DD wants a breast reduction.

[cinammonbuns]

Her breast are not too big for her body, they do not cause her back pain and she would not be able to get on on the NHS. She says she wants a reduction because she feels disgusted when she looks at how big her boobs are.

She is a 32EE and a size 8 top and bottom for reference. She is 18, 2nd year uni and has an internship this summer which would fully cover the cost of the procedure. She has said it’s been bothering her for years and has no issue of it causes her to be unable to breastfeed as she doesn’t want children.
I think she would like to go down to a B to C.
Is there any links or advice I can give her. I am happy for her to do it if she considers all the risks but I know the plastic surgery regret rate is quite high so I want to inform her of all the risks.

I would just add to my post, I have never been harassed as a result of my large breasts, it's purely their impact on me that I hate - the pain and discomfort, the difficulty of finding clothes that fit properly, having to wear a bra 24/7 etc.

She’s very young to have such large breasts and they’ll almost certainly get even bigger (and start to droop) as she gets older. She’s tiny and agree she’s a smaller back than 32. I was a 32c at her age and am now 32ff. I hate my breasts and would have a reduction in a heartbeat if I could afford it.

It’s difficult OP but I’d support her because she feels this very strongly and is very unlikely to change her mind. I think having the reduction will change her life and make her much happier and doing it in the holidays would be a good idea. Breast reductions have the lowest “regret” rate of any cosmetic procedure because having breasts that are too big for your frame is horrible.

@Shehasadiamondinthesky - I'm so sorry this happened to you, but that's not always true. My scars faded in a few years. They weren't noticeable unless you were looking after 5 years and after 10 years you really can't see them at all - there are just a few fine white lines. Stretch marks are more noticeable.

@ArabellaScott

On breastfeeding - 81% of women in the UK initiate breastfeeding.

Don't you think that might be partly down to feeling pressurised into it rather than because they really want to though?

@Arbadacarba

I would just add to my post, I have never been harassed as a result of my large breasts, it's purely their impact on me that I hate - the pain and discomfort, the difficulty of finding clothes that fit properly, having to wear a bra 24/7 etc.

Can I ask you, what do you wear? I am constantly looking for clothes, where I can hide my large boobs a bit, because I have large breasts,a nd I really hate men staring at them. I get about ten stares and smirks every day

its hot now and it feels impossible.
If I wear a tshirt, my breasts look huge in it.
If I wear a vest top, my breasts look huge in it
If I wear a dress my breasts look huge in it.

The only thing I can really do to hide them, is wear a scarf kind of bunched over my chest, but it is very hard to do in this hot weather.

My breasts are so heavy its crazy. I just held one in my hand and I could barely hold it. Isn't it crazy, how heavy they can be.

Admittedly, I could lose two stone, and they would be smaller that way, they have been smaller in the past.

Right now I am amazed at how heavy they are.

That is absolutely how I felt around that age. Hated the attention and felt I was out of proportion of my otherwise slim, boyish flat hips body.

June Kenton, who started Rigby and Peller was interviewed in Cosmopolitan was quoted saying before trying surgery with all its risks, I encourage everyone to try a properly fitted bra.

I went for a fitting, no tape measures, it really was fine and I have not thought of surgery since. I go back every few years if if I have lost/gained weight as that's the first place it goes.

A friend had the reduction, put on weight and regained the inches and more.

Do try an outing together got a fitting. They are very happy to make it a happy occasion. Coffee, Prosecco etc.

www.rigbyandpeller.com/en-gb/

@janeapple111 To be honest, I'm quite a frumpy dresser and tend to wear tops with plenty of 'give' in them and cardigans. My boobs have a more 'matronly' than sexy appearance, especially now that, despite wearing ultra-supportive bras, they are migrating down to my waist.

For summer dresses, I find a patterned maxi-dress emphasises them least. Shorter dresses just make me look more top-heavy. It has to be really hot for me not to wear any kind of cardigan (my upper arms are awful), but in warm weather I wear crochet-style ones.

