The comfy bra thing again...

I would love to get a bra which isn't painful. I bought m&s vest tops recently as someone on here recommended them as comfy but for me they're as bad as bras after a while. Fibro and menopausal hot flushes make bras and vests things of torture! How do you get support for big cup sizes without an underwire though?

Somewhere on here I saw a recommendation for an ahh bra. (You put it on and say Ahh!). Essentially they are like sports bras. I sent for a few and found them to be great and very very reasonable. They are supportive, give you a cleavage and have no hooks and eyes at all. But the other day I was in Poundworld. I saw very similar bras. I bought one. Got it out of the package and thought it would be too small for a super model never mind me. But, lol and behold, I put it on and I think it's the most comfortable bra I've ever worn and I'm a 40 D cup. The only problem is not all the poundworld shops have them,, I bought them in the city of Glasgow and live in a village some 8/9 miles south of the city so it'll be a bit of a trek to get more but I definitely will. Well worth a try at £1. Poundworld though, not Poundland.

I blew some unexpected money on a visit to Rigby & Peller a few years ago, but I'm none the wiser as to size, as they gave me two different sizes - one 32D and a 30E. Both different makes, but I wouldn't buy either of them again. I've gone back to M&S (without being measured) and find as long as I buy my usual style, their 32D fits fine. (And they are way cheaper!)

In M & S yesterday, Trying to find even a bra in my size, but found once again none seemed to go to the sizes they advertise ( up to size GG, or even up to size J!!!) I'm at least a 44G, or possibly a 42H, but I think they don't cater for us " well-endowed " ladies, so I'll just have to find a specialist fitter ( and spend a fortune) to hopefully find a comfortable and well-fitting "brassiere "!!

I had this problem until by chance I bought a lacy (under wired but others there too) bra in Sainsbury, you said your cozzies was from there as well. Anyway the Bras are £6.00 and lots of colours and sizes, might take a couple of goes to get one to suit. I've been buying these for several years now and always a bit scared they will change/stop selling them. For all those who insist on measuring and expensive fittings - been there, done that and this was MY solution. Just a thought?

I have the opposite problem to most of you ladies who have posted - very small boobs! But my ribcage has expanded due to untreated asthma and a broken rib so I still need a wide band.

It is very hard to find a bra with a small cup and a wide band - a nightmare in fact. I am thinking of getting bra extenders for a new bra I have ordered to make the back longer. M&S do a pack for 2 hook bras and a mixed pack for 2 and 3 hook bras.

I've heard that if the bra size is correct, you shouldn't need to use them and that they make the bra sit wrongly, but I'm beyond worrying about that.

I have been fitted at Bravissimo twice, with a couple of years in between, and they insisted I wore a size smaller than I have always bought but with larger cups. The result was so tight that I could hardly breathe. My lungs wouldn't expand! They wouldn't have it though and insisted it was the correct size. This happened both times and the second time I developed a sore under the band going round to my back as it rubbed. I couldn't wear that bra again for weeks and when I did, I only wore if for shorter periods of time. I would have abandoned it if it hadn't cost so much.

I'm like you, Ramblingrose22. I have a smallish bust (c cup) but am fairly wide across the ribs. I also suffer with fibromyalgia, and anything which is tight enough to be supportive is very uncomfortable. I sometimes feel as though I have a tight band of sandpaper around my chest! I have given up trying to find a comfy bra, tho' a cheap non-wired one from Matalan is about as close as I can get.
I'm so glad I'm not heavy breasted - I really don't know how I would cope. My sympathies to those of you who are well-endowed and suffering discomfort!

I've also given up on M&S and gone over to Debenhams. Their own brand is really good, not expensive and they often have offers in any case. Their underwired t-shirt bras are perfect for me. They have an extra supportive 'thing' at the side of the cups to prevent the dreaded 'sideways flop', and a double back fastening to help prevent 'back flop' which are new considerations for me since I entered the world of post-menopause. (Other Gransnetters - it's not just me, is it?)
You mentioned you had a Sainsbury's cossie, what about trying their bras? I bought a couple in their sale + 20% off promotion last year and they're really comfortable. Also really cheap i.e. not much more than a cup of posh coffee, so if they're not good, you haven't wasted too much.
I've been measured a couple of times, post-baby and weight-loss and been distinctly underwhelmed, but that was at M&S. It astonished me that, despite making me a 36B, the assistant then brought everything from a 34A to 40C!

