My Mei Tai hurts....

My mum made me a Mei Tai and it hurts. :(Maybe it's because I'm used to the HAB we made being stretchy and so comfy that it is so noticeable. We used a canvassy type material and James sits in it beautifully and sleeps but I just can't seem to get it comfy. Any tricks or ideas?? It's mainly my shoulders and I have tried tying it really tight because he is so heavy and I want him snug on me so the weight isn't pulling forwards but it still seems to pull. He is over 5kgs, I'd hate to use it when he is getting close to double that.
It's a PITA too because it is getting warmer ( :rolleyes:Melbourne - it's meant to be summer) and I want to use it instead of the HAB when it's hot.
Any ideas???

i dont have any suggestons :( the mei teis have always look a bit uncomfy for me, what about a bubzilla style sling?

Mmmm Im not sure hun - do they hurt just one shoulder?? I kinda prefer to distribute the weight and also with Izzy she hated lying down - even at 8 weeks, and James is looking like he is just as aware and wants to be upright to see everything as well! :rofl: I might see if I can find a simple pattern JIC though!

because the sling is so wide across your back on most of those style slings, its pretty comfy.
I used a HAB with DS through summer though and he was OK.

Try a high back tie?
Or hip carry?
Look on youtube, there are so many ties, it might just be a case of finding the right one for you :)

Hi Tanstar,

Did you put the straps on an angle or strait, are they padded or not? How wide are the straps?

I have a mai tai i made though has streachy straps, about to make another with normal straps,
I have tried on a Kozy brand mai tai and a elaroo mai tai and they were realy comfy.

If you have a look at baby carriers down under they have helpful people there that might be able to help you out.

Can you post a pic of him in it, might be able to suggest something then.

How do you tie the straps?

Thanks for the suggestions girls - Im such a virgin I had no idea there were different ties! Will post a pic tomorrow!

id you put the straps on an angle or strait, are they padded or not? How wide are the straps? Straps are on an angle and not padded, they are about 7 cms wide roughly - would have to check the pattern for sure.

How do you tie the straps? I tie the waist straps directly around my waist then the shoulder straps up over my shoulders, cross at the back and brought forward to tie under his bum. Hope that makes sense. Im off to youtube! Thanks girls.

when you tie it on do you apron tie so that when bub is in it it is up on the side closest to you or does he sit above the waist. (hope you understand)

What type of fabric is did you use, maybe need to wash it to soften the straps.

If you live in brisbane their is a sling meet this weekend.

I don't get it........ what does apron tie mean???!!! :redface: It is a thick canvassy type fabric - it has no stretch in it but I might wash it and see if it softens a bit. Im in Melbourne! Thanks so much for your help huN!

apron tie, is when you tie the carrier on with the outside facing your legs then pull it up between bubs legs so that bub sort of sits in a curve at the bottom.Now the outside would be facing out.

You should look at baby carries down under and ask on there, plenty of people who live in melbourne one might be able to meet with you to help you out.

I think part of the problem is that the straps are not padded especially when you mention that your shoulders are what is hurting the most.

An apron tie is what you should use with any carrier where the waistband is not padded as it is most suportive for baby and distributes the weight better for you.

Basically you take the waistband straps and put them around your waist so that the carrier is hanging down with the front facing your legs like you were putting an apron on...once you have tied them of you lift the carrier up but DO NOT flip the waistband. This forms a kind of sling or hammock section for baby's bottom using the main part of the carrier as the support/seat not the straps as would happen otherwise...does that make more sense?

the waistband straps should sit around your true waist not donw towards the hips like padded carriers do and baby's bottom should be level with your waist when tied correctly...this helps you to know when you have the right tension on the straps when baby's bottom is in the right place.....too low and that also places extra stress on the shoulders to take the weight. HTH... :)

If you live anywhere near Langwarrin you are welcome to come and try a babyhawk and pikkolo on for size!

hun, get a ring sling...i hated mei tai's too.

Hon, if you're near me, I'd love to help you troubleshoot.

The only other thing I can think of - is bub nice and close into your chest? If he's not close enough, then the weight will be pulling forward on your shoulders, you want him close so he's kinda not throwing out your centre of gravity too much. That make sense?

