Worried about underwires...

Hello ladies!

I've bought a couple of amazing balconette bras (oh my god I can't wait to update my avi!) but I'm a little nervous about wearing them.

My PS did say I can start to wear normal bras but to continue with sports bras for another month when I was at home etc.... When I asked "does that include underwires" he seemed quite against me ever wearing an underwired bra ever again... Because of the risk of bottoming out.

Does this make sense to everyone else? It seems a crying shame if I can't ever wear underwires again when I've spent all this money getting them done! I want to wear sexy bras!! And it seems everyone else has been given the ok from about 6 weeks...

I know I must listen to what my surgeon tells me..... But never again???

What does everyone think? Xx

Really? I dont know about that... I hope its not true!! xxx

Hi yeah i was told something similar this the other day after my post op check. Ive got to wear support/sports bras for 6 weeks, then normal non-wired bras for another 6 weeks after that. Then i can start n wear normal underwired bras but to alternate between the 2. I was under the impression i could wear underwired after the 6 weeks but apparently not. Like u said better to not to run the risk of anything happenin but its just abit annoying isnt it. Xx

Never wear Underwire again what! Did he tell you that you would be more at risk of bottoming out than anyone else with implants? If not then I can't really understand why you just aren't allowed to wear them.

He said to wear sports bras when possible for the next 4 weeks then it's ok to wear normal underwear. I asked if that included underwires and he said I should avoid wearing them as it could increase my risk of bottoming out.

I asked if he meant I should avoid underwires for the next four weeks or if he meant forever, and he said forever!

It was the first time the issue of 'bottoming out' had been brought up post op. Pre op, it was explained as a risk but no more than anybody else.

Sometime I'm a little unsure if things get lost in translation where everything is happening in a hurry! He was late to the appointment and I was in and out very quickly. This was the same for my 2 week check.

I think he's a brilliant surgeon, he's changed my life and I'd recommend him in a second to anybody, but I do seem to be getting things confused about what's allowed and what's not...

I'm not a surgeon but from what I have read, larger implants are more at risk of bottoming out due to the increased pressure on the sking from carrying around heavy implants and they are recommended to wear underwire to give additional support and decrease the chances of bottoming out. However I also read In an A cup individual with large implants, garments that minimize the upward displacement of the implants, such as an underwire, are to be avoided. So nothing that pushes them up or puts pressure on them to go up.

It looks like he probably did mean it, I guess it is really up to you as to what you do, each surgeon seems to have different opinions. Maybe just keep underwire for when you are fully healed, say 6-12 months time, or buy bras and take the underwire out. It looks like it's up to you as to what you want to do.

Oh my lord ,im confused now too! I know we should all follow the advice of our own surgeons but there does seem to be a lot of different opinions.

I saw my own surgeon yesterday, im almost 6 weeks post op and he said i could start to wear underwired bras now! Now i had to wear only a binder (no bra) for the first 4 weeks so ive only been wearing sports bra for almost 2 weeks. I actually thought that this was a bit too soon so i havent rushed out to be measured yet.

I honestly dont think underwired bras will be comfy for me yet as i still get a bit achey sometimes so i like the support of the sports bra.

But to never wear underwired??! I dont think ive heard of that been said before, as i just presumed that we'd all need the support of a good bra, more so now we have implants .

But hey, what do i know........

xxx

Ive not heared that before????,i was told i could wear wires from 6 weeks but found them uncumfy for quite a few months so only wore them for an hour or two then back into a sports bra,now i wear them all the time!!!x

Bottoming out can also be from surgeon error, not just big implants xx

Sounds like he is being a tad over cautious xx I can't see any reason why or how underwires could cause bottoming out xx

Did he tell you that prior to your surgery as well?? xx

I have never heard this before either. On both my b a's (2 different surgeons) I was told I could wear underwires after 6 weeks but to continue to wear a sports bra at night for 12 weeks.xx

Same me... never heard of it...
Today had my 5 weeks check up, and been told I can
wear underwire since now if I go out. If am at home should wear
sports bra. Also wear sports bra 5 nights a week and 2 sleep without it.
Still cant sleep on my front, I am not bother anyway cuz never slept
on the front...

