In the duration of me being a mom, which is not very long though, roughly about two months and seven days to be exact, I have been fortunate enough to experience breastfeeding (if you've been reading my blog for a while you might have realized that) and breastfeeding comes with (whether you like it or not) leaky breasts. Definitely you would need leaky breasts to be able to breastfeed, otherwise, where would the milk come from, right? To manage leaky breasts, you need to have nursing pads (these comes in two types, disposable and washable) to make sure you don't embarrass yourself in public. I've come to read that later on (which means more than two months of breastfeeding, I presume), your breasts will be more efficient at producing milk, thus leading to less leaky breasts. However, I have yet to experience this efficiency, so I have come to depend on nursing pads to help me manage the let down (this is the term for the leaks that breastfeeding women experience, by the way) and here's my review of the three (fortunately or unfortunately I don't have and need that many) washable breast pads that I have.
Oh, I almost forgot, if you're uncomfortable at me mentioning breasts over and over again, maybe you should stop reading this post (as this is a review on nursing pads there's certainly going to be frequent mentions of the breast in this post).
The first one is Pureen washable nursing pads. These retail for somewhere around RM11 per pair. If you're in Kuching, I bought these at Teck Kong Trading in Tabuan Jaya, it's very near to my home thus the reason for me buying these is simply because it's convenient for me to do so. It only comes in one color, white. The nursing pad has different fabrics on different sides, one side is waterproof (this side of the pad faces your bra) and the other is cotton (this side should face your breast). After using this pad for about a month (I stopped using it once I experienced less let down, I think due to my milk production is getting more efficient), I would have to say that I don't recommend this pad to moms out there. The reason for this is because I find that the breast pads are not that comfortable to use. For one thing, when there's let down, your pads would absorb whatever leakage from your breasts. Unfortunately, this would cause the pad to stick to your nipples thus making it quite sticky and if you are experiencing nipple sore due to breastfeeding it would hurt (not much but it's noticeable) when you're removing the pads from your breasts. And another thing, the breast pads are flat in nature (if you've noticed, a woman's breasts are not flat in nature), thus the pads do not rest comfortably underneath the bra (the pads are unable to mold itself naturally to the breast). So if you're wearing a flimsy bra like the nursing sleep bra, the irregular shape of the pad is quite noticeable underneath your t-shirt.
The last pad that I bought is Philips Avent comfort breast shell. I bought these for RM72 from Little Kids because they offer free shipping on orders above RM100 (if you've purchased as many things online as I have, you might be tempted to save on shipping costs as they could add up to be quite a lot). The reason for me buying this is that it has two functions, it can collect let down when you pump or it can also be used as a breast pad (do note that you are supposed to throw away any milk that is collected when you are using the shell as a breast pad). Unfortunately I only used this shell a couple of times and since then have never used it again. The reason being is that because it is waterproof and non-absorbent, breast milk will pool in the breast shell after a let down and if you are not careful (or just plain clumsy like me), spillage might occur when you're removing the breast shell from your bra. After using it twice and spilling the milk both times I decided to stop using it. And another thing, the shape of the shell is quite noticeable underneath my shirt so I wasn't comfortable with that either. So, I don't recommend this to moms as a breast pad, but as a milk collector when you're pumping, maybe yes, it's quite handy (although I don't use it as a milk collector).
Unfortunately my experience is limited to these three because since I've gotten Autumnz's breast pads, I'm happy with them that I don't need to buy any more pads. Initially I wore the pads night and day (changing them whenever they're soaked or at the very least twice a day). However one month after giving birth, I don't experience as much leakage as I did before, so I only wear the pads whenever I go out to town. That could also contribute to me not needing that many pads. And oh, I almost forgot, all three pads wash easily and dry easily.
Happy shopping peeps!
xoxo Mrs Fashionista
PS: I am not affiliated with Autumnz in any way nor do I earn commission when you buy any Autumnz washable breast pads.
