Bengkung Wrapping- Tips and Tricks

Lovely new mom Sarai

Over a year ago I started learning more about traditional Bengkung wrapping, and then last October I was able to try it out myself after the birth of my third baby. Now that I have had the opportunity to wrap over a dozen mothers, and to wear the wrap myself, I am happy to offer some tips and tricks that may help the modern mother to wear the Bengkung wrap most comfortably. Some of these will apply more to the person doing the wrapping, and others to the person who is wearing the wrap. 

If my dressform had buttocks, this wrap would be around them!

For the One Wrapping-

• Always wrap over an under-layer!
  • Especially if you live in a hot climate, it may be tempting to wrap over your skin. This is not nearly as comfortable as it seems! It will pinch. Also, an underlayer that is cottony instead of slippery nylon or polyester is better for helping the wrap to stay where you put it, and also for breathability.
• Start lower on the hips than seems right.
  • Basically, you need to start where the first round or two are hitting around the buttocks, no higher. Any higher, and the wrap will slip up so high that it doesn't fully address closing the pelvis.

• Don't worry about the wrap looking perfect.
  • Really....juat don't. I know all of the promotional pictures make it look so easy and elegant, but it actually takes a lot of practice to get that look! Focus first on making it comfortable and evenly wrapped. The line up the front doesn't have to be perfectly straight for it to be functional. As you practice, your technique will improve and it will look prettier.
• If the wrap isn't long enough to go all of the way to the ribcage, focus on wrapping the hips really well.
  • Bengkung wraps are traditionally 13 yards long. This seems to be long enough for most women in Indonesia, who are smaller than the average American, but the majority of wraps that I sell are 15 yards long. I'm about a size 10-12 in American sizing, and this length worked for me. However, if you find that the wrap doesn't cover from lower hips to ribcage, it's better to focus on the hips, especially in the immediate postpartum period, than trying to make the wrap go all of the way up.
• Maintain tension constantly on the wrap.
  • I like to do this by having the mother/wrappee hold the short end, and I walk around her as I pull the wrap around to the front, pulling tightly as I go.
• ​Practice Practice Practice!
  • Seriously; Bengkung wrapping is like anything else. You have to practice on people of all sizes and shapes to feel really comfortable doing it. It may be easy to wrap a slim woman, but it's not as helpful when you're wrapping a mother who is just a few days postpartum and looks about 5-6 months pregnant. Then there are some women postpartum who look like they were never pregnant, and those will feel really easy!

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For the Wearer-

• Don't worry if you don't like it right away.
  • Bengkung binding is an expected and traditional practice in parts of Indonesia. It's relatively new to western civilization, so it's totally normal if it feels strange or overly restrictive. Some women that I've wrapped LOVE it and have no problem wearing it, but others decide that they aren't a huge fan. Some of them don't like it in the beginning, but later try again and find that they enjoy the support. All of these reactions are to be expected from such a new (to us) postpartum practice.
• Try starting off wearing the wrap for longer periods of time, then reduce the duration of wrapping.
  • Although the traditional wrap is worn most of the day for 30-40 days, after speaking with some physical therapists that also offer Bengkung wrapping, I've been suggesting that women start off wrapping for longer periods of time (6-8 hours) in the first few weeks postpartum, but then wean off to less time each day as the weeks go by. The theory behind this being that it allows the muscles of the core to slowly regain control, a nice middle ground between our normal practice of NO core support, and over a of support that may actually weaken those muscles because they haven't been activated enough. This also supports what most women normally feel after birth- that they wish to stay home more in the first few weeks after birth, but then start to want to be more active.

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• If breastfeeding is uncomfortable sitting down, try using aids to breastfeed your baby.
  • By aids I mean a sling or pillow! If you have a sling, you can stand and breastfeed at the same time. A pillow will help bring baby up to you so that you aren't trying to slouch down. This is important wrap, or no wrap!
• Make sure that you listen to your body and do what feels best to YOU.
  • I can't emphasize this enough. If you don't like the way the wrap feels, even after trying it a few times, or it hurts, or you just feel like you can't do anything in it, it's okay. You might like it a week later, or a month later. They don't expire! And they can easily be passed from mother-to-mother.

One More Thing....

If there is something that I believe strongly in, it's honesty. So, in the interest of full disclosure, I feel that I need to mention that a Bengkung wrap may not work for all body types. In particular, I find that women with very wide hips in relation to their waists have a harder time keeping the wrap in place enough to be effective. 

The wrapping style was developed for a certain group of women, who typically have a certain body type- very wide hips are not very common. Note that weight is not really an issue; it's more a question of how much of a curve there is from the hips to the waist. If the wrap doesn't work for you, keep the fabric to use for other purposes, or pass it along to a friend! (In each of my Bengkung wraps there is about 2.5 yards of beautiful, high-quality batik.)

Katherine and Baby Scarlett

In conclusion....

I've very much enjoyed practicing Bengkung wrapping and helping women to learn it over the past year. I hope that these tips and tricks will help you to be confident enough to try Bengkung wrapping for yourself or clients, and successful when you do!

Doulas who have been offering this service, or mother who have tried the Bengkung wrap, do you agree with these suggestions?

p.s....You can buy a Bengkung wrap from me on Etsy HERE, or from my website. If you live in the Charlottesville area, I would be happy to come to you and show you how to benefit from Bengkung wrapping! 

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