When you first have breast augmentation surgery, it is not uncommon for the implants to sit a hair high. So we don’t let you wear a bra, and you might wear a band above the breasts, and you move the implants around to keep the pocket open. Some women take this as a woohoo! Braless forever! Sadly, no.
But after it all settles, (usually about 2-3 months out), everything changes and it becomes all about SUPPORT.
You now have breasts. You need to support them.
When you get a breast augmentation (and you don’t have a textured implant as they are no longer available, and hopefully you don’t have a capsular contracture where your breast implants feel hard), your breasts move with activity. Gravity pulls on them. Your breasts now have a weight to them. Especially if you are thin skinned, have poor skin quality, put in larger implants, or are post menopausal, the weight of the implant over time can stretch the skin. This can lead to thinning of the skin (which makes the underlying implant and rippling more palpable) and “bottoming out” (where the lower part of the implant stretches and droops a little).
There are some doctors who advocate not doing pectoral workouts if you have implants behind the muscle. I am of mixed mind on this- I think it is likely okay as long as you are really supporting your breasts well. Frankly I think sleeping on your stomach causes more changes over time.
- WEAR A BRA. MAKE SURE IT IS SUPPORTIVE.
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- Your day to day bra should be supportive. I get that before surgery you didn’t have to wear a bra. But that is why you had surgery- to get bigger breasts. So you need to support them.
- At least two hooks in the back
- The major support for the breast is actually the frame of the bra (not the strap).
- Underwires are more supportive. Make sure the underwire is actually against your skin and not bowing/arching/etc. That means it is not the right size.
- Front closure bras are not supportive or adjustable as they inevitably stretch out
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TO TEST: do the bounce test in the mirror at the store. If your breasts bounce all over the place when you bounce up and down, it is likely not as supportive as you need. By all means, from time to time wear pretty nonsupportive bras or go braless. But that should not be your day to day regimen.
- SCOOP AND DROP.
Most women do not put on their bras correctly. As I said above, your bra band should be touching your ribcage. That is where your primary support is. So fasten your hooks, then scoop up your breast and let it drop into the cup. If it is bulging out of the top of the cup, you need a bigger cup size.
- NIGHT TIME SUPPORT
Especially if you are a stomach sleeper, a little support for your breasts during all of the time we spend sleeping, or running around the house at night and on weekends is good. A soft bra is just a good idea. If you are a cotton kind of girl, I think the tank tops with the shelf bra helps give a minimum of extra support. A real bra is better. If you are a lingerie kind of girl, then buy ones that have the demi bra for a little extra support. Again, this is not a hard rule.
The better your day to day habits, the better your breasts will age with time.
Overall, watch for changes of your breast stretching out the tissue around it. In the past things were different. Many women had capsular contractures, which made their implants hard, and actually kept the implants from stretching the breast tissue. It was as if they had a bra on 24/7. Textured implants, which have been removed form the market because of their ALCL risk, also stayed where you put them. The negative of a textured implant was they didn’t have much movement, but the positive was they stayed where you put them and didn’t tend to age as much. But again, textured implants are not on the market.
Once you have stretched out the skin, the only way to repair it is surgically. Prevention is key.