05 Nov Tip Tuesday: How long should I wear my binder?
Hey guys, Elliott here. I wanted to hop on today so we could discuss wear time for binders. For a lot of people in the community, this may seem like a widely discussed topic. But for people newer to the community, or for those of us who maybe don’t live in an area where we may not have as many resources, it can sometimes be difficult to know where to look or who to ask questions.
Wearing a compression garment over a delicate part of the body like the rib cage can be risky business, so it’s important that you do so safely.
First things first: ease yourself into wearing a binder. As much as we want it to be, wearing a binder shouldn’t be a 0-100 process. Start with a couple hours each day so you can work your way up to wearing it comfortably for longer periods of time. You should cap out at no more than 8 to 10 hours a day with wear time, favoring the 8 hour mark.
Your body is also going to need rest, so make sure to set aside at least one day per week for your designated “no wear” day. To much prolonged wear with any type of garment that hugs your ribs that tightly can lead to damage if you aren’t careful, so it’s important to take your body’s cues and listen to it when it tells you a break is needed.
If you’d like some more info for safe binding as well as some tips and tricks, please check us out at bit.ly/bind-safe where you can download our resource pamphlet!