Ok I think I need to try apron tie - I haven't been doing that - although the waistband section is quite wide so that has been sitting flat against me and then his bum and legs are sort of "froggied" into the bum section. Nelle I definitely think I need to get him closer to me and get the whole thing tighter, its a bit hard to do on my own but I think with a bit of practise that might help. He likes having his head up and out which makes it difficult to bring the whole thing close too. Thanks for all the help ladies -will more than likely need to use it today so will let you know how we go. :)

Tan try the apron tie but also when you do the shoulder straps make sure they cross over as low as possible on your back. I see so many women with carriers with the part that crosses over up in the middle of the shoulder blades & that is what would make it uncomfy I think. Also you need to make sure bub is high enough that you can kiss the top of his head when he is in it.

Thanks FJ - will try all that today! :D

no worries, you want to aim for the straps to cross over below your shoulder blades. so not quite the middle of your back but just a little above that but below your shoulder blades IFYKWIM

I just googled the mei tai as I haven't seen or heard of one before and it does look kind of awkward especially for a newborn who can't hold themselves up. I have an Ergo Baby carrier with an infant insert and it's great. I actually went on the recommendation from my osteopath as apparently the ergo is the best for your back and shoulders as most of the weight is on the hips. Hope you find something comfy for you and your bub!

mei tai's are designed to hold the bub tight agains your body so they don't need to hold themselves up.

Tan, can you post a photo of how you are wearing it, it may give a few clues as to why it's not comfy.

If you tie it apron style, you will get a deeper seat, but a shorter body. Non apron style (ie: when you tie it, the top of the body is pointing upwards, there is no 'fold' or seat) gives a longer body but a less deep seat. Many SSCs or mei tais with padded waist bands are worn non apron style because of the padded waist, which doesn't lend itself to being worn apron style - it doesn't fold easily. Unpadded waists are usually (but not always) more comfortable worn in apron style, padded waists in non-apron.

Are you crossing your shoulders straps at the back, or wearing them rucksack style? Crossed will be more supportive.

Sagging is often the main cause for shoulder discomfort in a carrier, as is the baby sitting too low. Make sure that the waist strap is tied at your true waist, not at your hips - his bum should be no lower than belly button level, and you should be able to easily kiss the top of his head.

A couple of things to try:

- before you tie the shoulder straps, do a couple of little bounces, pulling the straps tighter as you do. I hold both straps in one hand, and kind of lift E's bum and then pull the top of the carrier up tighter with the other. What you are aiming to do is to lift bub's bum so that it is not sagging, and to bring his body as close to yours as possible. It will also lengthen the body. J is still young enough that you want the top of the body as high as possible so it supports his neck.
- Try tying in a lexi twist (google it if my explanation is not clear). Your straps will need to be quite long for this. When you bring the straps round to the front, instead of tying them under the bum, cross them at back level, do a couple of twists, then bring the straps down under the bum and round to tie at your back. This will give a bit more support at both bum and back level, and will prevent sagging. If the straps are not long enough to do a lexi twist, you could try tying behind his back, this sometimes helps, especially with a youngun.

If the straps are canvas and not padded, and only seven cm wide, this could be part of the problem. The narrower the straps, the more weight is put on a single point, so you might find that they are digging in. Washing and softening the canvas may help (as will scrunching it up and generally trying to bash it into submission), but generally speaking, narrower straps are more comfortable when padded. Unpadded mei tais often have very wide straps (google BBO or ball baby overall for an example) as these spread over the shoulders and back more and provide more support and less pressure points. That's not to say that you'll never find your mei tai comfortable, it just might need a bit of tweaking in the way you wear it to get it that way.

Give us a shout if my destructions (I mean, instructions lol) make no sense.

ETA: gee I posted too slow - meant to post this last night. What melbel said LOL.

YouTube helped me with my MT for sure. Doing the bounce helps make sure bubs in (kinda like I jiggle getting into skinny jeans. same concept :p)

As Suse says, a photo definitely could help us troubleshoot. My Mei Tai is my favouritest of all my carriers, it was so perfect. I really hope you can make yours work. As Suse suggests, perhaps you will need to tweak the carrier where it's uncomfy - if the straps dig in, perhaps you'd want to add thicker straps or something, or add padding (I've heard memory foam, like in pillows, is awesome) to the straps you have.