All things bras & prosthesis
Comments
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kt1966,
I haven't had the problem that Starak describes with the Energy forms and I am quite sensitive (my husband often says I'm like the Princess and the Pea LOL). I've tried the Natura forms and, while they're very soft as Starak says, they don't minimize perspiration as much as the Energy forms (same Comfort + technology in both forms, but the Energy form has a higher ratio of it). So, there's a tradeoff. I hope you'll find the Energy forms comfortable!
Barbara
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Erica (Barbara), What is your experience with the bra fabrics that claim to wick moisture? Do you find them helpful in the summer heat and humidity?
Like you say it is a tradeoff and I am hoping my two bras with the wicking fabric will make up the difference.
Barbara
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Hi Barbara (Starak),
There seem to be no perfect solutions (or not that I've found, anyway), but some of the so-called wicking fabrics seem to help somewhat. The Amoena Marlena works pretty well in that regard. The worst fabrics I've found are non-wicking nylon materials, like that found in an otherwise terrific bra, the Elita. I love that bra in cool weather, but can't tolerate it on humid days, no matter what form I wear with it.
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Thank you Barbara - The Marlena is my go-to favorite so that is good news.
Barbara
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Well, I guess I will find out soon if its comfortable for me or not- they have shipped my order.
I'm hoping you are right Barbara And I do find the energy form comfy!
What sort of fabrics are 'wicking', because, yes, that is another factor to consider in humid weather?
You ladies are brilliant...sometimes its great not to learn the hard way
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Kt1966: I have two bras with wicking fabric. Mostly you see this in the description of the item or on the tag. Incidentally they are also both smooth, seamless cups and super stretchy which is reminiscent of the Genie and Ahh type bras though with a back closure and adjustable straps. The first is the Amoena Marlena (reviewed on Breastfree.org). The tag calls the fabric "Naturexx". I am guessing that it may be exclusive to Amoena. The other one is from TLC Direct, called the TLC Cool Comfort. Something I don't think I have mentioned before. The fabric of the TLC Cool Comfort which only comes in white is see-through meaning you can see the form through the fabric. I am not accustomed to wearing see through clothing so it is a non-issue for me. If you happen to wear the forms with life like nipples ( I don't), for good or bad, they are likely going to show through. The Marlena is opaque. I find the Marlena cups true to size and that the TLC cups run large though very forgiving.
Barbara
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I have heard some say the Ahh now comes with pockets. What I find locally does not, there is no mention of pockets on their website and when I called them, they said they had never heard of it. If someone actually obtained an Ahh with pockets, would you please point me in the right direction. I know the Genie has pockets and I have seen a similar third brand with pockets but not the Ahh. What am I missing?
Barbara
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My fitter is coming to my house on Monday - I had my BMX on 2/1 - Can I just get some information from you gals as to what questions I should be asking her? I want comfort and light weight prosthetics - Any quick suggestions - can you give me your favorite prosthetic for comfort, light weight and most like the real thing. My daughter is getting married in June....I bought the dress prior to being diagnosed. It is a boob dress which I had when I bought the dress - I love the dress - the dressmaker said she can customize it if need be - I really need to get the best prosthetic that can be worn with a summer dress v-neck with wide straps over both shoulders - Thank God it comes with a matching shawl. Thanks for your help.
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Barbie I did the ame thing bought the dress before getting my prosthetics.I have the Amoena contact forms very close to my original breast size but the dress still had to be adjusted on top by a good seamstress.June weddings are wonderful.They can make use of all the beautiful spring flowers.Enjoy.My daughter was married last June.A day I will always cherish.
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Congradulations on your daughter's marriage...I have heard Amoena is a good choice...thank you...I am going to cherish this wedding with all my heart..she is my only child....(((hugs)))
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Starak, Try this link:
http://fashion.hsn.com/rhonda-shear-2-pack-ahh-bra-with-inserts_p-6408268_xp.aspx
It doesn't actually say "pockets," but it refers to "removable pads."