Oh, I almost forgot, if you're uncomfortable at me mentioning breasts over and over again, maybe you should stop reading this post (as this is a review on nursing pads there's certainly going to be frequent mentions of the breast in this post).
The first one is Pureen washable nursing pads. These retail for somewhere around RM11 per pair. If you're in Kuching, I bought these at Teck Kong Trading in Tabuan Jaya, it's very near to my home thus the reason for me buying these is simply because it's convenient for me to do so. It only comes in one color, white. The nursing pad has different fabrics on different sides, one side is waterproof (this side of the pad faces your bra) and the other is cotton (this side should face your breast). After using this pad for about a month (I stopped using it once I experienced less let down, I think due to my milk production is getting more efficient), I would have to say that I don't recommend this pad to moms out there. The reason for this is because I find that the breast pads are not that comfortable to use. For one thing, when there's let down, your pads would absorb whatever leakage from your breasts. Unfortunately, this would cause the pad to stick to your nipples thus making it quite sticky and if you are experiencing nipple sore due to breastfeeding it would hurt (not much but it's noticeable) when you're removing the pads from your breasts. And another thing, the breast pads are flat in nature (if you've noticed, a woman's breasts are not flat in nature), thus the pads do not rest comfortably underneath the bra (the pads are unable to mold itself naturally to the breast). So if you're wearing a flimsy bra like the nursing sleep bra, the irregular shape of the pad is quite noticeable underneath your t-shirt.
Following that, I decided to try another brand, Autumnz washable breast pads. These pads comes in four colors, glorious graphite, natural nude, pure white and sugar pink (I don't know why they need to overdo the names of the breast pad colors, I would have preferred grey, cream, white and pink but maybe that's just me). I bought these online (I forgot which store unfortunately) and these are priced at RM15.90 for three pairs. The pads have different fabrics on different sides, one is lace (which faces your bra) and the other is soft cotton (to be used facing the breast). To tell you honestly, I really recommend these pads as they are really soft and comfy, it's contoured to fit the breast and the best part is, it's not sticky even after a let down (psst, it's even cheaper than Pureen). Unfortunately, it doesn't hold well, meaning I do find that sometimes there are milk stains on my shirt despite me wearing a nursing pad. This usually occurs when I've positioned the nursing pad too high up; due to gravity, the milk flow downwards and is not absorbed by the pad, or sometimes because there's too much milk leaking out and the pad is unable to absorb them all. Despite the occasional leakage, this is still my preferred breast pad.
The last pad that I bought is Philips Avent comfort breast shell. I bought these for RM72 from Little Kids because they offer free shipping on orders above RM100 (if you've purchased as many things online as I have, you might be tempted to save on shipping costs as they could add up to be quite a lot). The reason for me buying this is that it has two functions, it can collect let down when you pump or it can also be used as a breast pad (do note that you are supposed to throw away any milk that is collected when you are using the shell as a breast pad). Unfortunately I only used this shell a couple of times and since then have never used it again. The reason being is that because it is waterproof and non-absorbent, breast milk will pool in the breast shell after a let down and if you are not careful (or just plain clumsy like me), spillage might occur when you're removing the breast shell from your bra. After using it twice and spilling the milk both times I decided to stop using it. And another thing, the shape of the shell is quite noticeable underneath my shirt so I wasn't comfortable with that either. So, I don't recommend this to moms as a breast pad, but as a milk collector when you're pumping, maybe yes, it's quite handy (although I don't use it as a milk collector).
Unfortunately my experience is limited to these three because since I've gotten Autumnz's breast pads, I'm happy with them that I don't need to buy any more pads. Initially I wore the pads night and day (changing them whenever they're soaked or at the very least twice a day). However one month after giving birth, I don't experience as much leakage as I did before, so I only wear the pads whenever I go out to town. That could also contribute to me not needing that many pads. And oh, I almost forgot, all three pads wash easily and dry easily.
Happy shopping peeps!
xoxo Mrs Fashionista
PS: I am not affiliated with Autumnz in any way nor do I earn commission when you buy any Autumnz washable breast pads.
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