How have you adjusted to being Half Flat?
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- Cccmc2: Here's something to consider: radiation. It smoothed out my scar! It turns out to help sermons. My scar looks so smooth now.
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Hi Everyone,
Sorry it has been a while since I have written. It has been a rough last couple of months with many loved ones passing away.
I hope your recovery from your Mastectomy is going as smoothly as it can under the circumstances. Sending you all lots of Love and gentle Hugs!
Raque510: Thank you so much for sharing how your breast reduction surgery went how are you doing now? I'm so glad that you were able to get the reduction that you wanted. Are things healing well?
cccmc2: How are you doing was your surgeon able to fix the sermons?
I've been using Knitted Knockers and finding them to be very comfortable. Next Tuesday I'm getting fitted for my mastectomy bras and prostheses, so it will be interesting to compare it with how the knitted knocker feels.
Wishing you all the best
Hugs,
Sara
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I am now 5 weeks past my mastectomy and finally have a couple of things figured out for myself. When I want to go half-flat, I have been wearing Fruit of the Loom front opening sports bras. It took me a bit of retail experience to figure out that just one size larger was uncomfortable, two sizes larger than my usual bras was less uncomfortable, and three sizes larger was just right. I wear a 34C bra, but the Fruit of the Looms I now like are size 40. If you want to try them, they are cotton bras with front hook closure (about 8 hooks) and are sold in packages of two for about $12. I find the bra gives enough support to my one breast that I am comfortable walking in it. I suspect I could run in it, but I am not ready for running any time soon! These bras have something stiff at the very bottom of the closure but I just unhook the bottom hook and the stiff part moves away from me.
If my chest wall is feeling uncomfortable and wants a little pressure on it, I put some padding in the bra on the surgical side.
I bought half a dozen hawaiian shirts on eBay, for about $8 to $9 each, and love them as a replacement for my usual t shirts. I picked patterns to keep the eye a bit distracted, so these are great when I am half flat and when I am wearing the various experimental prostheses that wander from being at the same height as my other breast. I find the hawaiian shirts are comfy for working out, running errands, or just hanging out.
I plan to wait until early August for a fitting for prosthesis and bras because then I can go to the shop at the cancer center at Ohio State where I am being treated. They seem to have a lot more selection than the local lingerie shop where I live which deals only with one company for prostheses and has a very limited selection of bras. Because we live 6 hours from Ohio State, I am holding off on the fitting until my next appointment with one of my doctors there.
I hope everyone is doing well!
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Hi Sara,
Welcome to the Uni-boob club! I have been a uni since 9/9/16-- almost 2 years, wow! Reading the other posts, I have the same issues. Mostly trying to find a bra I like (which really has ALWAYS been my issue), but also finding a prosthesis that I like. Swimsuits are the toughest, but I'm still looking. My right side is about a C cup, so it's kind of awkward if I don't wear a bra. The comfortable bra I have doesn't support my foob well, and I'm constantly adjusting it. My silicone breast stays put the best, but sets off the TSA screeners. It's not a big deal, I just say I have a prosthetic breast, they pat me down, and I'm on my way. I'm not usually embarrassed about having one breast. It was my choice not to have reconstructive surgery, and I'm still happy with my decision.
I'd say-- you do you, Boo! It's nice to have choices, and this forum to share ideas. Rock that "I kicked cancer's ass" scar! But if you find you're too uncomfortable, go for the surgery.
Dawn
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Hello Ladies,
I hope you all are doing well.
Virginia : I hope your recovery is going smoothly and that you are able to find comfortable bra soon. I loved Hawaiian shirts before my mastectomy, but now I love them even more then before. What are some of your favorite shirts you have that you wear most often. Wishing you all the best.
Dawn: Thank you for the warm welcome to the Uni-boob club. Thanks for sharing your story with me wow that is amazing that you are almost 2 years out and doing well. I think I will remain in the Uni-boob club like you mentioned I do like the idea of having a choice to put the boob on or take it off. My breast surgeon is sending me to a plastic surgeon for a consultation next month. I will go in with a open mind, but I don't think it is a route I want to take.
Thank you for the tip about silicon breast and the TSA I will remember that. I pick up my prosthetic breast on Tuesday, so I am looking forward to wearing it and see how it feels.
So far has your right breast been good to you? I went for my mammogram for the left breast last month and they found a cyst. I was bummed that it wasn't totally clear but glad that it was not a tumor.
Thank you Dawn and everyone else for sharing your uni-boob life with me. I feel so much better now knowing that I have you all to turn to for advice. I don't feel alone anymore. I hope you all have a great weekend and summer too.
Hugs and Love to all,
Sara
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I came onto this site just to see what others were saying - always good to know we are not alone!!