The lack of harassment is probably due to me being middle-aged and dowdy/invisible. When I was younger I sometimes got harassed for being 'ugly' and I suppose my general unattractiveness was more conspicuous than my sizeable breasts so they never got mentioned, although the breasts add to the overall unattractive look.

[quote Arbadacarba]@janeapple111 To be honest, I'm quite a frumpy dresser and tend to wear tops with plenty of 'give' in them and cardigans. My boobs have a more 'matronly' than sexy appearance, especially now that, despite wearing ultra-supportive bras, they are migrating down to my waist.

For summer dresses, I find a patterned maxi-dress emphasises them least. Shorter dresses just make me look more top-heavy. It has to be really hot for me not to wear any kind of cardigan (my upper arms are awful), but in warm weather I wear crochet-style ones.

The lack of harassment is probably due to me being middle-aged and dowdy/invisible. When I was younger I sometimes got harassed for being 'ugly' and I suppose my general unattractiveness was more conspicuous than my sizeable breasts so they never got mentioned, although the breasts add to the overall unattractive look.[/quote]
Thanks for that. I am not super young, i am 37, and I still get men staring at my breasts all the time.
I am short, 5'2" with huge boobs, and it is hard to hide them.

I am in a country where it is roasting hot right now in Europe, so it is impossible to wear a cardigan, without feeling sick from the heat. The only thing that I have found that kind of works in this heat, is a lightweight gillet, you know like country people wear outside in norfolk, that hides my breasts. It is still really hot to wear it, but it is a little bit better.

The sad thing is, I would be totally fine with my breasts if it was just me and my breasts walking along a country road!

It is the men staring at me, that makes me want to hide them. Fucking men!

It is not a small glance, a man will literally walk up to me, bend his head down to peer right down my top and walk on.

I'm a 28K. I don't hate my boobs but don't love them either. They've never stopped me doing anything once I found bras that work for me. I've always had a narrow waist with a bigger bum and thighs so bigger boobs balance my bottom half anyway.

Despite being 28K I run, swim, cycle, horse ride and fence with no boob related issues. I know how to make sports bras work for me after years of experience.

I do need to lose weight (2 kids and a la k of self discipline), hopefully my boobs will shrink more than my rib measurement!

I really recommend measuring at Bravissimo. I'm now a 34K and early 40s. I held off getting a reduction until we'd had children and am now saving to pay for it. If I'd had the money to do it in my 20s I would have.

It's a very young age for surgery. I had the exact same measurements at her age, I hated my breasts I was so aware of them and they made me very self conscious. Fast forward a few years and I loved them (still do) I can dress much better for them now and they give me confidence rather than detract from it. The key for me was finding the right bra, I used to try to push them down which then made me look like an old woman. I find wearing a push up bra is actually the best thing for giving them a nice shape and defining my waist, I never would have considered that at 18 though.

My cousin had a reduction at a young age, to a C, and then lost a lot of weight so ended up a B, she was always a bit disappointed how small she ended up.

So I'd be really inclined to encourage her to wait a few years. She's at such a vulnerable self-conscious age and she may just learn to love her body yet.

My biggest concern (other than all the risks of things that could go wrong) would be the loss of nipple sensation. I think that would be a huge loss from a sexual perspective. I understand that with a breast reduction you always lose this as they remove and replace the nippple?

No one has to see her breasts in a bra fitting if she doesn't want them to. They will go out while she takes the bras on and off at bravissimo.

Tbf I don't know anyone who has regretted breast reduction. Usually regret is for other surgeries.

@RavingAnnie

My biggest concern (other than all the risks of things that could go wrong) would be the loss of nipple sensation. I think that would be a huge loss from a sexual perspective. I understand that with a breast reduction you always lose this as they remove and replace the nippple?

For you perhaps, but I don't think nipple sensation is important at all from a sexual perspective. I hate mine being touched tbf.

