gave in to purse carry for the next 3 months

[mamabearCali]

Ok so I have been adamant about not wanting to carry my beloved Glock 36 in my purse. There are so many reasons why an off-body carry is much less than ideal. However I am 7 months pregnant. We only have the Glock 36 as a carry weapon (no lite little .380 hanging about our house). I have tried every way I could think of (and some of them worked for a month or two but then my baby got bigger!) to carry on body. All of them now hurt something fierce. One way rubs a blister here, one way throws my back out, another way is so obvious I might as well strap it on the outside of my belly. So I had two choices. Go to a purse carry--I have a purse that is ideal for this and can put the weapon inside an IWB and put it in an enclosed pocket within the purse. So with the choice of purse carry or don't carry at all, I decided that imperfect carry was better than no carry. After all I am 7 months pregnant and certainly can't run jump or fight to get away. Hopefully by early next year I can go back to a better carry system. Thinking of OWB around the house and I will have to work on the other carry (as nursing in a flash bang might be problematic).

[thatTexasLady]

Cali, when I had my surgery and couldn't carry IWB they didn't have a flashbang for my gun then, I carried in an ankle holster. Draw is not as quick, but it was much better for me than purse carry. I just flat will not purse carry unless it is my only option. I got my ankle holster from chickholsters.com and LOVE it!

[TLynnHughes]

Sounds like you're making the best of the situation. Kudos to you for trying everything you could think of! I'll bet the 3 months will go by pretty fast and then there will be other options to consider.

T.

[Venus Pax]

I remember not being able to carry on my body when I started showing. Maternity pants don't have belt loops. I carried in my purse as well.
After she was born, I carried in a diaper bag much of the time. I covertly put in on my waist when I knew I was about to go through a parking lot, then went to a RR or dressing room and put it in my diaper bag. The most difficult thing was nursing with the gun on the hip. There was no way of nursing on my dominant side w/o the gun showing (even through an undershirt).
It wasn't until she was nearly a year old (and didn't need to nurse as much) that I discovered a nursing poncho. I'm not one to shy away from nursing in public (I can do it discreetly), but that nursing poncho would have been the answer to my concealment issue.

[jdlott74]

I actually purse carry most of the time but it's because normally of the clothes I wear. I don't wear jeans most of the time, which of course is easier on body.

Congrats on the baby...Which Chesterfield/Richmond hospital are you going to? I have family that lives in Chesterfield and Richmond. Love the area. My mom and her boyfriend were just there this week seeing his daughter.

[SewTexas]

I purse carry often, esp in the summer, I like sun dresses...just keep those little fingers out of your purse and you'll be fine

[bluejay71]

Cali, when I had my surgery and couldn't carry IWB they didn't have a flashbang for my gun then, I carried in an ankle holster. Draw is not as quick, but it was much better for me than purse carry. I just flat will not purse carry unless it is my only option. I got my ankle holster from chickholsters.com and LOVE it!

I'm trying to think how I could have gotten to an ankle holster while pregnant! I couldn't even cut my own toenails! But there is some great "thinking out of the box" on this thread!

[mamabearCali]

I have given birth to two of my children at St. Francis medical center with the midwives at the Women's center. Would not give birth without them! (They do have a back up OB/GYN's for emergencies and complicated cases). I highly recommend them and St. Francis hospital.

I like the idea of an ankle holster, and might go that way with jeans, when not massively pregnant, but right now fastening my shoes is an adventure! Everything below my belly button is theoretical, in that I know it is there but I can't see it and have a hard time reaching it!

[ravenfirerange]

Hi Mamabear,

My daughter is 3 and half months old as of today. When I was pregnant with her I continued to carry my Glock 17 IWB. It was terribly difficult, but well worth it. The key to making this method work for me was to buy a significantly larger, durable belt. I found a good industrial strength men's belt at Wal-Mart that worked well. I simply slung the belt below my protruding belly and practiced my draws everyday. I tried carrying in my purse, very much like you, but I had built up so much muscle memory from drawing via my right hip that switching was impractical. If I ever was in a situation where I had to draw, my belly was already enough of a hindrance for getting myself and my daughter to safety; I didn't want to add my gun to that list. I am very proud of you for not ditching the gun altogether. At the end of the day, it doesn't matter what any of us say. All that matters is your level of comfort. Congratulations, Mama!

[Divided Attention]

I must salute all of you who are literally juggling young children and carrying a side arm! I am not sure I could have been brave enough to try. My kids are nearly grown, and while in the past year I have come to view my side arm as my watch (feel naked without one), I am not sure I would have even had the guts to try when they were toddlers/infants, I did take Karate and self defense classes, and when the girls were in kindergarten they attended a training on "stranger awareness and avoiding/escaping from abduction". I am proud of you ladies, taking responsibility for the safety of yourselves and your offspring!

Sorry to hijack, now back to your regularly scheduled programming.