What It's Like Living with KK Boobs

B.    The fitting expert

Hannah Rowe is a bra fitting expert for Bravissimo, which specialises in bras for women with bigger boobs. “Discovering your true bra size, especially if you have bigger boobs, can be life changing. This sounds over the top but it’s easy to underestimate how much your figure, the way your clothes look and the way you feel can be transformed by the right bra. At Bravissimo we don’t use tape measures. We prefer to show customers how a well fitting bra should look and feel so they can tell in a matter of seconds whether they’ve got a good fit. Focus instead on how the bra fits you. Follow our three step check to ensure you’re wearing the right bra, whatever size you are.”

Step 1 The correct back size. The strap should be firm around your body, horizontal at the back and not ride up at all.

Step 2 The underwire. Check the wires sit flat between your boobs and aren’t pushed away from your body. The wires should not dig in or rub.

Step 3 The correct cup size. Your boobs should be enclosed in the cup with no wrinkling of fabric. They shouldn’t bulge over the top or the side of the cup, even in a balconette or plunge bra.

C.    The osteopath

Danny Williams, a council member of the British Osteopathic Association, told us, “If the body is being pulled forward by the weight of the breasts, the head naturally looks at the floor. The muscles in the neck and back are stretched a bit like when you overstretch an elastic band. When you try and lift the head, they are compressed at the base of the neck. All this causes upper back and neck pain and tension headaches. There are a number of ways you can help yourself if you have large breasts. Firstly make sure the straps of your bra are wide enough to take some of the strain but secondly you can work on strengthening your upper back.”

D.    Good exercises

Using a static rowing machine in the gym; Putting you hands on your shoulders and twisting; Clasping your hands behind your back and drawing your shoulder blades together, sticking your chest out as you do so; Attending a Pilates class which works on integrating core muscles; Swimming, but try front crawl or backstroke instead to avoid over-lifting the chin and adding more stress.

E.    The plastic surgeon

Dalia Nield is a consultant plastic and reconstructive surgeon based at The London Clinic, former consultant at St Bart’s Hospital in London and member of BAAPS.

“Because large bust size is increasing, breast reduction surgery was up 17% last year. With 4,122 surgeries taking place in 2009 it became the third most common cosmetic surgery procedure. And it’s very sad because most of it is done privately. Although having large breasts can cause severe backache and even cause sores in the folds of the skin, these operations are not widely available on the NHS.”

“Your local primary care trust (PCT) will make the decision based on whether there’s a good enough reason to justify surgery only after referral from your GP, a consultation with a plastic surgeon and possibly an assessment by a psychiatrist or psychologist. The surgery takes three-four hours under general anaesthesia. First we cut round the nipple – which is usually very low on large breasts – and move it up to 20-22cm from the root of the neck, preserving its blood supply. Then we make an anchor-like incision from the nipple down and under the fold of the breast and remove tissue creating a new, smaller breast. The pitfalls include infection and bleeding, scarring and – worst case – the loss of the nipple. Some patients also lose sensation around the nipple. That said, 80-90% of cases have excellent outcomes.”

“Patients usually only need to stay in hospital one night and are generally healed in three weeks. Not only do their aches and pains go but they often have more confidence and many lose weight they’ve gained in a bid to camouflage their large breasts.”