Lily Padz Reuseable Nursing Pads
by Lily Padz
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List Price: Our Price: $14.49 You Save: $8.50 (37%) Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days Buy Used: from $12.49 (click here) Category: Baby Product See more product details |
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Baby Products Reviews of Lily Padz Reuseable Nursing Pads
Customer Review: A must have for breastfeeding moms!
Summary: 5 Stars
This is a product that every breastfeeding mother needs to know about. Finally a solution to leaking and a way to sleep without wearing a bra! I've been using lilypadz for about a month now and I must say that I LOVE them. When I started breastfeeding my daughter I was using the traditional round cotton pads that you have to put inside your bra to soak up leaks. I hated them because they look terrible under a snug fitting shirt, they don't always absorb all the liquid, and they can shift out of position leaving you with no protection at all. I assumed it was just a necessary evil to breastfeeding because I didn't know something as wonderful as lilypadz existed!
I have to admit, when I first saw them advertised I was skeptical. I didn't think they would stick, I didn't think they would stay in place, and I thought for sure if they did stick that it would hurt to take them off or they'd leave a tacky residue on my breast. I hestitated for a couple of weeks, wanting to try them, but afraid that I'd spend all that money and end up disappointed. It was one morning after waking up soaked because one of my cotton pads slipped during the night I decided I would risk it and order them.
When they arrived I read all the instructions and was ready to try them out. Now this is the embarrassing part... in the instructions it specifically says to take them off the plastic dome before using. For some reason I thought they meant take them out of the plastic container. I didn't realize that EACH lilypad was also stuck on a piece of plastic! When I first tried to put them on I actually tried flipping the entire pad and the plastic dome inside out. (yes it was tough to do too!!) I was frustrated because they obviously didn't stick. I began to think that my fear of them not working was true. Once I realized my stupid mistake, I peeled them off the plastic and tried again. They stuck perfectly!! Try and avoid having the problem I did.. make sure you peel each of them off their little plastic domes.
I was immediately surprised at how secure they felt. I knew right away that I would be able to wear them to bed and not have to worry about one falling off. My next fear was removing them. I carefully lifted up an edge and peeled one off. I was surprised that even though they stuck securely, they peeled off with ease and without causing pain to my tender breasts. I was estatic! What a great product!!
I have found after using them for about a month that there are pros and cons. However the pros greatly outweigh the cons. This is what I have found...
PROS
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1) Attaches securely
2) Removes with VERY little or no pain
3) No residue left behind on the breast. Baby can eat as soon as a pad is removed.
4) Protects tender breasts from rubbing against clothing or sticking to cotton pads. (If you are feeling sore these are a HUGE help.)
5) Secure enough to stay on all night long without wearing a bra.
6) Washable and reusable
7) Invisible under snug fitting shirts.
8) When properly applied you will not leak
9) Peace of mind
10) Quick drying. After cleaning them give them a good shake and you are ready to reapply them (even if they are a bit damp still). No need to buy more than one pair unless you need the peace of mind of a back up. One pair will work and will always be ready to use.
CONS
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1) If not properly applied you might leak. You must be careful to avoid air bubbles and make sure you apply strong pressure to the nipple when putting them on. However, even if you leak - it won't get on your clothes. Instead it pools up around the nipple. It usually stays sealed. You just have to be sure to remove the pad, drain the liquid, rinse them and then reapply properly. One warning, if you have an air bubble and you leak A LOT it is possible for the pad to loosen and pop off spilling milk on you. This has only happened to me maybe twice after a long night of leaking while sleeping. I leaked during the night, woke up and was feeding the baby from one side without checking to see if I had leaked on the other. My milk let down filling the air bubble more and the pad popped off drenching me.
2) If you own cats/dogs... keep them AWAY from the pads when you aren't wearing them. They attract fur like crazy. If they do get furry its OK because it does wash off. Its just a pain in the butt and takes a little extra effort
3) Takes a little more effort to reapply the pad in public (vs shoving a cotton pad back in your bra) but once you get the hang of it, it woudn't even make the con list anymore.
4) I personally don't wear them every day. I'm one of those types that thinks skin should have a chance to breathe a little. I DO wear them every night, but during the day I'll occasionally wear my cotton pads so my skin can breathe. I'm afraid that I'll end up with thrush or just pruney nipples if I wore them 24/7. I have no evidence to back up the claim - they may work just fine 24/7. I'd say I wear them 3-4 times a week during the day. I will NOT go a night without wearing them though because I hate wearing a bra to bed.
As you can see the pros outweigh the cons by quite a bit. The cons shouldn't be enough to keep you from trying them yourself. Even if you plan on wearing them only at night they are well worth the cost. If you are like me and you are skeptical - don't be. These really do work and you will be glad that you gave them a try. Every breastfeeding mother should own a pair and I think they would make a WONDERFUL and unique baby shower gift!
Customer Review: 2nd try, still don't work for me
Summary: 1 Stars
I bought these with my first child 5 years ago with high hopes and they gave me a really red rash on my 2nd or 3rd use and I was leaking when I used them so I pitched them. I'm allergic to latex and that's what it looked like even though they're clearly labeled as latex free.
