Rockin' flatness like a bada$s

welcome mommyof2 !   Flat is fabulous! 

Hi all. I'm new. I had a dm on Sept.30. I chose dm because that's what I want. The docs didn't want to do that but it's my choice, right? 

I'm glad I've found you!

WT

Welcome, WhiteTiger!

I haven't been back here for a while, so time for a little update. When I
returned to the BS to discuss my final decision, I did expect some resistance
and was prepared for it. I did not expect the resistance to be so overt and
unbending. I left feeling unsure whether I'd wake up from surgery with extra
skin or not! I called a few days later and spoke to the nurse, who was very
understanding; I later spoke to the BS, who seemed to finally understand that I
wasn't changing my mind. But I did also get a second opinion from a BS that I've
heard very good things about (my original BS also has an excellent reputation,
BTW, which made this all so much more difficult). It took me several days to
listen to my heart--on Friday afternoon, I canceled surgery. I am now waiting on a call-back to get scheduled with my new BS. I do have to say, though--we really must stick up for ourselves and be
our own best friends.

I'm 29 and just diagnosed with DCIS. I requested bilateral mastectomy, and I do not plan to reconstruct. I have a busy life to get back to and can't imagine every feeling comfortable with implants in my body. I'm keeping my mind open to the possibility that I may decide to experiment with wearing prosthetics, but I live in Houston (hot and humid) and I just don't think I will want to bother. After a decade of problems with my breasts, I hope I find I was much more relieved to be breast-free than anyone (including me) anticipated. Thank you for posting this. It seems like everyone I know is shocked by the idea of not being reconstructed. It's nice to see that other women feel the same way I do. 

Hi M26, I agree with Glennie, totally up to you! There are many of us and the numbers are growing. These BS will have to come to terms with the fact that women don't always feel they need breasts, to be a woman.

I live in HOT Australia and I have a wardrobe, affectionately known around here as the "FoobMoire" full of different foobs, boobs and bras and camisoles. I am a little different, to you, in that I have one natural breast, opting for a Umx, but I too sometimes wear a compression or shape wear tank, like Glennie, which rails in the rogue puppy, on the other side.

I say, let everyone be shocked, it isn't them making the decisions here, or the ones having to live with the outcome. It isn't all about them! Tell them so!

Take a look at some of the great  and powerful photos on the internet, of women who have made the decision to go flat. There is The Scar Project, which has a mixture of recon and no recon, for me, I see such power in the non reconstructed pictures. There is also Breastfee.org which is a site belonging to one of our members here. She has pics and lots of information that could be of interest to you. Then there is the FB page Flat and Fabulous. There are also threads on this forum specifically for women who decide against recon.

You're not alone!

Hi Lilith,,, sounds like you are doing well 8 days post op!!

glennie, I think I'm doing pretty darned well, too! I'm now two weeks out from BMX--underarms feeling much better, but then I also haven't started any real exercises yet. Have to look into that; so damned happy to be able to sleep on my side again, though sometimes I do have to take a break for an hour or so and switch to my back for a bit; range of motion getting better every day, too! I've even made it back into my beloved T-shirts, ever since Day 9--I feel so much more like myself

And as for rockin' flatness? Yes, yes I did--Day 10, I wore my one and only Halloween T-shirt which is really a bit small for me since I gained a good 20 lbs in the past 2-3 years. I asked my best friend, who was staying with me, "Too flat too soon?" She said no, I looked perfectly fine. And so I went out in public as flat as flat can be, and rocked that T-shirt!

Hi Everyone,

I am newly diagnosed in one breast. I don't have my prognosis yet and haven't seen a breast surgeon because of insurance red tape, so I am just processing all the possibilities. I have always been strongly disinclined to getting fake breasts or using a prosthetic if this ever happened, because 10 years ago I read "The Cancer Journals" and everything Audre Lorde said really hit home with me. After reading more about recon procedures online, I feel 100% sure I don't want fake breasts and complicated surgeries. I also don't want to bother with a prosthetic. It seems like a crazy headache with no point.

So the question is, how extreme do I want to be? Even if they don't need to do a mastectomy, I'm guessing my breast will be deformed after lumpectomy. My breasts are large, and I don't want two different sized breasts. I am also 34 and don't want to have to go through this over and over for the rest of my life (I'm thinking that cutting them off will make it less likely cancer will come back.) I also don't want a uni-boob, especially since they are so big. I'm starting to go stir crazy waiting to get the full picture. I'm so glad to find this forum. I am going to my first in-person support group today, but I know I will have to be a little more sensitive about what I say there than on a forum that is celebrating flatness.

Thanks for reading.

Emily

Hi Emily,,, what Wren said.   There are a couple of threads called "lumpectomy versus mastectomy"   something like that.  That will give you lots of information to consider for your decision.  Look for Beesie's notes which were posted,, I think,, by Ruthbru,,,, they are extremely informative.

Sorry that you find yourself here, but welcome.  Rant, ask questions,,,

glennie

KQHill, check out I Look for Other Flat Chested Women, Rant. I've posted there. I go flat 24/7. It's all in the flatitude.

Edited for grammatical error.

Hi ozbell,

In most cases, the pectoral muscles are not removed, but I think sometimes if the cancer is encroaching they are. Did you actually ask your surgeon about that? Some of us, even if the pectoral muscles are left intact, look more concave than others.

I'm sorry you're uncomfortable wearing a breast form and bra. I had to do a lot of experimenting to find some comfortable options. Going flat is definitely comfortable, but I'm not there yet mentally and not sure I'll ever be. Many women who go flat say no one seems to notice, but when I look in the mirror at myself, I notice, and it's hard for me to believe others wouldn't also. I run the non-profit website, BreastFree.org, and feel great about my decision not to have reconstruction, but I still prefer not to draw attention to my flatness when I'm out in public, though I admire those who go flat and feel fine about it.

Good luck trying to figure out a solution that works for you!

Ozbell, I'm conclave on one side, opted for a BMX. Asked my GYN about it and he told me that it had to do with how my breast tissue was attached to my chest. Makes sense to me as one side "drooped" a little more than the other. I was a D cup.

Hello ladies! I was wondering if any of you can suggest lingerie which is flattering for women with no breasts? I refuse to wear fakes, but im not comfortable being naked during intimacy yet either. Thanks so much!

littleblueflowers, i have slips like this one that have no underwire. They give the ballerina effect.

https://www.victoriassecret.com/bras/just-in-dream...

Also bralettes are nice. Lacy ones or patterns can work to hide assymetry or concavity.

https://www.victoriassecret.com/bras/just-in-dream...

These were ones I saw tonight from one retailer, but you get the idea and they can be found anywhere, even discount bigbox stores.