Posture Perfect Band, Back Support Brace Reviews

• THIS PRODUCT IS GREAT!!

  
  By AMXU7EXFLYY1P on 2005-07-14
  Everyday I wake up in pain, my neck, my back, my shoulders...everything aches..i am a secretary so i spend long hours sitting in front of a computer...it is so hard for me to hold my shoulders back al the time and constantly my neck cracks and gets stiff...so i decided to try this product...
  The pros:
  -It really does help hold your shoulders back
  -You can sleep with it on and drive, etc.
  the cons:
  -before i got used to it, my armpits were a little tender
  -also if you sweat at all during the day it gets on the brace because how it loops under your armpits, so you have to wash it often to get the deoderant, etc. off.
  - it does ride up a little bit but whenever i first put it on after being washed it is tight and sturdy and stays right in place.
  
  I suggest you buy several (like 3 or 4) so that you can wash them often. I used to wear it to bed but now i just wear it while at work and i take it off wheni get home so basically i wear it 8 hours a day.
  
  
  It isn't really that visible through clothes however if you wear a shirt with a lower cut back and wide shoulders, you can see it peak through...ive gotten some odd looks before. You cant really reach up when this things on and u need to keep your arms pretty close against your body.
  
  Overall- definately 5 stars.. my chiropractor recommended this because i have several posture problems due to my shoulders slouching forward. this product doesnt completely hold your shoulders back by itself but the feeling that its there is the reminder to go with it and let your shoulders sit how it is correcting them. GREAT PRODUCT!
  
  
  

• Worked very well for me

  
  By A3QB7QX2NMT4CX on 2005-03-25
  The brace did wonders for me! I have had back pain since I was 13, and this is the only product that finally gave me releif!
  
  However... I can see why some people would have problems. It is far too uncomfortable to wear against your skin, I wear an undershirt beneath it. You cannot be lazy, while it is far easier to have good posture with this brace, you still have to make sure it is pulling your shoulders *back and not *up. I also noticed it riding up my neck, but it didn't bother me so much, my back still felt good.
  
  Notice that the connector is a bra connector. My boyfriend didn't want to wear it because he thought people would think he was wearing a bra. I think some men might find this product embarrassing. Also, it's pretty small, and it wasn't even close to fitting him, and he's not that wide.
  
  I had a very good experience, but this product is definitely not for everyone. I suppose a lot depends on what exactly is wrong with your posture. If you tend to arch your shoulders forward, like me, it's wonderful! But if you tend to slouch, it might not be so good.
  
  

• Uncomfortable

  
  By A3TZOBEDAYAUO0 on 2005-05-04
  I think this is the kind of thing that is only effective in that, because you are aware that it is there, you may learn to keep your shoulders back. Why are you aware that it's there? Because it's uncomfortable!
  
  Also, it rides up in back so that it ceases to be as effective as when you first put it on.
  
  

• TERRIBLE

  
  By A26NPKTOOXSU7C on 2005-02-12
  The arm straps are very tight and press hard upwards against your armpits. It feels like it's cutting off circulation to your arm. The material is also kind of rough so there's a burning feeling wherever there's pressure/contact. It leaves marks on your skin after wearing it for only a few minutes.
  
  It's also very hard to wear it like the picture. The band wants to crawl upwards to your neck, which in turn would pull your neck down, and hurt your posture!
  
  I'm just a average built guy, but I tend to slouch. So I think most people would experience the same difficulty with this as I did. The only reason I bought this was because I was intrigued after seeing it on a Sky Mall Catalog. I couldn't find any customer reviews for it, so I took a chance and bought one (for under $10). I guess the lesson is: you get what you pay for.
  
  
  

• Its Ok I guess for the price

  
  By AHLVOF5QIQEV on 2006-02-15
  I purchased the band a few months back, and sadly to say I've only worn it about 3 times. Like the other posters, I too had the sore red armpits. I never tried wearing a shirt under it though. The band itself never really pulled my shoulders back that tightly even at the tightest hook (could be because of my small back I guess, I wear 34D. Overall I guess the band is OK, if you dont mind it riding up on you and having people wonder why your bra strap is so high. However I did try the other posture brace underworks.com carries on their website for $19, which is far better in my opinion than this one, and I have worn that one more than 3 times. Hope this helps.
  Teenniee
  
  
• Has to be worn OVER clothes
  By A30JTML48Y7FVE on 2005-05-21
  A cervical posture band is not meant to be totally comfortable. There has to be enough pressure to pull your shoulders back. But - even though I have narrow shoulders and even when it's a little loose - this one really cuts into my armpits if I wear it against my skin. Doesn't do any good if it's loose, of course. So I wear it over a tee shirt and it does help quite a bit. It even helps relieve my tension headaches! As small as it is, I doubt it would work for a large, or a muscular person. Even the more expensive one I used to have rode up on my back. Didn't seem to make any difference on how it worked.
  
  
• treatment by torture
  By A36BJ1M86TZP6 on 2006-12-23
  I only bought this because I spend a lot of my time leaning over and slouching when I am at my drawing board or computer for several hours, so I wanted something to support my back, and align it into a healthy posture, and this looked the least awkward looking device.
  
  I expected it to be uncomfortable at first, until I get used to it; but this is treatment by torture.
  
