Sleeping, Large Breasts, and Bras

[totheminute.livejournal.com]

I have a question for the large breasted women. Is sleeping uncomfortable for you and if so, how do you deal with it? I've heard contradicting things about wearing bras at night. I recently started sleeping without a bra and oh man- it's totally uncomfortable. I was wearing sports bras to bed before and I think I'll go back to doing that.

Is it advised to wear bras at night? I keep hearing different things about it. How do other well endowed women deal with sleeping? Thanks in advance. :)

Comments

[crucified.livejournal.com]

I've never worn a bra to bed and it's never bothered me. But, even when I was little (not little-little, but I think you get what I mean), my breasts were larger so I may just be used to it at this point.

[gryphonwing.livejournal.com]

Same here. I prefer nudity in general - the only time I *like* wearing bras is when my breasts are swollen and tender. I haven't worn a bra to bed... well, probably never, at least on purpose.

I have very large breasts... they just don't stop me from being comfortable.

[lolabobs.livejournal.com]

I have very large breasts, but don't wear a bra to bed - I find bras uncomfortable in general (probably means they don't fit of course!), so will go without if I'm in the house alone - and there's nothing like the "ahhhhhhhhh" of taking off an underwired bra at the end of the day!

Although - when I used to get very bad pmt and my breasts would get horribly painful then I would sometimes wear a sleepvest thing, just to hold them still.

I don't know what the formal advice (if any) there is out there, I just go along with what suits me best; and I guess I'd advise you to do the same.

[totheminute.livejournal.com]

I'm the opposite. I hate taking off my bras when I get home. It feels comfortable to wear them.

I guess I'll just keep doing what makes me comfortable. Thanks for commenting! Haha...you made me a little more confident about wearing bras to bed.

[geminigirl]

I wear a bra some of the time in late pregnancy or early nursing days when I may be leaking and don't feel like soaking the bed and myself so I need nursing pads. Other than that, I don't wear bras to bed.

[laughing-dreams.livejournal.com]

I'm a 32 G and I don't wear a bra to bed...sometimes I'll wear a tshirt or a tank top but other than I usually sleep nude or in underwear

[lilpaige.livejournal.com]

I've heard that there is absolutely nothing wrong with wearing a bra to bed. I wear one every night so I looked into it, haha.

[luvherbones.livejournal.com]

when i was a cup size larger than i currently am i often felt like my breasts were in the way when i slept. i usually wore a tshirt to bed to try and keep them under control, or a bra or something with a shelf bra. now i'm a D cup and they don't bother me so much, I can even sleep on my stomach just fine. if a bra keeps you comfortable you should go for it!

[pocochina.livejournal.com]

I tend to do well with a super-soft sports bra shape (not one sturdy enough to work out in) or built-in tank top, because I tend to find laying down in underwire uncomfortable. I don't think it's bad for you one way or the other, though, just a comfort issue.

[elephantus45.livejournal.com]

I generally wear sports bras or shelf bras to bed. They keep everything in place so when I roll to my stomach I don't mash my boobs :p

[totheminute.livejournal.com]

Boob mashing is a terrible thing. lol, rolling over or laying on my side is the worst. >.< I'm going back to wearing a sports bra.

[eatswithfork.livejournal.com]

I'm a 28F and I wear an underwire bra to bed every night. The only adverse affect I've heard was that it'll stunt your growth but I'm sure that's an old wive's tale and I'd like to think I'm done growing. If not, stunt away!

[totheminute.livejournal.com]

lol, I thought most of what I heard about wearing a bra to bed were wive's tales. Thanks for your comment. I feel a little better about wearing a bra to bed now. :D

[graziaplena.livejournal.com]

I have always worn a bra to bed, ever since I first grew a chest at age 10. :) I only have medium-sized boobs, but I CANNOT STAND the sensation of going bra-less under a shirt, the way they rub against the material as I move around. *shudder* So I always wear a bra -- usually a really old one that's all stretched out and has very little support, but keeps them in place enough that I don't feel them moving -- or a tank-top with a built-in shelf bra.

[lilpaige.livejournal.com]

oh man me too. mine are mid sized (b or c depending on period) and i HATE not wearing a bra. i sleep in one every night. i hate floppy boob feeling.