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I also had a BMX. I have an American Breast Care ("ABC") #1042 which is a symmetrical lightweight. I also have an Amoena lightweight which is an asymmetric but the symmetric style equivalent is a 390. They are both basic triangles. The ABC is a tiny bit taller and the Amoena has a wider base. The Amoena is meant to be a bit cooler in hot weather. I find both very comfortable with a nice feel to them. At this point, I probably lean to the Amoena due to the comfort+ cool factor, but other than that it is really a very close call.
Barbara
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Hi gals, I've read this thread with great interest as I had a uni-boob for a long time (7 years!!), and just 2 weeks ago this past Wednesday I had a prophy mx. I'm pretty excited to finally go from a size 11 silicone foob to finding a coupla 'fluffies' ... so I called the shop where I went before (out of town) and was setting up an appt. I had mentioned that I was thinking of the Janac Been-a-Boob type, smaller light weight just to fill and not look concave with my 'fluffy' tummy. She advised that this was not what I should look to using more than leisure time as I would suffer from 'dropped shoulder' ... I said in all my reading on this website on all things foobs, etc that I hadn't heard that.
She said that my body would be used to the weighed boobs and not having them would cause my shoulders to droop. I can understand maybe if you didn't have a weighted foob to match the one real boob left, but I hadn't expected that might be an issue with needing 2 foobs. What do you gals think? I am 50, fluffy and not working at this point, so i'm just thinking I needed foobs more for when i'm out and about. Gotta say the freedom of no foobs is nice at home! I did usually throw the weighted foob in all the time before to be balanced, but this is great so far, but I am wanting something and am considering all said in this thread for my future choices. Oh, I thought I should mention that I would be thinking of going down to a B cup, maybe C if it looked better.
Thanks for your help - hugs to all! Patti
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I don't know, Pteney. I don't see all that many guys suffering from "drooped shoulder" because they don't have breasts;-) I've never really bought the "need to balance the other side with a weighted foob for posture reasons" for us uni-boobers either. I mean, the real breast is attached to the front of your chest while the silicon foob is hanging in a bra from your shoulder. But then I am an A cup uniboober, so there's not all that much weight anyway. I say, if you're doing fine at home without anything and not having "droopy shoulders", buy the most comfortable light forms that you think look nice.
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Pteney - surely exercise can keep you from having 'dropped shoulder'. You might have to concentrate on standing straight or something. I've always thought my boobs pulled my shoulders down.
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pteney I had my first MX fitter tell me some thing similar about how I needed weight or I would lose balance or some other bad thing. I thought she was nuts then and I think she's nuts now
Maybe it is a body type thing as I am a small gal and my breasts were A cup before. I never noticed much difference except that I look thinner now. Balance issue, dropped shoulder, that never happened. I can see it might happen on a uni boob situation but since you didn't have that problem before I cannot think why you would have it now.
Glad to hear you are feeling so well!
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pteney, I used to be a 34D/36C depending on the style and I've had no balance or "dropped shoulder" issues since my BMX over 5 years ago. I have had fitters try to sell me bigger foobs than I wanted though - at which point I went to a different boutique and they had no problem with me going quite small.
Edited to add: I go without foobs most of the time and don't have any balance or posture issues that way either.
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This is old fashioned thinking and NOT accurate. On BreastFree.org, I have a link to an article on the TLC website, from the American Cancer Society. Here are the relevant portions (especially the second paragraph):
Once your surgical site has healed, if you have had a single surgery (one side), you need to wear a weighted form in order to balance the weight of the remaining breast. Otherwise, your posture may be affected, resulting in back pain. You can wear either a weighted foam form or a silicone form.
After a double surgery, however, weighted forms are not necessary. You can wear unweighted foam forms, as well as adjustable fiber-filled forms, in any size you choose; it’s up to you. Or, you may opt for silicone forms, even though weight is no longer a consideration.