  Since this comes with no instructions what so ever, I followed the advice of one of the other reviewers who said you should wear it OVER a T-shirt, so I put it on and headed to the library for a test drive.
  
  After 10 minutes I started feeling numbness in my forearms and tingling in my fingers (although It was on the lowest possible pressure and I am a relatively thin person ) it was pressing so hard it cut off the circulation to my arms and hands,
  My shoulder was sore for 2 days after that incidence.
  
  I decided to give it another chance so I wore it under the T-shirt in direct contact with the skin, this time it actually fitted , and I didn't get a the numbness again.
  
  However, I think there is something wrong with the design, it is supposed to straighten your back by pulling your scapulas back and down, this means that the elastic pulling material should be between your shoulder blades; instead, the elastics here are the rings surrounding the shoulders (if you look at the product photo on this page you'll see what I mean) so all the pressure and pull is concentrated in this area, which explains the sore armpits you get after wearing it for even a short time.
  And since there is nothing supporting it from the opposite direction, whenever you move your arms it begins to ride up your neck, and begins to pull your shoulders upward.
  
  It is a real shame, because this product is small and could have been a great thing with a few minor adjustments, like padding the shoulder straps (they feel like rubber bands under your arm pits) and having a frontal strap to align it and prevent is from riding.
  
  In conclusion, it only works by painfully reminding you to "...Straighten your back and don't slouch!" you get the same effect by staying at your mothers'!
  
  
  
• Depends on what you're looking for
  By A2P89M743XW7K7 on 2007-03-10
  I tend to slouch quite badly, and was just looking a quick, inexpensive fix to that problem. This solved it.
  I will say, as a preamble, if you tend hunch over as well, this product probably won't help as much as others - it obviously only focuses on shoulders). I began wearing this in the winter, so I wore a thin vest, then the brace, then a t-shirt and I didn't get the sore armpits many people complained about - EXCEPT for one day when I accidently wore the thing upside down. If you look carefully at the product, you'll realize there is a right side up, and a wrong side up, though it is NOT clearly marked. Wearing it the wrong way round makes it sit quite high, and then it does hurt to wear. Overall, in terms of interaction with clothes, it's a bit thicker and wider than a bra-strap, and sits in the same general area so figure out how that would work with your clothing style. The first several days I did get sore shoulders, but that passed- I really do believe that it is more a case of my using muscles to sit upright that I didn't use before, rather the brace. As one reviewer mentioned, you are constantly aware of the brace being there - if you weren't, then you're probably sitting slouched over.
  
  
• You get what you pay for!
  By A3F1YB2X7LZI6N on 2007-05-08
  I purchased this item for my daughter as she is quite the sloucher; I was sick of poking my finger between her shoulder blades to get her to stand up straight.
  
  This product lasted one day on her. She had major chafing in her underarm area, and it was constantly "riding up" since the elastic didn't seem to pull back. The other reviews are correct in that the product did not come with any instructions; just tossed in a plastic baggie and shipped off. Heck, I didn't even know there was a "this end up" until I read another review.
  
  At least it wasn't a major expense.
  
  
• DON'T WASTE YOUR MONEY
  By A232WYPJR0A7WG on 2007-05-15
  I'm sorry, but this item is a joke. There is absolutely nothing to this piece of elastic. The view is of the back and that is all there is, there is no front. Take a piece of elastic and put a rubber band at each end and there you have the "Posture Perfect Band, Back Support Brace" HA! Not worth returning, postage is more than the product. I wouldn't even rate this product with a -0, but I had to fill in all blanks and 1 star was as low as I could go.
  
  
• Good for the price
  By A2ABPHMCNFQDH7 on 2007-05-07
  For the price this is a great product! I immediately noticed a difference in my posture and with the brace on it was hard to slouch. The material is strong and well made. The only con to this product is that it fits extremely and uncomfortably tight in the armpits.
  
  
• Rides up...
  By A3QOMMARTKJAVD on 2007-11-07
  After wearing this brace for 20 minutes on the tightest setting, it stretched out and did not pull my shoulders back like it is designed to. It also started to ride up my back towards my neck which made it entirely useless. I guess you do get what you pay for... the shipping was as much as the product!
  
  
• Didn't Help
  By A1Z9CYMKL9KBH0 on 2007-02-28
  This product did not help me at all and was too inexpensive to bother to return. It ended up going to Goodwill.
  
  
• It does work
  By A2QGHYFEC0EH86 on 2008-06-14
  This product actually works fairly well. The only problems I encountered were that it hurts your arms, it rides up and becomes ineffective and if you put it in the washer and dryer it will stretch out and no longer work. If you hand wash it and put it over your bra, or an undershirt it works pretty well, considering the cheap price. If you have the money however, I would recommend shelling it out for better quality product.
  
  
• Great Help
  By A126F7OK2T4JUX on 2008-01-27
  I found this product to be a great help in reminding me to keep my shoulders back. It's a little difficult to get off, but it wouldn't be doing you any good if it wasn't tight enough. You definitely need to wear it over a tee shirt, as it would leave your armpits raw otherwise. I have some neck problems, and found I could only wear it for a couple of hours without it putting too much strain on my neck. But that's been enough. Doing that has helped me to remember to keep my shoulders back throughout the day. For the price, it's a great product.
  
  

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