durasi – Digging into your back, squeezing around your chest, and poor support: These are all signs of an ill-fitting bra.
A loose bra can lack support, but a bra that’s too tight can wear out fast, limit your movement, and result in real pain — constraining straps and underwire can create tightness and soreness in your shoulders and upper body.
If your bra is causing you discomfort, you may suspect it doesn’t fit properly. But how do you know if your bra is truly too tight? Here are some ways to tell if your fit issues are because your bra is tight, and how to adjust or replace it for a better fit.
How do you know if your bra is too tight?
Believe it or not, wearing a bra that’s too tight can negatively impact the wearer in many ways. Some are mere annoyances, and some are more serious.
Your skin is irritated or chafing
A bra that is tight can cause a host of skin issues, including folliculitis, dermatitis, heat rash, and hives.
“When tight clothing rubs the skin, it can cause excess sweating as well as irritation and inflammation of hair follicles,” says Heather Downes, MD, board certified dermatologist and founder of Lake Forest Dermatology. “Not only that, bacteria and/or fungus on the surface of the skin can more easily penetrate into these hair follicles, causing infection.”
Heat rash occurs when sweat ducts are blocked, and hives can develop through physical pressure on the skin.
The right bra size for you is the one you feel best in.
Don’t forget about sister sizing
Your bra’s “sister sizes” are found by going down a band size and up a cup size, or vice versa. For example, sister sizes to a 36DD would be a 34DDD or a 38D. Sometimes the slight difference in fit is just enough to make for a better-fitting bra.
The bottom line
A tight bra can be at best uncomfortable, and at worst can result in real pain. Finding your correct bra size can be a time consuming task, but it’s worth it for a bra that won’t cause you annoyance or anguish. And remember: Your best-fitting bra is the one that you feel your best in.