I know you say she isn't in any physical pain ATM from her breasts, but she may well have back pain in the future so definitely worth further research

I'd recommend a decently fitting bra - Rigby and Peller well worth it.
My DD1 also suffers and only wears sports bras and often uses a BooBuddy to secure them more firmly in place for sporty activities (of which she does a lot), but she wouldn't go under the knife.

[quote ringboobs]@cinammonbuns the only reason she might want to wait is that they might grow back (mind did, I was 17 when I had it done) and had a repeat op in my late twenties.

I was very similar size and proportions to her and both ops were the best thing I've ever done - no regrets and so much more confident. I only regret not getting my second op sooner![/quote]
Agree with this. I know two women with similar proportions who had breast reductions at this age. Both subsequently had breast tissue grow back over the next decade, one ended up with them bigger than they were before the op and worse back/neck/shoulder pain as a result. She ended up having to have it done again and had problems with pain and scarring. Your DD really needs to get a professional opinion (preferably from someone without a vested interest in making money from operating on her!) about whether this is a wise cause of action.

I'd have a breast reduction tomorrow if I could. I've been 32G since I was 14. I've hated them all my life and as an oldie, loathe them. I did breastfeed but didn't enjoy it. If I'd had to do formula feeds, I'd have been fine about it. It's a good time for your DD to get the op done. She won't regret it.

I was a double JJ cup and had sore shoulders and back. I finally plucked up the courage to have a private breast reduction in my 40’s as my doc refused to entertain the idea but when I put weight since on my boobs have also started to grow again.

I think I would encourage her to wait at least a couple of years not for the BF argument more because of the way her body might change.

Hi OP, I’m 22 and my boobs are a 30GG. When I was eighteen I hated them and would have done murder for reduction. But:

-when I was eighteen my hips were still a size 8. They’ve since broadened (and not from general weight gain, it’s a definite shape change) and I think my boobs would look disproportionate if I were a b cup like I wished. I know my figure hadn’t finished growing when I was eighteen and I don’t think any of my friends’ had either.

• a bravissimo fitting made a huge difference to how they looked and sat under clothes. All the fitters at bravissimo are big boobed too, so they made it much more comfortable an experience for me

I think I’d still take a small reduction if someone could wave a magic wand. But I don’t want reduction enough to spend the money and take all the risks that come with surgery, and I wouldn’t want them reduced to a B cup the way I did at 18. I’d really recommend waiting until she’s completely sure her figure has stopped developing.

I just walked out to the shop wearing appropriate clothes for the weather, as an experiment.
i often wear more clothes than necessary, and make myself feel sick and nearly pass out in the heat, to stop men staring at me. But today I thought fuck them , I will wear what I want. it's really hot here. So I wore trousers, and a sports bra, and a dark blue vest top.

I walked to the shop 20 minutes away and back. This is what happened.

About 8 men that I walked past, stopped what they were doing and stared at my breasts.

At different times, Two men walking behind me, in the same direction as me, walked past me, totally stopped in front of me, turned around to stare at me, and stared at my breasts from in front of me, about a metre away.

They stayed standing there, not moving. I had to walk past them, while they were staring at my breasts.

A man cycling a good bit away from me, came over to cycle really close to me, he changed his route to be right beside me, and leaned over and looked down at my breasts as he passed.

A man standing on the street asked my breasts, did I want a taxi.

A security man at the shopping centre, turned and stared at my breasts.

This was within a one hour period.

Its too much. I will be back to trying to cover up tomorrow.

Eee I hate the leery men.

I get stares whenever I wear a tank top. They aren't even that low, just a bit more fitted than a tshirt.

It's so cringe.

@Wanderlusto

Eee I hate the leery men.

I get stares whenever I wear a tank top. They aren't even that low, just a bit more fitted than a tshirt.

It's so cringe.

They act like they've never seen breasts before!