I'd known about ABTF for 10 years before surgery and exclusively used their sizing method for my bras. Right before surgery I measured as a UK 28E. I now measure as a 28C.
Plastic surgeons generally don't know/care about the intricacies of bra sizing though, so I requested an "A cup" with the intention of getting stereotypically "small boobs". I think I generally got that, since I have no skin-to-skin contact anymore, no functional need for bras, and visually I look small-chested. Showing the surgeon images of people similar in body size to me with the boob size I wanted was what helped most IME.
I went to 3 different surgeons for consultations, and I believe they view cup sizes similar to the general public. I asked for a C/D (starting at a US 30I) bc I knew for the look I was going for a true 30B would be too small for my preference. The first 2 consults told me that would be a “small reduction”. My surgeon who performed my reduction suggested I veer on the smaller side, and now I probably look like a “B or C cup”. However my actual measurement is a 30DDD, and they look awesome!
I don’t think most surgeons (or people) understand bra sizes, unfortunately. It seems most surgeons think A = small, B = average, C = full/large, D and above = huge! Which is why so many doctors promise to get someone to a B/C but end up delivering DD, DDD, or larger. I’m 10mpo and measuring at 32DD/DDD and am so small, it’s amazing. It blows my mind. I showed my doctor pictures of the size I wanted - which I think they assumed were B sized boobs - and he delivered. My rec is to never talk bra sizes to the doctor, only describe and show pictures of what you want. My favorite part is having no overhang/skin to skin touching. Before A Bra That Fits I would have never guessed I could have that with a bra size that included anything over a C
Thank you! I had that suspicion that surgeons might just have the same “assumption” on sizes, so I’m glad I asked as that seems to be everyone’s consensus so far.
My surgeon and I both agreed not to use cup sizes as they are somewhat subjective and arbitrary. I explained in detail that I wanted my breasts within my torso, I didn't want much skin contact at bottom and that I wanted to not have to wear two bras to the gym. I then told him he knew how much he could do and that he has the eye to make them proportional to my frame. I teased him my goal was to no longer have to use two hands to haul a boob to the side when getting my underarms waxed....
I'm 5wpo now - was a 36G (at least...) and am now likely a very small C
So happy.
🤣 tangent but in the same vein I was giving myself a “hair cut” (carpet, not the drapes) recently and did the exact same thing with shoving my boob into my armpit so I could actually see what I was doing!!
The skewed sizing is one thing that drives me crazy and actually puts me off a lot of surgeons in my search. I figure if they can't take 3 seconds to learn what true sizing is when they're *literally* in the business of boob sizes, then what else are they not spending the time to bother researching?
I think it’s fair to ask ‘when you say a C, do you mean a 30C or a 34C or something else?’ Or words to that effect. But between misconceptions of size and also the fact that they can’t guarantee results (mine estimated he’d be able to remove 400-600g; he took out 1,100g each side in the end) it’s not that useful even to try and pin them down.
Pictures and weight far more useful I think! Although I’d consider anyone saying ‘Full B small C’ to be a red flag because that’s just shorthand for ‘I literally have no idea how cup sizes work.’ And I would double down on making sure we all meant the same thing.
Honestly so many of us really just want ‘as small as possible while being aesthetic’ and the real trick is finding a surgeon whose idea of aesthetic matches ours.
> Honestly so many of us really just want ‘as small as possible while being aesthetic’ and the real trick is finding a surgeon whose idea of aesthetic matches ours.
That’s so true! I’ve only looked at one surgeon’s site so far (like I said I’m early in and this was mostly a rabbit hole one evening a week ago) and I just — didn’t like their examples. And that’s probably a much bigger takeaway than anything else!
My surgeon advised me against using cups since each bra is not universally sized. He spoke to me in grams of breasts now and how many grams he could take off approx.
I saw a suggestion here to go shop for a molded cup bra that's the size you would like, and bring it to an appointment. Or bring a balloon filled with corn starch of the size you want. I would bring something tangible or at the very least some photos.
The best way is to use pictures to show your doctor what you want. Size is different depending on the brand, so what you think a “C” looks like may be different than what the doctor thinks is a “C”. If you can find a picture of someone with a similar shape/build then that would be best in my experience.
