NHS breast reduction
 

I wear 28JJ/30J bras which are slightly too small in the cup on a "good" day, on a normal day, I'm near enough falling out of bras. sorry, tmi there. I'm wanting to get a reduction if I can.

anyone know how to go about it? waiting times, etc?

any info would be great.

Yeah you'll need to see your GP who'll refer you on for an assessment etc.

I would say cosmetic surgery is gonna be the best option for u. I can't say anything else what will reduce ur cup size unless u want a breast reduction. Thats the only way to become a smaller size. I would of said also about getting ur breasts messaged now and again to be aware wether or not u should aim for the plastic surgery route or if it's just u wanting to be measured and see what size u are so u can get the right bra size. Just remember if u have big breasts that wearing push up bras wont flatter u though it's best to go and get measured first and ask what ones will be best for u but never go for push up bras.

JusC

any suggestions on how to approach GP? he's male, I'm generally uncomfortable with speaking to men about anything like that & he's quite old which makes me feel even weirder about it.

I've already been properly measured, so many times. I get remeasured by bravissimo whenever I buy new bras...

You won't be the first person to have asked him. He will have had this question many times before. All I can recommend, and trust me, I've got a lot of experience researching this stuff, is that you look at exactly what you're aiming for beforehand so it becomes easier to explain. Sort of a look at your options before you go in sort of thing

Hey lovely,

I would certainly suggest to speak to your GP about this. Or perhaps it'd help to speak to a different, female, GP at your surgery?

It is also worth looking at this website and this one about it.

Your GP will have heard people wanting this before, but I know that doesn't mean it makes it any easier.

x x x

unfortunately my doctors surgery is tiny, i genuinely think theres more receptionist staff than medical staff. got an appointment for something else on friday, will attempt to bring it up then. thanks :)

Thats good that I got an appointment EmmaBoB. I hope it's helpful enough to decide what's best for u right now. Do u like the idea of surgery? How would u feel about it? Make sure u say to ur doctor about how ur feeling about thks overall.

I'm glad that u get measured every now and again. It's important for any woman to. You should always change ur bra every so often to have enough support there when u need it. You should always get measured first but it seems u have done just that so well done.

I like La Senza. I use to go there and get measured when there was a store near by and liked buying there underware when I could and it was good to wear. That was the only underware shop I only went two to buy it.

Does any of u like La Senza? :)

la senza is awful. my sisters 14 & is as flat as an ironing board & i still wouldnt dream of taking her in there for any bras, legit would rather take her to primark.. if I can get into clothes which fit properly, i'd be happy.. i'm so fed up of having to buy tops 1-3 sizes bigger just to fit the boobies. :/

I think u must be getting confused with another bra shop cuz La Senza is really good quality, have a range of fitted bras to suit everyone and tg e customer service is excellent. Thats the only underware shop I would go.

I don't think u would of had a good enough experience to know that La Senza caters to all people no matter what size bra they are all how exspensive it is there is always a way to help those combat underware problems.

I would never by underware in Primark! I do like Primark but wont go there for that. I buy tops, jeans, socks and pjs there but nothing else. I brought shoes there a couple of times and they never latested. It was ridiculous!

It's important u find the right shop for u.

I'm sure Emma knows which shops she finds helpful and which she doesn't, JusC. Just because she doesn't find La Senza helpful, doesn't mean she's wrong.

I find M&S helpful - but only after I found a bra measurer who was helpful - I was measured wrong the first couple of times but this one woman is helpful and does it properly.

I hope you are able to speak to your GP about it on Friday. Would it help to write down what you want to say so you can refer to it if you find it difficult?

x x x

Let us know how it goes on Friday Emma.

As an aside I hate La Senza. I get measured in Debenhams about twice a year, but have found my size can vary depending on who does the measuring which can be annoying.

I had a reduction privately as my gp wouldn't even refer me for it due to being slightly overweight, and he told me to lose 3 stone which would have put me right at the bottom of healthy bmi. I became so desperate that I took out a loan. I would honestly say though that it has changed my life. I used to have constant back pain which has now disappeared.
When I asked my gp about it though I went for the appraoch of telling him that I wanted them "chopped off". I had quite a good relationship with him though. I think once you get over the initial hurdle of saying it, the rest is a fair bit easier. When the surgeon wanted to have a look, i did feel really uncomfortable, but I picked a point of the wall to stare at and played the "alphabet game" where you pick a category and then go through the alphabet and find something for each letter.
I'm really pleased that I went ahead with it and even after a small infection, I was back to work within 4 weeks, and a year on my scarring is dranatically reduced and they have "settled".
Sorry I can't be of more help with nhs-related bits though.

As a fellow big-boobed lady, I can agree that La Senza is terrible quality. No support, and one bra left dye marks on my skin that wouldn't come off even after several showers :/ And, since they were taken over by a Canadian company relatively recently, their sizing has gone all weird and doesn't go up past an E cup, so it's unsuitable for a lot of ladies.

I hope your GP is helpful. A few years ago I had to go to the doctor as I found a lump in my breast - I know it's not the same problem but it was still embarrassing to ask. However, they'd have seen it all before and didn't bat an eyelid so I'm sure your doctor will be the same :)

@ pent pending. You say u know what shops Emma finds urself but u have to put ur point there and say what u find useful so why is that any different to mine??

Hope ur feeling better now Emma. Have u been to the doctor yet or is that later this week? I hope it goes well :)

@Malison. Im big boobed myself and Ive tried La Senza and i would proberly yes it is more for people who are bigger bust so what do u mean by its not good for u when its good for me and u as were bother busted??

Its deffo not poor quailty! La Senza is expensive so for u to say that is ridiclous excuse. Maybe u only been there once where as others on here have been then more then once. Thats just mine opinion.

Emmabob stated her bra size in her original post which is bigger than the maximum size La Senza offer (E cup) so I don't think I'm incorrect to say it won't work for her!

I think the point you make about it not working for me doesn't mean it won't work for others also can be applied to what you said. Just because it works for you, doesn't mean it works for everyone, and to suggest people are wrong or getting confused about the shop they mean is a little close minded. That's just my opinion!

is the after pain all that bad? my ED is convinced gp is gonna want me to lose weight before they'll refer me anywhere, even if they will. heh.

doctors is tomorrow - would it look all that weird if i wrote some stuff down?

aside from the fact la senza is crap, a lot of highstreet underwear shops don't go any lower than a 32 band which would be massive on me. if anyone happens to know anywhere else which does decent bras shops which sell small band/big cup'd bras, let me know please<3

Not weird at all. I think it sounds like a good idea.

M&S do 30 back bra's not sure what cup size they go up too though. They used to do 28" backs in their adult ranges but they stopped. I wrote a complaint to them! There is a range based in my home town which I think is now available with online retailers called "Pour Moi" which I seem to remember had a fairly larger range of sizes but can't remember for sure what sizes.

I have found it more productive to get fitted for bras rather than measured (get them to determine my size by what bra in the style I want) as when they measure me my back size ends up much bigger for some reason. My sister used to work in a lingerie shop so she taught me how to fit myself which works for day to day shopping and I get her to check now and then too. Which is useful for me as my boobs are the first place where I see any weight gain or loss so I'm up and down bra sizes like a freaking yo-yo.

I found I had very little pain afterwards, but I do have a high pain threshold. I mostly was just very tired and sore/achey. I wasn't allowed to drive for a couple weeks afterwards, and cars/buses/trains were quite uncomfortable due to seatbelts and sitting in one position for a while.
I definitely think writing stuff down would be okay. I've written things down before to help me remember what I want to say.
I think you've already mentioned it but I used to use bravissimo a lot.