If you’ve read my other posts, you’ll know I have a Velcro baby. My boy is your typical Mummy’s boy, desperate to be with me 24/7. While some will say it’s good he has such a strong attachment to me, what they don’t touch on is how tiring it is, mentally and physically. Here I want to talk about the physical side of it.

Before I had my boy, my husband and I bought a house that hadn’t been renovated since the 70s and we did most of the work ourselves. Since I worked from home and my husband worked long hours in the office, I ended up doing a lot of work. I’m someone who likes to crack on with things, so I was spending many lunch breaks and after work loading up skips and digging up the garden.

I was doing all that and not once did I have any back pain or felt it hindered me physically.

At the age of 33, the house was done and we got pregnant with our son. Cue the back pain. If you’ve ever been pregnant (and I assume you likely have if you’re here), I’m sure you recall the third trimester walk, waddling with your hand pushing into your back. And if you’re lucky like me, you got shooting sciatica pain, where you randomly jolt like you’re having a fit, preferably in a public place.

So I had my boy and the pain went and I felt fine as before. But as a stage 5 clinger, I wore my boy in a wrap constantly. It was ok, until he got bigger and progressed towards toddlerhood. I could only go about twenty minutes before my back and shoulders would start killing me.

I progressed to an Ergo carrier, which was good but I only got as far as around thirty minutes before the back and shoulder pain started. Plus it was too much hassle when the boy constantly wanted picking up and putting down. He also preferred sitting on my hip, which I didn’t find that comfortable with the Ergo.

I then saw in online forums people raving about ring slings, including for toddlers, so I got myself a decent one. But no matter how much I tried, it ended up killing my shoulders. And again, for a toddler wanting up and down constantly, I found it too much faff.

At this point I knew I needed something. With constantly carrying my boy and all the house work I’d done before, I was conscious of the fact that if I didn’t use some support, I’d be in store for future back pain. That and the fact I had big breasts before I was pregnant, and breastfeeding had only added to that.

I was also worried about the fact we were going on holiday this year, which included flying and public transport. The boy can get upset after being sat in the pram a while, especially if we aren’t moving and just waiting. When he’s like this, it gets to the point where I have to hold him and with a long journey, I wanted something to help support me.

I’d actually seen hip carriers before but I dismissed them because I wanted something that allowed me to be hands free. But at this point, being hands free wasn’t important. I needed something to protect my back and something that was easy to put on when my boy is wanting up and down a lot.

I’d seen a lot of people mentioning the Tush Baby, but I’d spent a lot of money on the ring sling before and I was worried about wasting money. So instead, I went onto Amazon and looked at hip seats with lots of high reviews.

I landed on this Hippychick Hipseat (this is an affiliate link, so if you click it and buy it, I’ll get a commission). It looked like a good supportive seat, unlike the sling style hip seats, which from what I read on the forums, aren’t very supportive.

It also said it’s up to 36 months, which is great since my boy was two years old at this point. And it even says it helps with opposing back issues.

I’ve got to say, I was excited when it arrived. Luckily the boy was in a good mood to give it a trial run. I was a bit worried at how a Velcro strap could support his weight and not fall off. But I was reassured by the fact there was a strap as well.

Surprisingly when I got my boy on it, it didn’t at all feel like the Velcro was straining. It was also easy to whip on once you’d set the strap length.

My boy told me which way to go and we wandered around the garden. I was impressed with how supportive it felt, I actually didn’t feel like it would come undone. My boy seemed comfortable too and never fidgeted or showed he was uncomfortable.

I didn’t notice my hips hurting at all. My back and shoulders would hurt after a long period of time, but I wouldn’t say it was drastic. The pain wasn’t as bad as in my shoulders with the ring sling.

The important takeaway was it achieved what I wanted. I had something that I could put on and off easily with a clingy indecisive toddler. It’s not that intrusive either, so you can even keep it on so you’re ready when they want up. And it’s not too big so it can easily go in the nappy bag.

It also gave me confidence that it was helping protect my back. In fact, holding him on it felt like my posture was in a better position than I ever held it.

So in conclusion, I’m glad I bought the Hippychick Hipseat (this is an affiliate link, meaning I will get a commission if you click it and decide to buy it). We’ve used it plenty times over the last few months and we both still enjoy it. And hopefully my back will thank me for it!