My physical therapist, who specializes in treating women with breast cancer, confirms this. And I'm living proof. Since my bilateral mastectomy, I wear weightless or very lightweight breast forms (much lighter than the weight of my natural breasts) and my posture has improved! Plus, no shoulder or back pain.
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Thanks so much for all your replies - verifying what I thought. I think I'll definitely be shopping around! I appreciate your help ladies!
Patti
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I just want to throw this into the discussion, too...
I had a UMX (remaining breast is D). I am experiencing balance issues. These issues only arise after running for about an hour, and, only if I have been running a lot that week. In this case, I am experiencing issues with one of the muscles in my leg that is used mainly for balance (the adductor).
THIS IS THE ONLY BALANCE ISSUE I am experiencing. I can even run without issues if it isn't a lot of running. So, the balance requirement may be minimal, I think...
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Just to add that, with a unilateral mastectomy, the current thinking is that, while some weight will help balance the mastectomy side with your natural breast, it doesn't have to be as much weight as your remaining breast. That's one reason why lightweight silicone breast forms were introduced and have become so popular.
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Hi again ... I apologize if this was covered and my chemo-brain doesn't recall ... or if this is a silly question (I know you're saying: silly girl, there are no silly questions ...). So, do the lightweight foobs stay 'down' in place when you sit down or whatever? With my 'fluffy' tummy I am wondering if everything would shift when I sit. I'm waiting for some camis to arrive and hoping they will work until i'm ready for a bra.
Thanks for your help, Patti
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Hi all. For those of you who have had BMX did you find you felt 'tight' across your chest afterwards?When I brought up the topic of prophylactic MX on my 'good'side the onco reckoned I wouldn't be comfortable & discouraged it...
Personally I quite like the idea of of being breast free & having the choice of wearing forms or not...it's got to better than being lop-sided like I am right now?!
(Still waiting for my new space-age foob to arrive!)
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Yes - BMX on 2/1 - Still get that feeling of tightness across the chest - BS said it is normal and will pass in time. Annoying but it does ease up at times.
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Pteney, I am almost 6 months out from a BMX. Before surgery I was a modest C. So far I have ONLY worn lightweight microbead or fiber foobs. My shoulders and posture are fine.
I see a physical therapist, do some daily stretching exercises and walk as much as possible. I figure staying in shape is a good idea, for cancer prevention, for posture and general well-being.
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KT, yes, the tightness is very annoying. It feels like someone put duct tape around your ribcage. At first it drove me to distraction and I felt like it would never get better. But it did. 6 months later it only comes rarely and mildly. I have also regained virtually all feeling in the chest, which really helps a lot.
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KT: My experience was very much as Momine describes. Mine took much longer than hers to become rare though like her it was much milder in 6 months. I found riding in a car made it worse, particularly in the beginning. It was probably 6 months before I wanted to consider a very long road trip. Like her, I have regained most of the feeling in the chest but it took a very long time. I am now approx. 22 mos out. I should mention that in general I have never been the fastest healer but usually have a very good final result which is what happened with this. My point being that my timeline is probably longer than most people.
Oh yes, I want to back up the others comments on the shoulder drop thing. I went flat for 20 months and certainly did not develop any posture issues over it. If anything my posture is better than ever. I don't get in an argument but I just blow them off.
Barbara
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Good to hear that there is light at the end of the tunnel with the tightness - I am just 6 weeks out from surgery so I gotta have some patience...hard for me...(((hugs)))
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barbiecorn, I also had the tightness felt like a band around my chest. I found that it was worse sitting on the couch then when standing or laying. I am 7 months out from UMX and it is much better. I still feel it on occasion, but I just have to change positions and it is relieved. I bet yours will get better with time too. I also have most if not all of the feeling back in my chest.
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Barbie, it is really tough and I feel for you. The 6-week mark was hard for me too, because I felt like I should be all better already and I wasn't. But, at this point I feel hugely better, so there is definitely hope, you just have to hang tough a little longer.
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