Customer Reviews

My Brest Friend Inflatable Travel Nursing Pillow in Green Paisley

5 star:		(21)
4 star:		(10)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(1)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

This is an inflatable nursing pillow which is excellent for travelling. We were able to use it on the plane without having to stack up pillows and blankets under our baby.
Now that we are visiting the grandparents for two months, I use this pillow around the house too - but only occasionally. The baby sweats on it which is not a problem with an ordinary nursing pillow that we left at home. The cover is pretty thin.
The zipper broke when we were pulling the cover on the pillow. So the tip here is not to inflate the pillow fully when putting on the cover and inflate the pillow to the desired size (preferrably not too tightly) with the cover on. The same goes with deflating and packing the pillow for future uses.
The pillow also helps to hold our 5-month old baby on my lap. It elevates her and provides flat surface for sitting or standing her with my help.

Being a new mom, I started out with the original Brest Friend and used it all the time. But we were taking our first airplane trip over the holidays and I just couldn't take ANOTHER carry-on item. So, I ordered the travel brest Friend.

Pros:
1) Easy to blow up
2) Folds (or rolls) up fairly easily - I kept the original packaging and every time I was done with it, I let out the air, rolled it up carefully and stuffed it back in the packaging. It wasn't pretty, but it was effective. I could then get it in my carry-on bag.
3) Comfortable - Not as cushy as the original Brest Friend, but good none the less.

Cons:
1) First one leaked - Luckily, I pulled it out of the packaging as soon as it arrived to see how it worked. We discovered that it had a small leak. I sent it back to Amazon and got a replacement. The 2nd one worked like a champ.

Notes: Be sure NOT to overinflate it before you take off. Once settled in my airplane seat, I filled this up with air to nurse my baby during takeoff (it helps clear their ears). But I forgot that it expands as we climb in altitude. It didn't burst or anything, but lets just say that it was very firm once we were at our level off altitude. It is also a little difficult to let just a little air out...you have to remove a large plug to let any air out. On the return trip I blew it up on the ground, but left it a little squishy. Worked much better that time.

This pillow works excellent if you are a breastfeeding mother planning to travel. I have the regular brest friend at home and wanted something I could bring along with me during vacation so I could continue to nurse comfortably, and the travel pillow did not disappoint. It is the same size and shape as the regular brest friend, and works just as well, my baby could not tell the difference. I also liked how I could use my regular covers, and I didn't have any problems zipping up the cover after it was inflated.

The pillow folds flat when deflated and is easy to pack. I have always blown it up by mouth with no trouble, so there is no need to carry around a pump. If you can blow up a beach ball with your mouth, you'll be able to inflate the brest friend.

This is one of the very best baby travel items I have purchased and I recommend it to all of my friends.

I took this on vacation and was glad that I did. We always use the my brest friend regular pillow at home and this travel version provided a seamless transition while we were away. I used my regular cover so it was almost like I had brought the original with us. We used a pump for an exercise ball to fill it up with air.

As a first time mom, I was told that I HAVE to get a Boppy, that they are an absolute necessity for breastfeeding. I got my Boppy as a shower gift and was super excited to use it when baby came. Now, after using it for 2 weeks or so, I'm not really a big fan. I always felt like the positioning was off. I tried putting a regular pillow under it, sitting cross-legged on the bed with the Boppy on my legs, but it just was never comfortable for me. I realized that my baby would be caught between me and the pillow in the hole created by the round- shaped pillow. I ordered the Brest Friend inflatable pillow because I had heard good things about the original pillow, but didn't want to spend so much on the original, plus the inflatable would be great for traveling to Grandma's house.

I love this pillow!!

PROS:
-Baby doesn't get caught between me and pillow, because there is no space there like with the Boppy.
-It was easy to inflate and I haven't noticed any leaks yet.
-The cover was easy enough to put on- if put on when the pillow is partially inflated.
-The cover is a different pattern than the picture, but I actually like it better than the picture.

CONS:
-The pocket is a bit difficult to use, and I haven't put anything in it yet.
-I could see baby and me getting a bit sweaty on this pillow if it were warm out, but I haven't had a problem with it, since it hasn't been very warm lately.

