ETA: Take a look at your responses, Sunny: You have a lot of naysayers who never tried it, and you have a couple who did try it, and it seemed to work for them. You have NO ONE on here saying, yes I tried it, and it absolutely did not work. It is worth the $12 to see if we are right. I would NEVER buy into hype over this. I'm an RN, and did a TON of real research before deciding to try it. There is a hormone called Relaxin that your body produces that loosens the cartilage in your hips so you can give birth. That hormone circulates for months after birth, and it during that time that your hips are "pliable" and able to be coaxed back to their original place. Some people are lucky enough for that to happen on its own, and some (dare I say MANY) learn to live with their newly widened post-birth hips. Those who say its too good to be true are probably just bummed that they didn't try it! I'm so glad I did. Glad, too, that I didn't spend $60 on a "designer" one, just a similar product that worked. I'm not gonna lie; you have to wear it about 20 hours a day, but the results are worth it, and I found it very comfortable.
I did it after babies 4 and 5, and yes, I think it made a tremendous difference in how fast my tummy went down, and hips too. It also just felt incredibly good to have support for all my internal organs that seemed to just be "floating" around in there as they tried to find their way back to their usual spots!
I didn't go fancy; I ordered an abdominal binder from Amazon, and it was called the McDavid waist trimmer, I think (I have zero ties to that company, BTW!) The one I used before that one was from Walmart, in the exercise section. I would never give birth again without immediately putting one on, and leaving it there for pretty much the first month.
ETA: Its NOT a girdle; its a 6-8 in wide elasticized adjustable band that provides amazing relief to an achy back, and holds your tummy and hips snug while your hormones work at fixing everything that spread and loosened during pregnancy. Women in other countries have been doing this for centuries. There is tons of scientific research that show and uphold the benefits to your body with binding and wraps after birth. There is NO harm whatsoever with doing it. I gained 25-28 lbs and was in shape and not overweight with any of my kids. I worked out up to the day before delivery with the last one. This type of binder was still incredibly effective for me. Just do a little research; you will be thrilled with the results. I've done it both ways; with and without. I would NEVER do without again.