The Best Bra to Wear After Breast Augmentation
Wearing a bra is essential after any type of breast surgery, whether it be breast augmentation, breast lift or breast reduction. Wearing the right type of bra will help with your recovery.
Just about every woman we know wears a bra as a mandatory undergarment. Practically speaking, bras are designed to provide support, minimizing the rate at which your breasts sag. Aging, weight fluctuations and gravity make sagging inevitable, and the larger your breasts are (whether a result of genetics or breast augmentation), the heavier they are and the faster they’ll sag. Wearing a bra regularly is believed to help slow this all down, maintaining your youthful figure longer.
Not everyone believes that bras prevent sagging
Did you know that there is scientific research that proves bras do more harm than good? In fact, one study published by a French scientist discovered that wearing a bra could actually make your breasts sag more. The 15-year study of 330 women found that those who regularly wore bras had nipples that were, on average, 7 millimetres lower than those who didn’t wear bras. Keep in mind that the participants of this study were between 18 to 35 years old and there was no mention that they had breast augmentation or other cosmetic breast surgery. The head researcher did admit that older women may still benefit from wearing a bra, especially if they’ve had children and are overweight.
But it’s not all about support, is it? Bras do more for you than just keeping your chest up. You wear them because they also help cover up your nipples (from poking through your tops), stop your breasts from bouncing around and are pretty.
Regardless of what some scientists think, though, most plastic surgeons agree that bras do provide support after any type of cosmetic breast surgery.
Breast support after surgery
After surgery, your breasts will be in a delicate state, as will be your incisions. Support can be provided by wearing a surgical bra, compression garment or sports bra. The right one for you will be selected by your surgeon and is based on your surgery and unique requirements.
Supportive garments help to:
- hold dressings in place
- minimize breast and implant movement
- decrease the risk of the implants falling out of place or “bottoming out” (following breast augmentation)
- protect sensitive breast tissues
- decrease swelling and bruising
- help your skin readjust to its smaller contours following breast lift or breast reduction
In some cases, patients are asked to go without any type of support. Usually, this is because it promotes a faster dropping of the implants in patients with tighter skin. Once the implants have dropped sufficiently, a bra is recommended.
The right bra to wear during your recovery
In most cases, your support garment is provided by your surgeon. You’ll most likely be wearing it right after your surgery, as you enter the recovery room, or asked to put it on before you’re discharged and go home. You may need to wear one type of breast support for a couple of weeks, then switch to another. Whatever you wear, make sure you keep it on as advised, which usually means during the day and the night, while you sleep.
The garment should:
- be made of a soft material, preferably cotton
- have a front zipper or clasps: this makes it easier to put on and take off
- fit snugly but not overly tightly — you should be able to breathe properly!
- have wider straps for better support
…and most importantly, it should not have underwire.
Underwire: a definite no-no after surgery
Avoid wearing an underwire bra right after any type of breast surgery. Underwire has been found to adversely affect the recovery process by doing these nasty things to you:
It can irritate or damage incisions placed in the inframammary fold because of the constant rubbing and pressure on them.
It can damage tissues. Because you breasts may be numb after surgery, you won’t be able to feel the pressure applied by the underwire, and this pressure could be potentially traumatic, leading to sores or breakdown of your skin.
Improperly shaped underwire bras can distort the shape of your breasts.
You'll be able to wear an underwire bra later
Don’t worry, you will be able to wear an underwire bra eventually. Just wait until your incisions have healed and your breasts have become more natural in shape. This can take about a month or two depending on how your recovery goes.
Hold off on bra shopping for your new breasts until you’ve adequately recovered from your surgery. It’s important to wait it out until the majority of swelling has subsided so you don’t buy the wrong size.