A sports bra is similar to a typical bra except that it has less material in the cup and back areas. This allows it to provide support without adding bulk to your upper body. A good quality sports bra should be made of breathable fabric so that you do not get overheated while exercising. There are three main types of sports bras: compression, encapsulation, and combination. Each type provides different levels of support for various sizes and shapes of breasts.
A sports bra after breast lift is a form-fitting, supportive garment that is worn by women who have had breast lifts or other procedures to reshape the breasts. The sports bra helps to retain the new shape of the breasts and prevent sagging, which can occur after a breast lift.
Read on to learn more about Best Sports Bra After Breast Reconstruction, Best Scar Treatment For Breast Reduction and Breast Reduction Scar Treatment
Best Sports Bra After Breast Reconstruction
If you have had reconstructive surgery, it’s crucial to choose a bra that helps facilitate the best possible recovery. In the weeks after surgery, you need support for your new implants. You also want to make sure you’re feeling as comfortable and confident as possible post-surgery. Here are some of the reasons why wearing a sports bra is beneficial for your post-surgical recovery.
To Support the Healing Process
One of the most important reasons for wearing a sports bra after surgery is to ensure a smooth healing process. Wearing a standard bra could lead to rubbing or chafing of the breast or scar tissue, potentially leading to infection.
Another benefit of wearing a sports bra after your reconstructive surgery is that they provide a light level of compression, which can help prevent lymphedema and promote increased blood flow to the surgical site, flooding the area with nutrients for faster healing.
Lymphedema can lead to potentially life-threatening complications such as cellulitis and increase your risk of infection. Wearing a form-fitting sports bra applies gentle pressure to the surgical area, sending lymph fluid away from the area so it can be reabsorbed into the body.
It Allows You to Return to Your Normal Activities Safely
After approximately eight weeks, or after gaining your surgeon’s permission, wearing a sports bra can allow you to return to your usual activities safely. This is especially important if you perform any type of high-impact activities regularly. Certain popular types of exercise such as tennis and running are much higher impact than yoga or lifting weights and can cause the breast tissue to shift before your implants are fully settled.
If you’re going to be performing only low-impact activities, choose a sports bra with less structural support. However, to protect your breast tissue, you should choose a sports bra with high support for more intense activities. A high-impact sports bra can also aid in preventing implant dislocation.
Implant dislocation occurs when the implant settles too low or wide in the chest, causing your bust to have an irregular shape. Although the condition can be repaired, preventing dislocation with a quality sports bra means you won’t need additional surgery.
The Marena Sports Bra with Zipper and Pockets is an excellent choice for high-impact activities. It will provide all the support you need with wide adjustable straps and a smooth elastic underbust band.
To Provide Optimal Comfort
You won’t have to worry about an uncomfortable bra post-reconstruction if you choose a sports bra. A sports bra is the best option to make sure you feel great in your skin. Often wearing an underwire bra of a standard design can dig into your skin. It can also become too tight or not provide the support you need after your surgery.
A sports bra is designed to seamlessly hold everything in place without causing chafing or cuts. There are so many sports bras available, so you can easily find one that suits your personal needs. There are also different types of closures on sports bras for post-surgery needs. For example, a sports bra that comes with a front closure can make getting it on and off as easy and comfortable as possible.
The Coobie Fusion Yoga Bra is designed to be pulled over your head and is made from ultra-soft fabric so it won’t irritate surgical sites. The wide underbust bands and removable padded cups offer the most comfort, and the wide adjustable straps ensure that you get the perfect fit for your body.
Find the Perfect Sports Bra After Breast Reconstruction
After you have had breast reconstruction, wearing a sports bra can help you feel confident and comfortable in your skin while you heal and decreases the risk of developing complications after surgery. It also allows you to get yourself back into your favorite physical activities with ease.
Breast Reduction Scar Treatment
A breast reduction, also known as “reduction mammoplasty,” is a surgical procedure performed by a plastic surgeon aimed at reducing the size of one or both breasts. There are many reasons why a woman might elect to undergo breast reduction surgery. But whether it’s to restore functionality to the breasts, improve their cosmetic appearance, or regain confidence, noticeable scars will result. Post-operative care and scar management is an important step to ensure the best cosmetic outcome after your breast reduction procedure.
Continue reading to learn all about breast reduction surgeries and what you can do post-operatively to care for your scars.
What are breast reduction surgeries for?
The enlargement of the breasts is a common problem for a lot of women. There are a number of causes for this condition, many of which aren’t harmful to a woman’s health. Early maturation, weight gain, and a rare condition known as “breast hypertrophy” can contribute to the overgrowth of breast tissue. Other factors that influence bust size include genetics, hormonal changes, and pregnancy. Most women develop large breasts during the pubertal stage of breast development, but later-stage enlargement can occur as a result of a number of other factors.
Women with enlarged breasts often feel that their bust size is disproportionate to their body size and wish to improve symmetry by having a reductive procedure. Sometimes this is done solely to enhance the cosmetic appearance of the breasts, but it may also be a corrective measure for a number of physiological issues. Breast enlargement can induce severe neck, back, and shoulder pain, which can deteriorate a woman’s health and infringe on daily activities. In addition to enhancing one’s physical well-being, breast reductions can restore confidence in one’s self-image.