[rayofblacklight.livejournal.com]

Me too. I HATE the rubby feeling so I'm always wearing a bra. Typically I just wear the one that I was wearing during the day.

[sibilance7.livejournal.com]

I also hate that feeling! My nipples are extraordinarily sensitive and they'll start to burn from rubbing against fabric, so I have to wear a bra at all times. I just wear one of those really unstructured sports bras to sleep in because it's comfortable enough, but I don't jiggle around in that painful way.

[starsinshapes.livejournal.com]

I used to wear bras to bed in high school, but have since stopped. I think your comfort level may be due to your sleeping position? I have to either sleep on my side or stomach because lying on my back has my breasts putting too much weight on my chest (which isnt good for someone with sleep apnea).

If changing positions doesnt work, try either a loose sports bra or a fitted/sports tank (anything with lycra, but no built-in bra), the latter can usually be found in the lingerie section in any department store in the body-forming (eg-spanx) area.

[starsinshapes.livejournal.com]

and by built in bra, I meant the kind with the cups. Shelf bras should work too.

[kuangning]

38E, and unless my breasts are already tender, like before my period, I'm not uncomfortable sleeping without a bra. I do sleep on my side and have occasionally squeezed my own breasts under my arm while shifting, so if my breasts are tender I put on my loosest bra. No underwires in any of my bras, for the record, just seamed cups for support. I don't know that I could stand to sleep in anything with an underwire, tenderness or not.

[mwahaism.livejournal.com]

I sleep without a bra, but if I sleep topless, they do tend to hurt in the morning and sometimes when changing positions they "get in the way". So I don't feel the need to wear a bra, but I do find I need to wear a t-shirt or tank to be comfortable.

[petalla.livejournal.com]

Breast, and especially nipple squishing at night is a painful experience for the large breasted, but I truly believe that we wear bras too often. There have been many studies done, and bras do raise the temperature of breasts. This may be one cause of breast cancer.

I say give your boobies a rest, and get comfy without one while in bed :D T-shirts work :D

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

:D T-shirts work :D

:D For some people :D

[dreammeanyway.livejournal.com]

Do you have a link to these studies saying bras could cause breast cancer? /skeptical

[petalla.livejournal.com]

Dressed to Kill: The Link Between Breast Cancer and Bras, Soma Grismaijer, Sidney Ross singer, Avery Press, 1995

Although Grismaijer's experiment has not been medically approved (not published in a peer review), there have been other studies done as well:

The co-author Sydney Ross Singer, who is a Medical Anthropologist has been speaking and writing about this for years.

http://ezinearticles.com/?Bras-and-the-Breast-Cancer-Cover-Up&id=795041

http://ezinearticles.com/?expert=Sydney_Ross_Singer

http://health2us.com/bra.htm

There has also been a Harvard study done in 1991, though, I admit that I cannot find a link to it it online.

http://www.health101.org/art_Bras_and_Breast_Cancer.htm

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

It's worth noting, though, that the first study is flawed (http://www.nytimes.com/2010/02/16/science/16qna.html?ref=science) on a number of levels. Namely, it fails to control for a number of other factors (age, weight, breast size, family history, etc.) to arrive at this correlation.

[petalla.livejournal.com]

The Harvard Research was published in European Journal of Cancer. 1991; 27(2):131-5.

[shyshutterbug.livejournal.com]

That'd have to be one heck of a snug t-shirt to keep my girls from either cutting off circulation to my arm (if I'm on my side) or drawing and quartering me (if I'm on my back). Until I can swing the cash for a breast reduction, you'll have to pry my sports bra out of my cold dead hands! :)

[jade488.livejournal.com]

I wear a 40H, and overall sleeping isnt uncomfortable to me. I'm a side sleeper, and I either tuck the edge of my blanket, or a pillow in between my cleavage to keep the breasts separated a bit. other large breasted friends have told me they wear a sports bra and tuck a fluffy folded up sock inbetween for the same kind of effect.

[tugmyjersey.livejournal.com]

I am a 32 G, and I sleep without a bra. It is the ONLY time I am not wearing one, 'cause I'm typically pretty uncomfortable when the girls aren't tightly strapped in. I sleep on my stomach of often with a pillow across my boobs though, so they don't go all crazy and every which-way. I also sometime tuck a but of the sheet in between them to prevent their touching.

