Binders and bras

[Zebrafinch]

I started wearing binders last year, and they've been a minor revelation. One of those" why didn't I do this before things".  I've always disliked bras, but I hadn't really thought about an alternative. And binders were supposed to be sort of self-harm devices, weren't they? (Nope) I've had pain from bras often, but never binders. 

I've recently tried making my own. First one's wearable, but could do with a few tweaks.

[Madelise]

This may sound weird, but I actually enjoy wearing bras (except sports bras). I'm fine with being a 32B, but if I don't get my bras at Victoria's Secret/PINK, it can be harder to find a bra my size since 32B isn't that big. I like them for aesthetic and I've gotten so used to wearing them that it just feels weird if I don't wear one. They also feel kind of snug 😅 But also, if I don't wear a bra, it's kind of noticeable so...yeah.

[Galactic Turtle]

I've only ever worn sports bras so I don't know my cup size... because I've never had cups. I imagine I must be in the A or B range. Sports bras keep everything comfortably strapped in place whether or not I'm playing sports. Normal bras don't look practical. I heard they have wires and metal clasps and stuff. I also don't like the padding because in my mind those just make your boobs look more pronounced. Places like Victoria's Secret make me very uncomfortable. Meanwhile I'm still not quite sure what a binder is but it sounds a whole lot like a corset and you're not about to lock me in one of those. XD 

 

I figure between bras, sports bras, and binders, what's most comfortable for someone depends both on their breast and body size. However with binders specifically all people seem to talk about is how it messes with your breathing and if worn for too long can mess up your body (like heels). For me, between the options, sports bras seem the most natural and the least like some sort of medieval device. It's like a swimsuit but not. However I also heard that lots of people have sensitive boobs. Personally, mine have never given me any type of sensation either good or bad. 

[GingerRose]

I wear bras for school and work, because I have to.

Otherwise I don't care. I kind of wish my breasts were less visible when I don't wear a bra though. A binder would be nice I suppose when I have school and work, but at the same time I fear the price and discomfort. It's strange because as much as I don't want my breasts to show, I also don't want to be confused with a guy as much as I already am.

[MarRister]

I find sports bras can be quite tight and uncomfortable but maybe I'm just getting the wrong size or type. I find typical wire bras to be fairly uncomfortable and annoying when they start breaking down and wires get misshapen and/or start popping out the ends lol. I generally prefer wireless bras or bralettes which are softer and less constrictive, but still feel like they cover the nips and provide a bit of support. I'm only a B cup though so don't need a ton of support so I know bralettes aren't a great option for all. But I do also like the look of them.

[Astrea]

I don't wear anything. I understand why women with big cup sizes do, but I don't really get why women with smaller breasts do too since most of them find them uncomfortable ('how am I going to go back to wearing a bra after the quarantine?' is something I've read and heard a lot and... if you find it as uncomfortable as I do and don't feel the need to wear one home, why wear one at all?). Also wearing a bra doesn't seem to have any health benefits. On the contrary, the few studies done on the subject showed that they weaken the muscles which hold  breasts and make them sag overtime :
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/259073#3

 

https://www.wellandgood.com/going-braless/

Actually, I've watched an interesting video the other day suggesting that a corset (well-fitted and not tightened stupidly the way they do in historical movies) would support your breasts and back a lot better than a bra since it distributes the weight in a uniform manner by encompasing the whole chest and that it could be the best option for someone with a big chest size. I don't know how true that is, but it sounds like it could hold some water.

[MaryPenelope]

I usually wear sports bras, and occasionally binders. Not often though, binders can have serious health risks that everyone should be aware of, plus I personally don't feel like it does much more than my sports bra despite generally being more uncomfortable. Sometimes the pressure is nice tho

[Just a Quail]

I have small breasts, so it's only been bras for me. Lately I've been avoiding underwired bras more and more, because I honestly don't need that support and they hurt. I've considered going bra-less but I've internalized a lot of societal conventions and don't feel comfortable making that change yet.

 

@Astrea I'm curious if you might have any advice or tips for ditching bras?

[Guest]

I need no bra or binder...at least not for another 100 years give or take.

[everywhere and nowhere]

I wear binders very ocasionally, when my top clothing (T-shirt / tunic etc.) is too tight and yet I wouldn't like to give it up because I like the pattern. I love colourful clothes and work around the disadvantages which they have from the point of view of my nudity aversion and sexiness aversion by ocasionally wearing binders, always wearing a vest (sleeveless undershirt) which covers the whole chest all the way up to my collarbone...