Many people consider breast reduction surgery a female-only procedure. But more and more men are going under the knife to rectify a condition known as gynecomastia. Gynecomastia is a generally harmless condition characterized by the enlargement of male breasts from excessive glandular and fat tissue growth. A hormonal imbalance resulting from the overproduction of estrogen in men can lead to this disorder. Reductive surgeries for gynecomastia are primarily cosmetic in nature and leave only slight scarring around the areola.
Types of breast reduction incisions
There are several techniques a plastic surgeon might employ when performing a breast reduction procedure. The type of incision made to the breast depends on the woman’s anatomy, her desired shape, and the amount of breast tissue to be removed. Each of the following incision types will produce a different scar shape and size.
Best Scar Treatment For Breast Reduction
For most women, the size and appearance of their breasts play a huge part in their self-confidence and how they view themselves. Having children, genetic factors, breast feeding, weight fluctuations and aging (thank you gravity!) can all negatively impact the appearance of women’s breasts. It is incredibly common for women to explore breast surgery as a means to feel more comfortable with their shape. In 2018, over 500,000 women opted to undergo breast surgery in the U.S. alone! The most common breast surgeries include breast augmentation, breast lift, breast reduction, and when required breast reconstruction. Regardless of the surgical procedure chosen, there will be incisions. The size and number of incisions vary depending on the surgery and the surgeon’s technique, but even if it’s a small incision, you probably don’t look forward to having a scar. So let’s talk about what factors determine how severely you scar, as well as how to properly care for your breast surgery scars to result in the best scars possible.
The Science Behind Scars
When your skin experiences trauma like an injury or incision, collagen comes running to the rescue. One of our board certified plastic surgeons, Dr. Rechner, explains the science behind scars with a great analogy. He says “Imagine you are moving and decide to hire a moving company. They come and load all your belongings into their moving trucks and transport everything to your new home. Once there, they unload the trucks and typically just dump all your boxes into your new house. Unless you have the crème de le crème moving company, they probably won’t spend time organizing your cupboards and arranging shelves for you. Our body delivers collagen to the incision site the same way the movers put your stuff into your house. It dumps the collagen into the injury site without organizing it very well. Collagen fibers are laid down in every direction at first, often resulting in a raised or bumpy scar. As the collagen fibers begin to organize themselves and lay in one direction, the scar heals and becomes less noticeable.”
Why Are Some Scars More Visible Than Others?
According to Dr. Rechner, there are several variables that determine why some individuals’ scars are more visible than others. He explains “One determining factor is your physiology, which is simply how you are put together. Your physiology includes your body’s inflammatory response, how much collagen you produce and your collagen’s moving and organizational skills. Another factor that determines how we scar is age. Though we typically think kids bounce back from everything more quickly, that isn’t the case when it comes to scars. Ironically, the younger you are the worse the scar tends to be initially. This is because younger bodies respond more vigorously to the wound, resulting in thicker, darker scars initially. As we age, our inflammatory response diminishes, so there isn’t as much collagen “coming to the rescue.” This means an older person typically has thinner, lighter scars at their incision site. You can’t change your physiology, but thankfully there are things to be done to help.”
Does the Surgeon’s Technique and Scar Placement Make a Difference?
It is very important to do your research when it comes to choosing your surgeon. There are many qualified surgeons to choose from and it can be overwhelming determining who will best provide the results you are looking for. Be sure to find a surgeon who is board certified in plastic surgery and has a reputation for specializing in breast surgeries. You will want to talk about scar technique and placement during your consultation, and ask your surgeon to explain what considerations they use when making incisions. While discussing breast reduction surgery scars Dr. Rechner says “there are several different ways to perform breast reductions, but scars heal better when the incisions are placed in an area where there is the least amount of tension. When the incisions are positioned with the least amount of tension possible it results in a flatter and less noticeable scar.”
What are the best breast surgery scar treatments?
The process to treating breast surgery scars begins by following your surgeon’s post-surgery instructions very carefully. You will have skin closure strips over your incisions after your surgery, and those should be left in place for the two weeks following your surgery. You will also be given a special post-surgical garment to wear, designed to provide the right amount of support without putting pressure on your incisions. Both the skin closure strips and post-surgical garment serve to protect your incisions from tension during the initial healing phase. Don’t get anxious and remove the closure strips or wear an underwire bra right away, as this will result in more noticeable scars down the road.
Two weeks after your surgery, your incisions should be fully closed and healing up quite nicely. At this point, Dr. Rechner says “you should gently apply a silicone topical ointment to your scars. There are a slew of options on the market when it comes to scar treatment products, but we recommend one with silicone as its main ingredient. The purpose of the silicone product is to keep your scar hydrated and prevent it from drying out as it continues to heal. Then lightly massage your scars as you apply the silicone topical. When you do this, you are organizing the collagen just as you put your belongings away when you settle into your new home. Organizing the collagen fibers, results in a flatter and smoother scar. Massaging the scar also increases blood circulation which helps keep it pliable and speed up the healing process.” On final note, Dr. Rechner stresses that “you need to be patient and give your scars time to fade. If you follow the post-operative instructions carefully, apply the silicone topical ointment with light massage and give it time, you should see your scars continue fade nicely and be able to enjoy the new and improved you!”