[frolicnaked.livejournal.com]

I'm somewhere between a 30/32 and a G/GG/H depending on the day. For part of my cycle, I can comfortably sleep topless. For other parts -- from a few days before ovulation to about halfway through my period -- I do need some support in order to get to sleep. Usually this is a tank with a shelf bra, a light impact sports bra, or both combined. (Most shelf tanks and S-M-L sports bras are not sized to offer good support for me, so sometimes I need both.)

I'm not aware of any controlled studies on sleeping with bras versus sleeping without, so as far as advice goes, I'd guess most of it is anecdata.

[seekingzen.livejournal.com]

Mine are big enough that I can't lie/sleep on my stomach. Other than that, I'm perfectly fine going braless, though I have worn lightweight sleep bras from time to time. (I wear them constantly while breastfeeding though, because otherwise I soak the bed. :-/)

[misspaigeb.livejournal.com]

I'm a D and I don't usually wear a bra to b ed. But I have recently started wearing sports bras to bed and it is a lot more comfortable, mostly because I don't really like the sensation of my nipples rubbing against a loose tshirt.

[avalonpolo.livejournal.com]

34DD here. I usually sleep without a bra and I am a tummy sleeper. I usually just have to position them the right way underneath me for it to be comfortable haha.

[rainbowrawsugar.livejournal.com]

36D, I sleep with a bra on most nights and have wondered if it's bad as well. However I can't find anything that says anything bad about wearing bras to bed other than things that just sound like total hockey.

I have to wear a bra 1 week before my period and during because they hurt so bad when they're unsupported that I will cry. It's pretty awful. D:

[kappyjeanne.livejournal.com]

I'm a 34G and I sleep bra-less, but to be honest after reading the comments here, I think I'm going to pick up a sports bra to wear to bed :p

Do they make sports bras for larger breasts? To be completely honest, I haven't worn one since I was a pre-teen. It would be really nice to not wear one with a wire :x

[rawkemsockem.livejournal.com]

30E chiming in! No bra at night for me. I find them too restraining, but I do feel more comfortable with /something/ on, so those thin ribbed Jockey tank tops work best for me. Plus some strategically-arranged pillows for when I'm sleeping on my stomach.

[morien-san.livejournal.com]

I prefer to sleep naked but sometimes PMS causes my breasts to hurt terribly when I take off my bra so I put one back on after washing up. I use a soft, well-fitting, under-wired full-cup from Marks&Spencer for that.

[nakedfaery.livejournal.com]

I'm a 36H and don't wear a bra to bed. I find them too restricting and uncomfortable.

[arkeiryn.livejournal.com]

I sleep bra-less, but I also sleep mostly on my side or my back. It does take me a while to get comfortable if I am lying on my front. I have worn bras to bed before (on camping trips where it was too cold to get fully naked :P) and it was very uncomfortable for me. But if it works for you, I see no problem.

[kino-makoto.livejournal.com]

I'm a 36 DD and I used to wear one to bed sometimes, but I don't anymore. However, I do like to wear a bra all the time other than when I'm sleeping, I'm more comfortable that way when I am up and about.

[sky-blue-pink.livejournal.com]

I always wear a bra to bed, unless I'm sleeping over at my boyfriend's. It doesn't have underwire and it's really soft, so it's basically just to keep things in place. My sense is that it's totally about personal preference, and not so much about one way being better for you than the other :)

[lady-leia-solo.livejournal.com]

I'm a 46 DD and I don't wear bras to bed. Sometimes I will if I'm too tired to take it off. But generally, I just have my nightclothes and panties. I guess I'm used to sleeping bra-less since I developed early. But I don't think there should be any problem wearing a bra to bed. At least not that I know of.

[inmeggsyoutrust.livejournal.com]

I like to wear one of those tank tops with a shelf bra in it to bed, just to hold the girls in.

However, if I sleep on my side and my arm that is under my boobs, it will fall asleep, like sleeping on my left side, left arm down/not above my head, the boobs will put just enough pressure on my arm and it will make my hand go numb. SO ANNOYING.

FWIW, i'm a 40F.

[apostropher.livejournal.com]

28GG and I have never worn a bra to bed intentionally, I've only slept in a bra when I've basically passed out from exhaustion or drunkeneness. Most of the time I don't even wear a top and they never really get in the way either...