My single mastectomy was about 5 1/2 years ago and I am still bummed. It was my choice not to have reconstruction - totally my choice because I didn't want to undergo more surgery.
But I'm a C cup, so I'm pretty lopsided, and there are few prosthetics that will work - the really expensive ones hit a rib or breastbone or something and end up irritating a ligament so much I can't wear them long. So I end up with a very lightweight prosthetic and then end up lopsided too because it tends to ride up. Charming. To hide this, I wear patterned tops almost all the time, because then this lopsidedness isn't so noticeable.
The biggest issue? I feel SO unsexy. So unsexy. I can't stand even looking at myself in the mirror after I shower. Still. 5 1/2 years later.
However, after reading this forum, I realize I need counselling. I thought all this would go away. But when I hear things like "every body is beautiful and so is yours", it just seem so glib. And sorry, but I don't believe/see it. And I am in good health now, so I've got to appreciate that.
Thanks for letting me vent.
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Hi Albertan, and thank you for your honesty. And congrats on being in good health, that's wonderful! I have many of the same feelings you do, although I've only been half flat for 3 or 4 months. I'm still not out of the woods with my cancer, so I can't reconstruct yet anyway, but I'm slowly warming up to the possibility.
My situation is probably more extreme than others here because of the chest wall resection and skin graft. I basically have a large concave area with transparent angry looking skin adhered over several ribs. The skin graft is literally see through, and the whole area is hard as a rock. Talk about sexy! I hate it that this happened to my once beautiful body, but I would do it all over again in a heartbeat. I had no real choice if I wanted to live. I think it's natural to feel glad about being alive, and mournful over what we have lost simultaneously.
Anyway, I have no answers - I'm just venting. I really don't know what I'll do down the road, but my options will be dictated by my cancer mostly. In the meantime I'm all about knitted knockers, high necklines, and loose clothing.
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Hi Sara,
Right breast is holding her own!
Dawn
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Hi ladies,
I just logged on after a LONG time. Had my MX on 4/5/2016. Been half flat since. Been OK. Def self conscious at times. . .
I'm small. Have had luck with MX bras and stuff I find with removable pads at Nordstrom Rack. The Shimera brand at the Rack also sells inserts that work for bathing suits in my case. They are in the lingerie section. Sometimes I just wear the insert instead of my prosthesis.
Heres' my question. Six months ago I noticed a moveable pea sized lump at the edge of my scar. Still there. Sometimes tender. Onc says it is scar tissue and it is normal to have tenderness and pain for years out. . . has this been the case for you? Twinges near your scar? Pea sized scar tissue at the edge of MX scar? (near my arm pit)
I don't have twinges per se, but when I press on the thing it sometimes feels tender. Took the last two weeks of messaging, but finally my Onc put in an order to have an US of both sides. Anyone have an US of your flat side? So far I've had the good side monitored every six months. . .
My appt is next week.
Thanks for thoughts. . .
Night Owl
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Albertan, sorry you had to join us but welcome here. You came to the right place to vent. It's entirely normal to be bummed after losing a breast. Counseling is a good place to start. Here are a couple of other thoughts I've found helpful in dealing with my own mastectomy.
Getting a prosthesis to work well is important to me. I was fitted for a silicone form soon after my surgery, and I still use them once in a while. But more and more, I find myself wearing my knitted knocker because it breathes. I put a smooth river stone in it to give it the right amount of weight. It stays down pretty well.
Feeling sexy can be a challenge. I've been dealing with it since my surgery for bone cancer in my leg at age 13. The shower can be tough, as there's no place to hide. A peer counselor in the hospital told me how she made a ritual of starting every shower by touching her scar while saying, "my cancer is gone." I've done that a lot. It's especially good when I'm showering with my BF. He'll touch the scars from my cancer surgeries, on my leg or my breast, and say, "you are so beautiful with your cancer gone." Or sometimes, "you may not be all there, but you're still here." Usually followed by, "and now, how about …"
The third thing I do is ask for help. I don't need it, or course, but it lets him feel like he's doing something. Lifting my bra strap onto my shoulder while I hold my prosthesis in place, or handing me my crutches as I hop out of the shower. We feel closer as we deal with the alterations this disease has made to my body. Hope this helps.
