What cup size do you think this is? (not an obscene photo)

[user746016]

Hoping that the picture won't get blocked (it's just taken from the skims website). I am about to have a breast reduction for medical reasons and am struggling to visualise what the various sizes will actually look like - clearly I appreciate I'm not going to look like the model!!

In my head this is about a C?

Im trying to see what a B would look like. I'm a size 10.

If you look at the pages of fashion company Unfolded, they use non model women as well as professional models and often specify height size and bra size in their pictures.

I think it would be quite small. Do you have the opportunity to go to a bra shop and actually look at a 32b bra? They are really quite tiny

on top of that cup sizes are really difficult to judge because it’s affected so much by band size.

as another PP has suggested - if you can see your surgeon again prior to op you may be better asking for a “handful” estimate.

Are you very petite all over?

Yes fairly. I'm 5 foot 3, weigh 9 stone I'm an 8 in a skirt and a ten on top because of my boobs (although a ten in a non stretch item like a cotton shirt would probably gape a bit around the buttons because of my boobs).

Much bigger than a C, I think an E or bigger.
The model has a tiny frame and the photo has probably been airbrushed/altered.

I totally understand why most of your conversations with the surgeon have been around the medical necessity for the removal. To be honest whatever size you are left with is going to be a significant adjustment, regardless of what he says the size will be. He will be focusing on your ongoing health and giving you the best results possible but he won't know 100 percent until he's actually doing the operation. I can also see the logic in not going for an implant because of the requirements of replacement or removal later on.

I think while looking for reference on the internet is natural, it's not probably going to help you understand what the change is going to be like. There's so many variables such as skin elasticity, muscle tone and how you heal that's going to affect the outcome. Not to mention how you feel mentally and physically afterwards and if you have any complications.

You have to have the treatment so I would say focus on the benefits. Give your body time to heal and your mind to come to terms with you new shape. You can always use other non surgical means like silicone pads to change your shape and a properly fitted bra that's comfortable and supportive will do wonders for making you feel confident. You aren't alone in having been wearing the incorrect sized bra either, it's much more common than you realise.

Firstly they look fake so they’re sitting high and very round. Definitely bigger than a B or C though as she’s got a tiny frame and quite big boobs. I’m a size 12 and wear a 32D and my boobs are nothing like that volumous!

32D, or possibly 32DD

Sometimes, photos state what size the the model is wearing, could be in quite small print somewhere?

She is petite and they are very voluminous for what I would say would be a 30B at a guess which if they weren't fake or not had a professional photo taken at a perfect angel with perfect lighting they wouldn't look like that! If your a small frame yourself I would say a natural C cup would be a good option. I'm size 18 and a 36HH and if I went down to a C they would look small but if you are petite you could rock them at a C without them looking overly big and not to small and also you have to considering not going to big for back problems too.

I will never believe the 'model is wearing' size guide again after looking at shoes on Boden which stated model is 5'8" and wearing a size 4. It would be VERY unusual for someone that height to have size 4 feet!

I think I would feel more comfortable with a C/D but the only way to get a C would be to have implants. This isn't surgery for aesthetic reasons.

I think I'm currently about a 32 F so I think I could cope with the back problems of a C .

I'm 5 foot 3, weigh 9 stone I'm an 8 in a skirt and a ten on top because of my boobs

Im putting money on your current bra being the wrong size. Im 5'2, weigh 10.5st, wear size 14 and 34E bra. I very much doubt you are also 34 band.

Why not get fitted properly for a bra in the meantime. Youll have a better idea of your pre-op starting point which will help you envisage what you want post-op. And you can look at bras generally (as others have said) whilst youre there to help with that post-op vision.

I’d say 30DD/E

It isn't a question of what I want really.

The surgery means I will end up with a "B cup".

Getting an idea of what that looks like is proving very difficult

I could get implants but this isn't ideal at my age since I would then be looking at removal surgery in my 70s. Implants also mean the scarring would potentially also be worse because of tissue stretching.

Cup size is a ratio related to your underband size, not a defined size in itself.
34E is the same cup size as 32F or 36DD for example

I would ask for a more objective measure of the likely volume, something like, do you think they will be bigger or smaller than a tennis ball? As big as a grapefruit?

It isn't a question of what I want really. The surgery means I will end up with a "B cup".

My point still remains - get measured now to establish your true starting point. You are unlikely to be 34. When you know if you are 28/30/32 then you can look at B cups for that band to see what your post-surgery look will be.

In the old days B cup was seen as smallish average, C was biggish average and A and AA were small so the surgeon is probably thinking along these lines and saying small to average

It’s elusive because you are looking at a measurement (cup size) that relies on another measurement (band size) to be complete.

For example, you might ask when you will come out of surgery and they might say “half past” but you don’t have the information you need because there is a missing number - half past what?! It doesn’t tell you anything.

By the sounds of your build you would probably be wearing about a 30 band. So I would suggest looking at images of women who are a 30B

well my measurement around is 31 inches so I suspect Im a 32 (although they are generally tight and uncomfortable so I wear a 34 usually).

Hence looking at 34B photos which this one says it is.

Unless you're using traditional sizing. I would say she looks more C than B.
I'm a size 10 and anything smaller than a 34 band hurts and leaves red marks.

Sounds similar to me.

I know I’m repeating myself here, but accurate bra sizing (or not) isn’t what matters here. Your surgeon has said you will end up with a b cup. It’s his definition of a b cup you need to visualise, not Rigby and Peller’s.

My experience of male breast surgeons is that what most of them think is a small b cup would usually measure a lot more. Honestly, they might be good surgeons but they are mostly hopeless with bra sizing.

Is there a Specialist Nurse in the department who can give you more guidance?

Editing to add: It might actually be helpful to go for a proper pre surgery measurement, if it helps to establish your true current cup size. It is very possible from what you’ve said that it’s higher than you think.

Just to throw my own random opinion into the mix, I too am a size 10 and wear a 34c. I can wear a 34b but it feels tight. I think there are huge differences in how one size looks on one body next to another. The model has what I would think are fake boobs. If she is a 34 then I would think they're at least a D.