Sorry I'm confusing everyone now!

Kay, he didn't mention anything about underwires or an increased risk of bottoming out prior to surgery, it was the first I'd heard of it at my check!

He did use the word 'avoid' rather than 'never' but it sounded like I wasn't supposed to wear them.

Ok, I'm not going to start wearing them all day every day, but I am going to wear them. If I took out the underwiring, would they still sit nicely in the bra? Would it make much difference? I don't want to ruin the bra...

I always seem to get the complete opposite advice to everybody else!

P.S Check out the new avi! Now this baby definitely has underwiring....

Nice avi, sunshinelady, you look fab!! That bra is sooo pretty.

xxx

Off topic but WOW!!!
They look amazing sunshine. I don't know if its the bra of it they've dropped and fluffed but they look totally different from your last avi.
I can't wait till i've got some
xxx

Ok to clarify, bottoming out due to surgeon error usually happens straightaway after surgery. Bottoming out months later usually is due to how your own body reacts to the surgery, eg. extra elastic skin, not as common to my knowledge. Our surgeon does tend to be overly cautious I think, but I prefer it this way because he's given me lots of the pros and cons of it all.

He is not a fan of underwired, but neither am I, lol. I never could wear them full time before surgery, and still don't feel ready to wear them three and a half months later. He didn't say I couldn't wear them, but says they're not the best to wear either, lets face it they're not, they may make boobs look better, but wires under your boobs and bras that push them up so artificially can't be good to wear all the time. He explained that a wired push up bra does the opposite to what you want your boobs to do, which is drop nicely and naturally, makes logical sense. This is why it's ok to wear them sometimes but not all the time.

He did recommend though that if I 'must' to wear underwired regularly to choose a 'smaller' wire, not a heavy firm wire if that makes sense. Some of them are pretty rigid and uncomfy whereas others are more flexible.

Personally I love these atm, I can wear these with lower cut tops:

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I also have this one but in the black and white set, really comfy but a fully cup than the above, so only wear it with 't-shirt' tops:

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When my boobs feel like they're ready I'll buy a variety of underwired bras, but don't plan on wearing them everyday, but then I never have anyhow.

Btw, you look amazing xxx

Aaaaaah thank you. That makes more sense now. I think sometimes I struggle to take everything in when I'm there! Ok so don't wear underwires all day every day, but underwires are ok to wear if I'm going out or a couple of times a week etc.. just not all the time.

Much clearer

And thank you ladies!! I picked up that bra and still in my pre op mindset thought "I don't have a rats chance in hell of filling this...." and I did!!!! Can't tell you how happy that avi makes me. I want to hug my surgeon!!

Think the bikini in my avi before didn't do me many favours Mrs H... again, I bought it still in my 'pre op' mindset and choosing things for smaller boobies. xx

Wow I am so glad of this forum as I thought that I'd be able to wear underwire from 6 weeks but will now be very careful how I introduce them! So is that true we can never wear a push up bra again?

I was told I can wear push ups too but just for a few hours
like underwires... it shouldnt make any harm as long its just
when u go out and wear sports bra at home.

Wow this is so confusing, I would have thought the complete opposite! I thought that wearing a good underwire would do more to prevent bottoming out over time by taking the weight off the bottom half of our breasts.

I can understand about avoiding them during the dropping process, but not the bottoming out thing at all.
I was told to treat mine like natural breasts from 8 weeks onwards.

I'd really like to know the reasoning behind this advise of no underwires.
xx

I agree MrsM xx I would be interested in his explantation of how wires can affect things xx

I personally don't buy it xx Sounds like PS just doesn't like them xx

For me wires GIVE much more support than non wired xx I am a MASSIVE fan of wires xx

This is the first time I have ever heard of a PS discouraging people from wearing wired bras

When your boobs are healing they need months to properly form a capsule and heal, that's why we tend to be gentle with them in the first months. We want them to settle nicely and drop. A heavily wired push up bra will do just the opposite, therefore it's counterproductive to wear these full time.