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Hi nightowlhoot,
I had BMX, and about a year after started experiencing some burning and tugging sensations around the edge of my scar on the cancer side, under the armpit. There was some thickening too. An ultrasound showed that it was just scar tissue which seems to have dissolved since or maybe just flattened, I do not feel it any more. Good luck with your ultrasound
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I am 3 mos as a half boob woman. I actually have no problem looking at myself in the mirror. My other breast is big, so I sure am lopsided. I feel like I baby my no boob side. I know I frequently hold it and message it. As I have written in another thread, my lymph node dissection left my arm and chest extremely sensitive. One minute numb, the next it feels like my chest is filling with cement, the next firecrackers going off. It is much better now. I have not bought any bras except for the soft thing my sis bought for me. I am purposely shedding weight and will wait until I am happy before buying more clothing. A picture was taken recently of me. Not bad. The very colorful tunic hid my flat side. I am hoping my other boob will shrink as I lose more weight. I am old now. I could care less about being lopsided. I am not shy about my condition. I feel many need a reality test about what it means to have breast cancer. For those that are young, my heart breaks for you. Losing a breast is not sexy. It is a loss. It is life altering.
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I just joined this club 10 days ago. The first look was quite a shock, bu I am grateful I am alive! Thanks everyone for their honesty In Sharing. It helps to read about others journeys.
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I was browsing tankini swimsuits on eBay and saw this one, which seems like it would make it impossible to tell the relative size of R and L breasts:
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nightowl- yes, I also have a similar small lump at the edge of my scar. My BS told me if it feels like the heel of my hand (soft), don’t worry, if it feels like a knuckle, then get it checked. I’m glad you are able to get yours checked, even if just for peace of mind.
I do have twinges as well as tenderness if I push on certain areas. I just figured the twinges are probably nerves regenerating. The tenderness I blame on rads, but it could just be that there’s no cushioning there and ribs don’t like to be poked!
I hope maybe this helps, and that you get the “all clear” from your US.
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I have not been back in awhile. I'm over a year out of surgery. Somewhere I read over and over again to get a Genie Classic bra (I'm not sure if that was just after surgery, or for all time). Well I'm been wearing the XL size for about a year and that has worked fine. Now I find myself needing a L size and cannot find one anywhere. I don't think the Genie Sports bra is the same as classic. I don't like those support bras I got from Nordstrom. I really just want something like the Genie Classic Large (all other sizes are available).
Can anyone recommend another "comfort bra" that you can make into a bra with a prothesis? Genie is not designed for mastectomy, but with a little snip, snip, it is awesome.
One reason I like the comfort bra is that it sort of squishes my breast and prothesis. They don't make a prothesis which is close to my size. So they put my cup B boob into a 36D because the size 6 prothesis is as wide as I need. But now I've lost weight in my boob and just cannot use size 6 anymore. So now I'm using an ebay prothesis size 5 and want to squish it a little flatter. Size 5 is pointier and less wide.
Can anyone help me with a different brand comfort bra, that has little light weigh cups and you can cut the opening a little wider to add a prothesis?
Thank you.
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I am overweight by about 35-40 pounds. My cup size is a C. When I'm at my thinnist weight, I am a double A. If I was a double A, I wouldn't even bother with a bra. Since I am larger cup now, I do wear a bra with a silicone boob. I don't really notice it much. At times, I have a freak out moment at work and quickly look down to make sure I remembered to put the silicone on. Haven't forgotten yet. It hasn't changed the quality of my life. I can't wear anything low cut due to radiation that discolored my fair skin. It looks the color of a bad bruise. I remember a shirt I had on started to creep down just a bit and people kept looking away. It did look bad/scary. That probably has effected my self image more than losing my boob.
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Hi Everyone,
I hope you all have had a good weekend. I wanted to thank you all for sharing your honest and deepest feeling about your journey. You all have given me a lot of inspiration and hope for the future. Last week I got my silicone foob and I am still getting use to it, but it sure is nice to be able to take it off at the end of the day. I like wearing it to work, but when I get home take a break from wearing it. Today I had a total half flat day and it was very relaxing.
How are you all doing?
Wishing you all well in your recovery from your surgeries.
Hugs and Love to all,
Sara
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I love this idea! I wear a foob, knitted or crocheted, to work. I wear a silicone one on days off or go braless. I"m a size D, but what the heck, no one notices when I don't wear a foob and bra. It does irritate me when it moves to the point that it hits me in the chin though. So, I will try your idea.
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Where did you find the Fruit of the Loom front closure bras? I wore those before bc, but they have all worn out. I loved the feel of them and they were fine after the mastectomy. But now I can't seem to find tdhem.
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Sara,
I've been Amazonian for a few years.
Reasons: I wanted to avoid more surgery and possible need for revisions and having any foreign bodies and any possibility that reconstruction might interfere with detection of recurrence or of new cancer.
Also, my cancer was aggressive and I wanted to focus my strength and my attention on surviving the critical first few years.
I am happy with my decision, especially since I do not perceive my femininity to be confined to specific body parts.
As my fear of recurrence recedes somewhat, sometimes I consider an implant, but certainly not the more complex sorts of reconstruction. But I meditate on what things most matter to me, and on what most makes me who I am, and 12 cc of breast volume just ain't it. So the urge passes, at least for now.