My 2nd baby is now 2.5 months and after 6 weeks of wearing disposable pads (worked great but I hated the trash and wasted money) and cloth pads (what a joke for me! Soaked through immediately day and night) and even just stuffing cloth diapers into my shirt at night I bought another set of lilypads thinking it was probably user error the first time. I read every review, watched the product video and such, and tried it. Wasted money again. No rash this time but I have worn them probably 15 times in the last 6 weeks and soaked myself every time. Every single time I use them I get a teaspoon or so of milk in the pad and when I take it off I soak my shirt/pants. Today I popped it off while standing in the bedroom and milk got all over the carpet! I usually have to have a burp cloth or tissues handy when I take it off and only if I'm very lucky do I keep my clothes clean. The worst part is that when I do try to use them at night I (a) wet the sheets and my PJ's when I take it off anyway so I'm still sleeping on a towel and dealing with wet shirts and then (b) what are you supposed to do with it during night nursings? I co-sleep and nurse side-lying so I always take it off with every intention of holding it--or I try to put it on my bedside table--but it almost always gets lost and then it's like trying to find a giant contact lens in my bed. And then it's linty so I have to get up to go wash it so suddenly every feeding I'm up washing and drying and prepping something...I might as well be bottle-feeding! (And this is why I'm writing this review at 1:30 AM)
It seems like these are designed to stop leaking once you've already stopped leaking...? I'm so mad at myself for wasting money on another pair of these and jealous of those for whom they do seem to work. Back to disposable pads I suppose.
Customer Review: Great for BEFORE the baby is born, too!
Summary: 5 Stars
I still haven't even HAD my first baby yet, but this product has already been a lifesaver! I started leaking milk when I was about 20 weeks pregnant (mostly at night), and I hated having to sleep in a bra or anything confining. The LilyPadz allowed me to sleep topless or with a light tee-shirt and not have to worry about making a mess of myself or the bed. I've used them during the day when my leaking was heavier, but for the most part, I've used them at night, then wash them in the morning and let them dry during the day. I can also see how they would be EXCELLENT for non-pregnant women who are going braless but want their nipples to remain hidden ;)
My only caveats to consumers are the following:
- As mentioned in other reviews, when you first get the product and aren't familiar with what they look like, be aware that each pad is on it's own plastic backing (and I believe there is even a third plastic shell somewhere in the mix, too). The pad is the part with the scalloped edges that look like a flower (even after reading everyone else's reviews, I still tried to stick the plastic part on my chest! It didn't work out well). So just look for the flower shaped part!
- I did not purchase the special LilyWash, but rather used common dish soap every morning to clean the LilyPadz. After about a month of daily use, the pads became less tacky, and I started needing to wear a snug top to ensure that they stayed on properly throughout the night. After two months of use, the tackiness effectively wore off, and the seal between the pad and my skin started breaking during the night so that I leaked on my clothes. HOWEVER, the product only claims to last for about two months, so I didn't remove any stars for this (I just thought people might want to know that in real life, that claim held up).
I can't yet attest to how these work when actively nursing, but when I get pregnant again someday, I'll be sure to have these on hand!
Customer Review: Great in certain situations
Summary: 5 Stars
I am a stay at home mom who is exclusively breastfeeding a now 4 month old son. I also have a 3 year old daughter who I nursed for 10 months while working so I am very familiar with engorgement, dealing with leaking at work, etc.
I think Lily Padz are great under certain situations. I use them under outfits that I can't wear a bra under such as halter tops or tank tops. I haven't tried them yet with swim suits. I also only use them after nursing when my baby is with me. I wouldn't trust them to hold up for too long if I had to miss a feeding. I also always sterilize after every use by washing with dish soap & water and then soaking in vinegar as the manufacturer recommends.
If I know I might be separated from my baby or it is a leaky day, I just use reusable cotton nursing pads and change them every 3 hours. I just throw these pads in the wash with the baby's clothes. Sometimes I use the disposable pads but I still change them every 3 hours.
For night sleeping I personally don't want anything that will trap more milk in my breasts. I just wear a fitting cotton tank top and one or two t-shirts on top of it to absorb the milk. This is the best solution I have found that usually doesn't result in the bed or my shirt being completely soaked by morning.
Don't expect Lily Padz to be a cure all for every situation but instead a convenient way for a nursing mom to go braless once in a while. For any working mom or moms who leak a lot, you are probably going to have a use disposable or cotton nursing pads just make sure to change them every 3 hours or so even if you are pumping less frequently than that. Some moms even use double pads in their nursing pads.
Customer Review: Wonderful if Used Sparingly
Summary: 4 Stars
I was concerned that these might not work for me as I am fairly large-breasted (DD since my pregnancy) and I tend to leak quite a bit (enough to soak through a washable pad in a couple hours). Despite this, at the recommendation of another reviewer, I decided to buy these primarily for use at night so that I didn't have to sleep in a bra. For this purpose the product has been WONDERFUL. They stick to me just fine and I don't have any leaking issues. I take them on and off during the night to feed my son and just wash them the next day and sit them out to dry for use the next night. I also wore the pads once to a wedding under a very tight strapless bra so as not to add any bulk and they did a fine job. I probably wouldn't want to wear them during the day, as they perform less well after multiple re-stickings without washing and I wouldn't want to have to wash them mid-day. Also, it is more of a hassle to take them off and stick them back on then to just fold my disposable pads down with my nursing bra.
I have found that on the first one or two sticks after washing the pads, they successfully prevent any milk from even coming out of my nipples. After a few nighttime feedings (and re-stickings), I sometimes wake up to find a small pool of milk collected in a bubble around the nipple. However, the sides of the pad keep it contained -- I just need to make sure to have a tissue on hand when removing the pad to catch the spill out of the collected milk.
As for stickiness, I've been using them every night for over 3 weeks now and they are still perfectly sticky. I don't know how long that will last, however. Hopefully I'll get more mileage out of them because I only wear them at night.