Going back to work
Comments
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I had a left mastectomy done 4 weeks ago. I'm going back to work in 3 weeks. I am concerned about what type of bra to wear. I tried on my old bra and used a soft form and it looked great. My doctor told me he didn't want me to wear a bra that would dig into my incision and this bra is very tight. So now I don't know if I can wear this bra or have to buy something else. I work with animals and my job is very physical so I need to make sure I have a secure bra. I would greatly appreciate any info.
Thanks,
Beth
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Have you tried camisoles with pockets? If you work with animals, why wear anything at all under your clothes unless you're uncomfortable that way? I prefer it myself unless I'm going somewhere special.
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Beth41,
I know what you mean. I'm 6 wks out from my mast/SNB and I can't wear a bra yet. I still have some puffiness under my arm from the SNB that gets stuck in just the wrong place with a bra. I am not well-endowed, and I like to be comfortable (not stylish), so I've been wearing "casual" bras for years. I can't even wear those.
I tried some really soft, stretchy sports bras (mostly a wide band of tight jersey fabric, with no cup). They squish me too much and force the soft, puffy under-arm tissue up above the bra band. Doesn't work at all.
Someone awhile back suggested trying a bra that is a size or two (in band size) bigger than you usually wear. I haven't done that yet, but it might work. The other option is to buy a stretchy camisole, like shrink suggested.
In the meantime, I wear loose T-shirts around home and try the layered-look when I go out. If necessary, I wear a soft, sleeveless undershirt beneath my first layer. It's not optimal, but with my small breast size (34B/36A), it has been OK. I think I could get away with it at work.
OTOH, I don't have to hold squirming dogs, mean cats, or rearing horses anymore, since I'm retired.
otter
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I have a softee camisole but it has no support whatsoever. I'm a 36B. It definitely will be noticeable if I go to work not wearing anything. I don't want to look any different than I did before. I don't want my coworkers feeling uncomfortable around me so I want to be the same to them. I can't wear a sports bra (It does squish too much). I only had one lymph node removed but I do have some swelling under my arm.
I'm going to see if I can find a bra strap widener? to make it bigger.
Thanks for the suggestion.
Beth
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Beth,
I wore a soft, post-surgery mast bra that fastens in the front. Amoena makes one caleld the Frances Front Closure Leisure Soft Cup Bra. It is very soft stretchy cotton and not tight fitting. I put a foam form into the pocket and nobody noticed anything.
- Susan
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Susanin, I looked at the bra you mentioned but it doesn't look like it has much support. Before I had the mastectomy I had problems finding bras with good support. I finally ended up with a t-shirt bra from victoria secret. Thanks for your input, though.
Beth
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Beth,
Ah, yes. Not a lot of support. Glad you were able to find a bra that works. I did wear really loose tops until I had a regular prosthesis. I even went to work with my drain for several days. I showed it to the guys I work with but they seemed pretty unfazed. Very few people knew I had a mast. They knew I had some kind of major surgery but I didn't tell them exactly what. I had my mast about a month after starting a new job so I didn't feel like talking about it.
- Susan
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Hi Beth,
Check out www.tlcdirect.org, part of ACS, and reasonably-priced.
Hope you find what you need...
Take care,
Aurora
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