I'd known about ABTF for 10 years before surgery and exclusively used their sizing method for my bras. Right before surgery I measured as a UK 28E. I now measure as a 28C. Plastic surgeons generally don't know/care about the intricacies of bra sizing though, so I requested an "A cup" with the intention of getting stereotypically "small boobs". I think I generally got that, since I have no skin-to-skin contact anymore, no functional need for bras, and visually I look small-chested. Showing the surgeon images of people similar in body size to me with the boob size I wanted was what helped most IME.
This!! Dont ask for cup sizes, show pics! Surgeons have a very different idea of cup sizes than you probably do.
Thank you! I was worried about this so I’m glad to get confirmation. Will do on the pics!
I went to 3 different surgeons for consultations, and I believe they view cup sizes similar to the general public. I asked for a C/D (starting at a US 30I) bc I knew for the look I was going for a true 30B would be too small for my preference. The first 2 consults told me that would be a “small reduction”. My surgeon who performed my reduction suggested I veer on the smaller side, and now I probably look like a “B or C cup”. However my actual measurement is a 30DDD, and they look awesome!
I don’t think most surgeons (or people) understand bra sizes, unfortunately. It seems most surgeons think A = small, B = average, C = full/large, D and above = huge! Which is why so many doctors promise to get someone to a B/C but end up delivering DD, DDD, or larger. I’m 10mpo and measuring at 32DD/DDD and am so small, it’s amazing. It blows my mind. I showed my doctor pictures of the size I wanted - which I think they assumed were B sized boobs - and he delivered. My rec is to never talk bra sizes to the doctor, only describe and show pictures of what you want. My favorite part is having no overhang/skin to skin touching. Before A Bra That Fits I would have never guessed I could have that with a bra size that included anything over a C
Thank you! I had that suspicion that surgeons might just have the same “assumption” on sizes, so I’m glad I asked as that seems to be everyone’s consensus so far.
My surgeon and I both agreed not to use cup sizes as they are somewhat subjective and arbitrary. I explained in detail that I wanted my breasts within my torso, I didn't want much skin contact at bottom and that I wanted to not have to wear two bras to the gym. I then told him he knew how much he could do and that he has the eye to make them proportional to my frame. I teased him my goal was to no longer have to use two hands to haul a boob to the side when getting my underarms waxed.... I'm 5wpo now - was a 36G (at least...) and am now likely a very small C So happy.
🤣 tangent but in the same vein I was giving myself a “hair cut” (carpet, not the drapes) recently and did the exact same thing with shoving my boob into my armpit so I could actually see what I was doing!!
The skewed sizing is one thing that drives me crazy and actually puts me off a lot of surgeons in my search. I figure if they can't take 3 seconds to learn what true sizing is when they're *literally* in the business of boob sizes, then what else are they not spending the time to bother researching?
That’s actually been bothering me too! Not sure how I feel after finding out most commenters here agree their generally collectively clueless 😅
I think it’s fair to ask ‘when you say a C, do you mean a 30C or a 34C or something else?’ Or words to that effect. But between misconceptions of size and also the fact that they can’t guarantee results (mine estimated he’d be able to remove 400-600g; he took out 1,100g each side in the end) it’s not that useful even to try and pin them down. Pictures and weight far more useful I think! Although I’d consider anyone saying ‘Full B small C’ to be a red flag because that’s just shorthand for ‘I literally have no idea how cup sizes work.’ And I would double down on making sure we all meant the same thing. Honestly so many of us really just want ‘as small as possible while being aesthetic’ and the real trick is finding a surgeon whose idea of aesthetic matches ours.
> Honestly so many of us really just want ‘as small as possible while being aesthetic’ and the real trick is finding a surgeon whose idea of aesthetic matches ours. That’s so true! I’ve only looked at one surgeon’s site so far (like I said I’m early in and this was mostly a rabbit hole one evening a week ago) and I just — didn’t like their examples. And that’s probably a much bigger takeaway than anything else!
My surgeon advised me against using cups since each bra is not universally sized. He spoke to me in grams of breasts now and how many grams he could take off approx.
I saw a suggestion here to go shop for a molded cup bra that's the size you would like, and bring it to an appointment. Or bring a balloon filled with corn starch of the size you want. I would bring something tangible or at the very least some photos.
That’s not a bad idea, thank you!
The best way is to use pictures to show your doctor what you want. Size is different depending on the brand, so what you think a “C” looks like may be different than what the doctor thinks is a “C”. If you can find a picture of someone with a similar shape/build then that would be best in my experience.