Why Your Bra Hurts (And What To Do About It)

In an ideal world, you shouldn’t even realise you wearing a bra. It should be like a second skin, giving you support and comfort throughout the day. Bras aren’t supposed to hurt. But every day there are thousands of women wandering around in pain because of their bra. And if you’ve ever worn a bra, you’ve probably experienced this yourself. So today we’re going to troubleshoot some common bra problems. and give you tips to solve them.

Issue: Band Pain

If you’re getting to the end of the day and feeling – aches and pains around the area of your bra band, then the band is likely too tight. This is easily done, as your bra band should be snug against your skin in order to get the right fit. But it shouldn’t be irritating or painful for you. It’s also worth noting that even the best-fitting bra will leave some red marks on your skin. This is totally normal, and everyone gets them. But if those red marks are painful, bruised or don’t go away once you’ve had the bra off for a while, that’s another sign your bra is too tight.

Issue: Inner Wire Points Hurt

This is another very common problem – the centre wires of your bra can poke you painfully, causing a lot of discomfort throughout the day. The first thing to do here is to check the fabric and make sure the wires haven’t broken through. If they have, take it off and repair it if you can. Top tip -you can avoid this by hand washing and air drying your bras. If the wire is fine then you may need to change the style of bra you’re wearing. If you have close-set breasts then bras with a high gore (the middle section) can cause irritation. Try wearing a style with a lower gore like a plunge bra), or with a marrow gore. If that still doesn’t solve it, then you might need to go up a band size.

Issue: Outer Wires Hurt

Of course, those wires have two ends, and the outer edges can dig in and cause pain too. Just like the inner wire, your first step should be checking that the wire isn’t breaking through the fabric and poking you. If it’s still in place, check the width of the wire itself. Too narrow and the wire will dig into your breast tissue. Too wide, and you might feel too much pressure on your ribcage which can cause pain. The height of the wires can also make a difference, as they can dig into your armpits if they are too long. A bigger cup size can resolve this, or opting for bras without wires.

Issue: Straps Digging In

Did you know that most of your bra’s support comes from the band, not the straps? Bra straps are only meant to provide around 20% of the lift, so if your bra straps are digging in painfully, they’re probably doing too much work! This issue is easily fixed by going down a size to help relieve some of the pressure. Side note – if you have larger or fuller breasts then some bra straps can dig in uncomfortably too. This usually means the bra hasn’t been properly graded up from the smaller size. That’s why we recommend you buy bras from brands that specialise in plus -sized bras.

Issue: Chafing

This issue isn’t caused by a tight bra- in fact, it’s likely the opposite! A bra that’s too loose will move around during the day and irritate your skin, causing chafing. If this is happening to you, double-check the fit and make sure the band of your bra is sitting snugly against your skin. You should also check for sensitivity to certain materials. Your breasts include delicate and sensitive skin, so rougher fabrics like lace, or sticky ‘stay up’ tabs can cause irritation.

That covers some of the more common issues people can have with their bras and some of the things you can do to fix or prevent them. If you have any bra issues we haven’t covered here, we’d love to hear them and see if we can find a solution!