question about post mastectomy bras

marguerite13

Hello! I am new to the forum. I was diagnosed in April and completed 21 weeks of chemotherapy that ended in September. I had a single mastectomy on Nov 14. I also had 5 lymph nodes removed. During my mastectomy I had tissue expanders placed and I have been expanded twice so far. I will begin radiation next month.

My question is about bras. A friend gave me a soft mastectomy bra with velcro down the front. I started wearing it last week because I felt that my right (surviving) breast was too saggy and I was getting a rash on the underside. It was fine...not too uncomfortable but a little. Afer I was expanded the second time, I was very uncomfortable. I tried wearing a regular bra for a couple of days and adjusted the straps differently. It was okay at first, but then became somewhat painful on the surgical site.

I was looking at some bra sites online and wasn't finding what I would like--which is a bra with basically only one cup for my surviving breast. With the expansion, my other "breast" sits much higher up and the cup is very uncomfortable on the surgical site...under my arm, and where the drains were, etc. I am considering cutting the cup off of an old bra and seeing how that works.

Any advice or suggestions?

Thank you.

~marguerite

MinusTwo

Margurite - you will eventually need to be professionally measured. You can make an appointment with a registered fitter at most Nordstroms stores. Or you can go to a specialty store where they cater to mastectomy patients and sell prothetics and surgical bras. I wouldn't spend too much money on bras now since you have no idea what will fit when the process is finished. Another thought is sports bras from somewhere like WalMart as an interim measure. They have many with front zippers or velcro.

Luckynumber47

Since MinusTwo mentioned a sports bra from Walmart I thought I'd second that. I've been through so many bras since surgery. What feels ok one day makes me miserable the next. Right now my favorite is a Danskin sports bra from Walmart that zips up the front. It even has pockets so you can add forms if you need them to make both sides match.

marguerite13

Thanks so much!! Ps I like your user name. I was calling myself boob minus for a bit there.