Overall, I really like using this. It positions baby more comfortably at the breast, which decreases stress on my shoulders, neck and back, and I think is helping reduce nipple soreness. I'll be retiring the Boppy from breastfeeding, and use it to prop baby up in a sitting position, and recommend all moms get a Brest Friend pillow- inflatable or original.

We have been using a regular Brest Friend pillow since Day 1 and I completely love it. However, now my daughter is five months old and we are taking a trip (flying) out of state in July to visit family. I panicked when I realized that I would need to start trying different holds or figuring out other ways to nurse her. I practiced a few times and she was not very happy! I guess we both just got set in our ways. So I figured, at the very least, I could get one of those inflatable bath pillows or something, just so I could have a pillow...I came to Amazon and searched inflatable pillow and I just could not believe it when this came up! What a find!

Anyway, I received it today, and I want to specifically address problems other reviewers had. I don't want to be mean, but the problems people reported would only be problems if you were not too bright. For instance, the pillow absolutely can be inflated by mouth. I just inflated and deflated it several times myself. As a matter of fact, I don't see how you could inflate it with a pump. It doesn't have the right kind of valve. I'm not really sure why there are so many negative reviews about this, when it is the easiest thing in the world to inflate, and even has an awesome valve that is way better than the ones you get on other inflatable items (where you have to sort of squeeze it in your teeth...you know what I'm talking about). It's bigger and has an automatic hold feature. So nothing leaks out when you take a breath. And it fills up FAST.

Secondly, I understand the cover is a little flimsier than the regular ones, but, duh, if you inflate it partially, put the cover on, and THEN inflate it the rest of the way, you'll know when it's full and you won't stretch the fabric to the point of breaking the zipper. This seems like a no-brainer to me. That's what I did, and it fits great and is exactly like the original Brest Friend. They've even put the valve right where the zipper ends, so you just have to unzip a little to inflate and deflate it. I've just deflated it, folded it with the cover still on it, and put it back in the little case it comes with and voila! It'll be so easy and convenient to inflate it again when I need it.

In short, I absolutely love this item! I am so thankful it exists and that the makers thought of everything to make it as convenient as possible.

Two quick notes about the cover: the one that came with my order was not the one in the picture. This didn't matter to me at all...it was still really nice and similar colors. But just watch out if you really love this sunburst design. Also, the cover on the package has a velcro adjustment for the strap, but the pillow I got has the regular clip and strap like the regular pillow. Again, this doesn't bother me. I'm a huge fan of the original, so I'm glad it's the same.

When I nurse, I need my pillow. I brought this to England with us and it was irreplaceable while travelling from city to city. It was also extremely helpful when nursing and hanging out with the baby on the plane ride there. On the way back, however, it didn't seem to fit in the seat with me as easily, for some reason... Smaller plane, perhaps? (As a side note- I did not bring this on shorter domestic flights as I KNOW that the standard seats are way too small to use this pillow!)
Blowing it up is a drag. I used an exercise ball pump to inflate it (a tire pump will not work). That means having to lug it around the airport in an already overstuffed bag. In spite of this, however, it is worth getting if you are as dependent on "My Brest Friend" as I am.

I got this pillow without realizing it was the inflatable version but quite happy with it. Agree that the zipper on the cover could be better but if you deflate the pillow prior to putting it on/off then you'll be fine and save money.

The pillow has been invaluable for breastfeeding my infant. I used this for my second child and wished I had heard of it the first time around instead of piling pillows on. I didn't get a Boppy because it was so expensive and for such a specialized purpose. This one doesn't break the bank, is easy to take around and travel with. Overall, I'm quite happy with this pillow and recommend it for new mothers who want to breast feed.

i had a boppy first and tried this when i went to go get help with breast feeding. i didn't have to slouch as much or at all i should say, as i did with the boppy. i was very happy with the blow up pillow.

We are planning our first vacation away from home with our 4 month old & I really wanted to be able to bring my Boppy, but it just isn't feasible. Having this inflatable substitute is going to come in very handy. It's the same shape as the regular Brest Friend pillow. It was super fast to inflate - probably took me less than 10 deep breaths to do it. The cover is cute - green with a paisley pattern. Overall, I'm very pleased.