# Lower back & shoulder pain from babywearing



## ChantalM

Hi all!

My son is 4 months now and weighs a little under 7 kg. I've been wearing him for all his naps from when he was around 1 month old, but lately my lower back and both my shoulders are starting to hurt badly after only half an hour of wearing him. 

I use a ssc called Bondolino (the slim-fit and summer edition) and I am wondering if it is simply not supportive enough...do any of you have experiences with a more supportive ssc?


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## VsAngela

Hello 

I remember those days, and I was always in pain even just carrying him around. I even had a bad neck cramp that I needed physio for two weeks before I could move it again.

I don't know if it's more about the fit or position of the wrap, but how the weight is distributed. I think correct positioning will help, but I don't think it will eliminate the pain. It's just hard to carry that much weight in the front of your body, and even when I was pregnant I had back pain.


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## ChantalM

VS Angela said:


> Hello
> 
> I remember those days, and I was always in pain even just carrying him around. I even had a bad neck cramp that I needed physio for two weeks before I could move it again.
> 
> I don't know if it's more about the fit or position of the wrap, but how the weight is distributed. I think correct positioning will help, but I don't think it will eliminate the pain. It's just hard to carry that much weight in the front of your body, and even when I was pregnant I had back pain.


Thanks for your reply! I also think it is heavy no matter what, but I do think that the style and quality, as well as the positioning of the carrier make a big difference. I think part of the reason I'm in so much pain is because my shoulders are bearing most of the weight iso both shoulders and back. I heard good things about the Ergo so I think I'm gonna look into that one.


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## SecondtimeMama

Put the baby higher. Make sure the lower strap is around your WAIST not your hips.* Make sure it feels snug, even slightly tight. Think like being able to get one finger in if you aren't sucking in your tummy. 

Then with the shoulder straps, you should be able to slide them off and back on because all they should be doing is keeping the baby from flopping back away from you. All the weight should go onto your hips via the strap around your WAIST.


*To see why, try putting your hands on your waist, on top of your hips, and then try sliding them down. Now, try putting your hands so they cup the sides of your hips and try sliding them down. You want that strap to rest on your hip bones.

Edit to add:
Before figuring this out, I was having trouble walking 15 minutes when my daughter was about the same age/size as your baby. After fixing that, I wore her for hours regularly through about 14kg. I last tried wearing her when she was about 20kg and had no problems other than her being 7 with long long legs. That's how much of a difference it is to get that lower band in the right place and tight enough.


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## ChantalM

SecondtimeMama said:


> Put the baby higher. Make sure the lower strap is around your WAIST not your hips.* Make sure it feels snug, even slightly tight. Think like being able to get one finger in if you aren't sucking in your tummy.
> 
> Then with the shoulder straps, you should be able to slide them off and back on because all they should be doing is keeping the baby from flopping back away from you. All the weight should go onto your hips via the strap around your WAIST.
> 
> *To see why, try putting your hands on your waist, on top of your hips, and then try sliding them down. Now, try putting your hands so they cup the sides of your hips and try sliding them down. You want that strap to rest on your hip bones.
> 
> Edit to add:
> Before figuring this out, I was having trouble walking 15 minutes when my daughter was about the same age/size as your baby. After fixing that, I wore her for hours regularly through about 14kg. I last tried wearing her when she was about 20kg and had no problems other than her being 7 with long long legs. That's how much of a difference it is to get that lower band in the right place and tight enough.


Thank you for your response Im still on the lookout for a new carrier, but in the meantime your tips definately make a big difference. The waist strap is in the right place, but my shoulder straps were too tight and my shoulders were therefore bearing a lot of the weight.

With the style of this carrier however, it is difficult to adapt the shoulder straps in such a way that this is not the case anymore, that's why I'm still looking for a new carrier..any experiences with the Ergo?


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## katelove

I found the ergo bulky, scratchy and too wide-based for my daughter until she was nearly 12mo. I always felt like the straps were slipping off my shoulders even when I had the chest clip done up.

My favourite carrier is the Beco Gemini. It isn't as bulky, has softer fabric, the base is adjustable and, best of all, it's designed to be worn with the shoulder straps crossed over your back. That was what made the world of difference to me.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk


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## SecondtimeMama

The ergo may have the same shoulder strap length problems, I know on mine it's got a pretty limited range of how long the shoulder straps can be. It's very much the same as the Bondolindo based on the pictures of the Bondolindo, so I don't know that it would work any better for you.

You might want to try a mei tai to be able to adjust things more. When things are adjusted right, the padding isn't really necessary and getting rid of all the padding could make for a lighter carrier.

Your profile says Dubai and it looks like there's a babywearing group there that's going to meet on February 10 (https://www.facebook.com/DubaiBabywearing/info/?tab=page_info)

That might be a good place to try out a variety of carriers and get some in person hands-on advice.


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## parentingnewb

Sometimes I wish such questions could be answered in video. Might make clarifications so much easier.


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## Zooey Barnett

I also had problems with back pain and I have only used baby carrier for one month. But my back problems started when I was pregnant, my lower back was killing me. I think back pain may be caused not only by a wrong position of the straps, but carrying so much weight (first, during pregnancy, and then after birth). Maybe you should take a break from babywearing and try yoga or stretching, to relieve your back?


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## archcherub

Zooey Barnett said:


> I also had problems with back pain and I have only used baby carrier for one month. But my back problems started when I was pregnant, my lower back was killing me. I think back pain may be caused not only by a wrong position of the straps, but carrying so much weight (first, during pregnancy, and then after birth). Maybe you should take a break from babywearing and try yoga or stretching, to relieve your back?


i am having back pack nowadays also. and doing yoga daily just to feel better =(
its really bad till i am unable to breastfeed properly.


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## poshbymeggymegs

ChantalM said:


> Hi all!
> 
> My son is 4 months now and weighs a little under 7 kg. I've been wearing him for all his naps from when he was around 1 month old, but lately my lower back and both my shoulders are starting to hurt badly after only half an hour of wearing him.
> 
> I use a ssc called Bondolino (the slim-fit and summer edition) and I am wondering if it is simply not supportive enough...do any of you have experiences with a more supportive ssc?


I'm not familar with that brand but I will say not all carriers work for everyone. I love the tula it has a lot of support I still carry my 32lbs 2yr old in it comfortably!


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