Good luck.

recommend an annual fitting at John Lewis

jellybeanjean

I would not trust M&S to do measuring, the only place I trust is John Lewis, to measure and get it right.

I am a lady with a large bust size cup wise, so it needs to be right. I buy some from JL and then buy others using the right size from elsewhere if they are nice.

Having been measured several times in the past, I have given up on the measuring thing ( they always insist on a smaller size, which is like wearing an angry python gripping you.)
I just try on, but the only comfy bras are the Genie ones.....bliss.

Ana I discovered Nocola Jane (nicolajane.com) when looking for a swimsuit and have found their bras and swim wear excellent. They do not charge VAT on mastectomy related products (bra, swim wear, pocketed tops). You do pay postage on the initial order but returns and postage for replacement size/style is free.

I have started wearing the soft bra tops from Sainsbury and they are really comfortable. I am 44 DD and didn't expectations support but there is enough so I don't sag or swing

Soft bra tops are perfect for me, I first bought one in B&M Bargains then found them in ASDA, a bit difficult to put on as I have problems with my hands & weak wrists. I'm a 44C & they give good support & nice shape. I've tried to find sports bras but they don't seem to do them for larger ladies

I am down to one bra, there are no good fittings bras anymore. A big problem

I am a 38H and tried the soft bra tops, some of them quite expensive for what they were. Sadly I'm spilling out of the biggest size available so I wear it of an evening when I'm into nightwear but just lounging about - stops me swinging as described by jacig Then take it off before getting into bed.

My well fitting bras are from Bravissimo. And yes, their sizing is quite tight in the band for the first few wears.

The assistant asked me to trust her and I could take it back if it didn't work. Sure enough, before long it was perfect in the back and has now eventually stretched to be tightened to the middle hooks.

You say that your swimming costume is comfy, OP, except for lavatorial problems - this makes me wonder if a 'tankini' would be suitable? It's a bit like a long-line bra/vest with a matching pair of pants and therefore might be helpful if you can find one that's just as comfy and supportive. You can probably pull them on over your head without the bother of hooks and eyes. Just a thought.

I hunch over a little, because of wasted muscles in my neck and upper back, and I too have problems with underwired bras which tend to dig in, and with shoulder straps slipping off. I'm a 36D and am pleased to discover a German brand, Anita, whose Jana design fits me perfectly - no wires, no 'collar stiffeners up the side of the cups, and wide, comfortable straps. They are available on Figleaves, and also on Amazon, where they're a bit cheaper (just under £40. They are a bit pricey, but last for ages, and are very comfortable and provide good support.

I have started buying bras from TKMaxx. I have some pretty ones from DKNY and practical Spanx ones which cost around £7 each. I went down a back size and up a cup size from my M&S measurements for a perfect fit.

Go to a small specialist shop. They fit you by eye, and know their stuff!

I'm a firm fan of Rigby&Peller. Lovely staff who know what they're doing and beautiful bras. Expensive but they last forever. They've kept the Queen suitably fitted!

I buy my unwired or wired bras from M&S, but last year when I decided to go for a fitting (got money off the bra if you did), the assistant said I needed a bigger cup than the (DD) I usually wear. It was not comfortable and to me seemed very loose but I gave it a try. It's the first time I've been allowed to return something I've worn.
I like Bravissimo for wired bras, but M&S are closer and more convenient.

After surgery 10 years ago for breast cancer, I could no longer wear bras because I now have two very different cup sizes! Since then I have bought various 'secret support' camisole tops. They have come from M&S, M&Co, Lands End and Tesco. Sometimes I even find them in colours other than black or white and they are extremely comfy! I would never choose to go back to wearing a bra.

But what I cannot understand is why it is so difficult to track these tops down! I am one of thousands who have had this operation and there are many others like yourselves who suffer with badly fitting and uncomfortable bras. These secret support camisoles are usually only available in summer, sometimes being sold as part of a set of pyjamas! Why are they not more easily available all year round? Surely manufacturers are missing a trick here.

Am I alone in having burned my bras in the seventies still prefer not to wear one? Breast fed both children for over a year and have gained a bit of weight in later years but breasts still hold up. I have some soft ones for exercising and under seethrougish tops and a couple of under wired ones for dresses which really don't look good with the natural look but 90% of the time I am unfettered and therefore extremely comfortable. Why not try it OP?