I'm not male-identified in the slightest, but I would be extremely uncomfortable with being sexually attractive, so I avoid it with several methods: contempt for fashion, short hair, zero makeup (also due to my alllergy), hairy legs (well, I'm too nudity-averse to show anything above lower 1/4 of my legs - but I'm fine with my feet and ankles being visible and they are already somewhat hairy, I sometimes even wear capri jeans only to shock people with the sight of a woman who doesn't shave her legs... ), ultra-short fingernails (also due to my allergy), well-covering clothes, loose clothes, refusal to fight signs of aging, asexual and queer jewellery, and ocasionally binders. And, well, I'm successful with it: I get unwanted male attention very rarely. Now even not anymore, I'm almost forty years old and probably look older.

I have had bra-related "injuries", but really, very mild. Just scratches, abrasions, chafed skin... My skin is very sensitive and also extremely dry, so it's damaged easily.

[everywhere and nowhere]

1 hour ago, Astrea said:

I don't wear anything. I understand why women with big cup sizes do, but I don't really get why women with smaller breasts do too since most of them find them uncomfortable ('how am I going to go back to wearing a bra after the quarantine?' is something I've read and heard a lot and... if you find it as uncomfortable as I do and don't feel the need to wear one home, why wear one at all?). Also wearing a bra doesn't seem to have any health benefits. On the contrary, the few studies done on the subject showed that they weaken the muscles which hold  breasts and make them sag overtime

Well, my boobs are somewhere around medium range, but I would be extremely uncomfortable wthout a bra. They were already sagging when I was 20 years old. Without a bra, I would definitely have chafed skin under my boobs. For the same reason, at least as long as I was fat (but I would still wear it because I find it more comfortable), I always wore a pair of tight knee-legth pants on the rare ocasions when I wore a skirt, because otherwise thigh brushing against thigh ---> invariably, chafed skin.

But I think that I would wear some kind of sport bra even I was lucky to have tiny boobs. Due to my nudity aversion, I need at least six pieces of clothing to feel comfortable: panties, bra, vest, pants, top clothing (shirt / T-shirt / tunic / robe* / short and loose dress used as tunic / etc.) and some kind of shoes (slippers at home, but slippers are footwear too...). I just have to feel clothing on my skin and know that I'm well-covered.

 

*In my clothing terminology, a robe is a garment which differs from a tunic by being very long - ankle-length or almost that - and from a dress by not having any marked waistline. Note that I'm not trendy or elegant - I usually dress like an adrogynous hippie, so for me there's nothing weird about going out to town in jeans and a colourful robe.

[Gloomy]

I'm technically a 28C or D (don't let the "C or D" part fool you into thinking that's big, 32A or B is the sister size of that, but the band would be too loose for me), but nobody except a few expensive online retailers sell anything smaller than 32. So I just wear bralettes or training bras despite being 29 years old. They're a lot cheaper than regular bras so at least that's a plus for my broke ass, and they're still comfortable enough for me.

[Anthracite_Impreza]

Is it possible to make 5. optional/don't know? I have no idea and the entire idea makes me dysphoric AF.

[Zebrafinch]

5 hours ago, Anthracite_Impreza said:

Is it possible to make 5. optional/don't know? I have no idea and the entire idea makes me dysphoric AF.

Will "I don't want to think about it" do?

[Anthracite_Impreza]

2 minutes ago, Zebrafinch said:

Will "I don't want to think about it" do?

Fine by me.

[fooledbysecrecy]

been wearing binders for about 4 years now and switching to them from bras has been one of the best decisions in my life, bras are possibly the most uncomfortable thing to wear, especially when you're hyper sensitive and dysphoric and they make you just so aware of your boobs all the time. recently i've started wearing sports bras too, they don't flatten as much as i'd like to but do the job, especially during these times if i just need to quickly pop into a shop or something. i've got one binder i made myself out of a tube top and it turned out really comfy. 

i was size 36C last time i measured (which was ages ago) and have gained a little weight since so yeah that's a little bit too big for me, but i don't think it qualifies for breast reduction for medical reasons, and can't really reduce it naturally that much (im TRYING to exercise but........) so binder it is.

[Risuel]

I'm surprised that the only options are bra or binder and not - neither? 

I've stopped wearing bras years ago - and only recently discovered the possibility of binders. 

Haven't gotten around to buy one yet thought but the idea of being flat and maybe fitting better into guys clothes sure sounds neat!

[Guest]

I only wear bras without wire and without padding. I got a binder for free once from someone, and used it a few times, I didn't mind it, but it kept rolling down (wrong size, probably). I find my regular bralettes to be way more comfortable.

[Grumpy Alien]

I just wear bras but I’m happy I’m considered a medium size! I’m a DD/DDD and I feel like they’re huge. I miss being a B.

