm so scared of stretch marks n so far, i dont have any yet!!

I wore my materinty bra's just in the day, it stop the leaking. Sure wish I had thought of putting a towel under me at night. Had to change the sheet every second or third night. Next time I would be wiser!! Could not wear the pads, it was always itchy!!