Why Compression Stockings Are So Hard to Put on When You’re Pregnant (And What Actually Helps)

Okay, pregnancy admin nobody warns you about: your midwife hands you a script for compression stockings, and nobody mentions that you’ll now need to wrestle a stiff, sausage-tight sock over a foot you can’t really see anymore, let alone reach without holding your breath. I watched a friend attempt this in her third trimester once and it was less “getting dressed” and more full-contact sport.

If that’s you right now, you’re in very normal company. Most pregnant women get some swelling in the ankles, feet and legs, and it tends to get worse the further along you go. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby has a good explainer on why this happens and when it’s actually worth a call to your doctor. Varicose veins are common too, showing up in up to 4 in 10 pregnancies, and stockings are one of the main non-medical ways to deal with both.

None of that’s really the problem though. The problem is getting the things on in the first place.

Compression stockings are meant to be tight. That’s the whole job, graduated pressure that’s strongest at the ankle and eases off as it climbs the leg, pushing blood back up towards your heart instead of letting it sit in your feet all day. Great in theory. In practice, that same tightness is exactly what makes them hard to put on even when you’re not pregnant, and pregnancy throws in a bump you can’t bend around, joints that are looser than usual thanks to the hormone relaxin, and feet that might genuinely be bigger than they were back in January.

A few things actually help. Put them on the second you’re out of bed, before you’ve been upright all day and gravity’s done its thing. Dust your leg with a bit of talc or cornflour first, sounds like nothing, makes a real difference to how the fabric glides on instead of dragging. Get remeasured too, not the size you wore before the bump, most pharmacies will do it in about two minutes.

And honestly, just use a donning aid, because it’s the only one of these that actually solves the problem instead of working around it. The EzyAs applicator lets you load the stocking onto a frame first, then slide your foot straight in, no bending, no wrestling the fabric on with your hands. It was built for people who find it hard to bend down and reach their own feet, which, it turns out, describes most of the third trimester too.

One more thing worth knowing, because I’d rather you read it here than panic-Google it at 2am: normal pregnancy swelling is one thing, but sudden swelling in your face, hands or feet, especially if it comes on fast, is worth calling your midwife about straight away. Pregnancy, Birth and Baby spells out the difference clearly.

Normal pregnancy swelling is annoying enough without your stockings turning into a daily wrestling match on top of it.