Nordstroms has fantastic prostheses to choose from, which I can hire and fire at will--no MRI, hospitalizations, and surgeon needed.
And besides, there is some romantic cachet from being an Amazon
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shortcake42 wrote:
"Where did you find the Fruit of the Loom front closure bras? I wore those before bc, but they have all worn out. I loved the feel of them and they were fine after the mastectomy. But now I can't seem to find tdhem."
I have bought the Fruit of the Loom front closure bras from Amazon.com. I have found that the bottom edge of the closure is unpleasantly hard, but if I just leave the bottom hook unfastened, the corners kind of float away from my body and all is well.
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Sorry I have been away for a while. I have been dealing with doctor land visits all last month. I have good news to share with you all. After meeting with a PS last week, I have decided to remain half flat. I liked the PS he was very kind and listened/answered all my questions. However, when he told me the plan about moving tissue/skin around from different parts of my body to make a new boob and how long the recover would be it freaked me out.
I want to thank all of you for your support and advice you have given me over these last few months. You have helped me grow and learn so much.
Oxygen18 I love the Amazon it makes us sound so special.
Joanne: Thank you for sharing that bra I will keep an eye out for it.
I do have a question for you all have any of you had scar revision for your mastectomy? What was your experience like I am thinking about getting it done. I have some really puffy scars that wont seem to get flat and it has been a year since surgery.
Wishing you all the best, and thank you again for all your support and advice.
Hugs,
Sara
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Hi, I wanted to join this thread as I just had my drain and dressings removed and am feeling a bit sad about being half flat. I am only 11 days out from umx with no recon. This board was awesome for helping me make the decision and I still feel it's the right one for me. Maybe it's just reality setting in. Can anyone share how they got over the sadness of losing a breast/becoming half flat?
Thanks all x
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Ladies, I made a post the other day about us being able to receive free bras & breast forms 100% free no copay through our insurance! It's part of the MX law! Ask your doctor for prescriptions for them. I use a breast cancer supply store. It would had been 696.00 but insurance covered all! I just started being able to wear my bra & forms.also you get new ones every 3 months! YES every 3 months! I'm 31 it felt odd and uncomfortable, I couldn't wait to get home and remove it. I do have the chance to complete a reconstruction, I've just had so many complications from my BMX (double). I'm having issues getting my shirts to fit properly. Any ideas on what to wear or try, favorite designer for ladies with a MX? I also have brand new camisoles with bulit in drains, I have 2 of them one I tried on and it was way too small they wouldn't let me exchange I would love to give them to someone who needs them they are large & white but fit snug like a medium. I also have a brand new lace bra with the breast forms anyone can have it's brand new never used. I will ship them for free to any of my lovely sisters on here! Just send me a PM with your name and address. Best wishes to all Sa
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I just had my mastectomy 3 weeks ago. I choose to go half flat because I didnt want the extra surgery for reconstruction. Plus the plastic surgeon said I would probably need reduction on the other side to match!! I an only a c cup...so no way. I have been wearing a genie bra that just flattens everything out, but am noticing many of my clothes make it obvious that I am half flat!! I cant stand the bra very long because I am still healing. My surgeon recommended "fluffies" but I have no idea what they are. I will have to go to a store soon that sells these things so I can get more information.
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cfrank, here is a page with examples of soft fluffies, which are light, soft leisure forms that can be worn in a pocketed bra or crop top. As well as American Breast Care, other major brands of mastectomy forms and pocketed bras are: Amoena, Anita and Trulife. Here are some links and I hope you find them helpful.
http://www.americanbreastcare.com/BreastForms.html
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JO5, the bra you are looking for looks like the Anaono MakeMerry Pocketed Full Coverage wirefree bra that you can get here: https://www.anaono.com/products/pocketed-full-coverage-wirefree-bra
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I had a preventive double mastectomy 2 months ago and I have really appreciated reading this thread, even though I'm not half flat. It helps me to feel less alone to read about others' experiences because we all share some things in common. I have been too sore to wear a bra and breast forms since two weeks after surgery when I developed nerve pain but I hope to be able to sometimes before too long. Having breast surgery means a lot of adjustment afterwards.
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Hi Aussie-Cat,
As you may know, your nerve pain could be a painful sensitivity that develops for many women as the nerves that were cut during surgery regenerate. I developed this nerve pain about three weeks after my bilateral mastectomy and I could hardly bear to have anything touch my chest. For me, the pain lasted about three weeks, but this probably varies from person to person. Wearing silky or satiny materials next to my chest seemed to help the most. During that time, I didn't even try to wear bras or breast forms.
As you get used to your new "normal," you might find my non-profit website, BreastFree.org, helpful. It has lots of information and advice about living breast-free, including reviews of both bras and breast forms that I and many other women have tried and liked.
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