It's pretty clear our PS doesn't like underwired bras, but then neither do I, never have for a variety of reasons. We're not talking about not wearing them at all, we're talking wearing rigid underwired bras full time all the time here.

I get excellent support with non-wired bras when it's the right bra, always have. I wasn't flat before, and was a 34c/32d in my 20s, and at my biggest was an f cup after having my babies.

Underwired bras do cut the circulation of blood and lymph fluid around the breasts and chest wall. This for me is enough reason not to wear them all the time, implants or no implants.

If you do insist on wearing them all the time, please make sure they are properly fitted, this is essential xxx

mrsm wrote:Wow this is so confusing, I would have thought the complete opposite! I thought that wearing a good underwire would do more to prevent bottoming out over time by taking the weight off the bottom half of our breasts.

I can understand about avoiding them during the dropping process, but not the bottoming out thing at all.
I was told to treat mine like natural breasts from 8 weeks onwards.

I'd really like to know the reasoning behind this advise of no underwires.
xx

I do agree, if you look at surgeons advice all over the internet they mostly write how underwire prevents bottoming out, some women are even advised to wear an underwire bra immediatly after surgery to form the shape the surgeon wants them to have, they recommend it to make asymetric breasts (where the crease in one breast is lower than the other) to wear underwire throughout their healing (not all surgeons by the way). So I dont believe wires are bad. Just on this occasion the surgeon is cautious of over use. I've had my implants over 3 years and I've never had a problem with underwire and I wear them every day, some days I'm so tired I fall asleep in them.

Here is some info about underwire:

Underwires are designed to have some spring. Made out of heavy gauge wire, sheet metal or plastic, they splay or spread wider once a bra is put on and fastened. Then they return to their original shape when the bra is taken off. This springing or splay gives additional support to your breasts. If your breasts are wider than the splayed diameter of the underwire, over time the pressure and weight of your breasts can cause an underwire to break in half. Wire breakage can also occur if your band size is too small and thus over-splaying the underwires. Underwire shapes can vary among brands. In fact, lingerie manufacturers claim their underwire grading and shaping to be the secret behind their unique fit. This is why you may find wire variations among manufacturers. This is also why one manufacturer may fit you better than another. Underwires also have different lengths - though their curve will maintain the same shape. For example, demi cup and low-plunge bra styles will have shorter wires. Underwires in petite bras will also be shorter in length to accommodate a shorter torso. Strapless bras tend to have the longest underwires. Since they do not have the benefit of strap support, strapless bras compensate by having more wire surrounding the breast to give more support.

Pastic underwire is not very supportive so they aren't very popular. You should always ensure you wear the correct size underwired bra as this is what could do damage with excessive wear with an ill fitting bra.

roxanne wrote:

Underwired bras do cut the circulation of blood and lymph fluid around the breasts and chest wall. This for me is enough reason not to wear them all the time, implants or no implants.

I did read this as well, but the same sentence was in a section that underwire causes cancer, and to be honest if it did cause cancer or do any of these things, especially cause cancer then people just wouldn't wear them and they would have found some other way of holding our boobies. It seems only Dr Northrup believes this as she says it here [You must be registered and logged in to see this link.]

Yes, the cancer studies are rather inconclusive, I wouldn't base this on whether or not I wear underwire. Further studies would need to be conducted, and all factors would have to be taken into account in order to be sure it wasn't the other factors that are increasing the risk instead.

However, like it or not, wires are restrictive to some degree, though they may not 'cut' the circulation they do tend to 'restrict' or 'limit' it somewhat, for me that's enough not to wear them all the time. I still plan on wearing them again when my body tells me it's ready, but not all the time. This is why though it's extremely important to wear the right size bra, especially when the bra is wired, more rigid and shaped.

As far as bottoming out is concerned, some surgeons do recommend an underwired bra after revision surgery, others believe it doesn't make a difference, once again different surgeons have different opinions xxx

I think it sounds like personal preference with some inconclusive findings thrown in xx

I don't think scaremongering is a good idea xx

Wear your wires girls xx you could bottom out without them or with them xx