[Madelise]

Just now, Kimchi Peanut said:

I’m a DD/DDD and I feel like they’re huge. I miss being a B.

My mom's a DDD I believe, while I'm a B 😅

[Grumpy Alien]

Just now, Elise Jennings said:

My mom's a DDD I believe, while I'm a B 😅

I gained a lot of weight when I was about 24 from PCOS and that took me from a B to a DDD. No matter what weight I am now (it fluctuates) I’m never smaller than a D. I think I would ideally like to be a C.

[Madelise]

5 minutes ago, Kimchi Peanut said:

I think I would ideally like to be a C.

Yeah, I get that. I heard it can be a pain to have breasts that are on the bigger side of things.

[Goonie]

bra. wireless and padded.

 

used to wear a variety of bras. underwire issues stopped that  

[Zebrafinch]

Good lot of responses so far. I thought comfort would score higher on reasons to wear a binder, as it's my number one reason for doing so. Wasn't why I first got one, though, that was because the size of my breasts was an issue when moving large heavy delicate stuff with other people.

Also thought more of you would break the eight hour rule.

 

On 7/16/2020 at 8:50 PM, Kimchi Peanut said:

I just wear bras but I’m happy I’m considered a medium size! I’m a DD/DDD and I feel like they’re huge. I miss being a B.

Well, I'm an F/G, so from my perspective you are. Wasn't quite sure where to draw the lines on that one.

 

On 7/17/2020 at 6:57 PM, Goonie said:

bra. wireless and padded.

 

used to wear a variety of bras. underwire issues stopped that  

Are you the third bra related injury? There's me(wet bras can chafe. That hurt) and, I assume, NowhereGirl for the first two. Just curious.

 

Thanks everyone

[Goonie]

2 minutes ago, Zebrafinch said:

Are you the third bra related injury?

Wire busted through the fabric holder. I was young and didn't make much money, so I'd try to make do until bras were on sale again. Underwires are just uncomfortable to me now anyway. 

[Zebrafinch]

31 minutes ago, Goonie said:

Wire busted through the fabric holder. I was young and didn't make much money, so I'd try to make do until bras were on sale again. Underwires are just uncomfortable to me now anyway. 

Oww. Most of the underwired bras I've tried on made me feel like I was being  stabbed in the armpit. Did end up buying a few of the more tolerable ones, but I usually cut the wires out after a while.

[SithLord]

There is no "yes" option for 7.  

 

Tried one, didn't like it - I haven't tried one yet.

Maybe - I would.

Never thought about it - I have.

Don't they hurt? - I know they can but not always.

I'm happy with my bras - Not especially, but for the most part. Kind of like saying "no" but politely though.

Too unflattering - Not necessarily.

No - Wrong.

Other - Only option for "Yes."

I wear binders - I do not.

My tits are way too small already - Not really. I'm happy with my size right now.

I've got it. I like to flaunt it - Ew. No.

I'm intrigued now. Might try them - Still some hesitance present, also with the idea that the poll sparked the interest. 

[Zebrafinch]

5 hours ago, SithApprentice said:

There is no "yes" option for 7.  

 

Tried one, didn't like it - I haven't tried one yet.

Maybe - I would.

Never thought about it - I have.

Don't they hurt? - I know they can but not always.

I'm happy with my bras - Not especially, but for the most part. Kind of like saying "no" but politely though.

Too unflattering - Not necessarily.

No - Wrong.

Other - Only option for "Yes."

I wear binders - I do not.

My tits are way too small already - Not really. I'm happy with my size right now.

I've got it. I like to flaunt it - Ew. No.

I'm intrigued now. Might try them - Still some hesitance present, also with the idea that the poll sparked the interest. 

I realised I didn't put a yes option in yesterday. Forgot/didn't think of it when I posted the poll. I'm going to add it in.

I think it's partly because getting my first binder felt like a big thing at the time. 

[SithLord]

2 hours ago, Zebrafinch said:

I realised I didn't put a yes option in yesterday. Forgot/didn't think of it when I posted the poll. I'm going to add it in.

I think it's partly because getting my first binder felt like a big thing at the time. 

Would take it again if I could. But "Yes"

[gymgirl]

In my teens I wore binders for some time until there was no need anymore. When it had become necessary due to my development other girls my age had started wearing bras years ago,  something I never considered. Somehow I managed to stay flat with the binders until the problem was solved more permanently. I got some good natured teasing about it which made me secretly happy, because it showed that it worked. Nobody ever thought I might  be binding my breasts, they called me a "flatsie".  :-)