Checking Your Boobs
Image Source, Minii Ho, Shutterstock
Having boobs and watching Greys Anatomy religiously does not make me a qualified expert on boobs, but there’s a few things I think the curriculum missed out when we were younger.
SO, there are two things I wanna cover in this post - how to check your boobs and insecurities or things that NEED normalised a bit more.
I’m gonna cover checking boobs first in case some people want to click off - because it is so important we know how to but people rarely actually tell us how we should???
So, most of us know what it is that were looking for - a lump, a change in skin texture or shape and size, feeling pain, changed or leaky nipples, a rash or inflammation but how do we actually check? Do we just wing it and poke and prod?
As I said, I’m not qualified staff at Grey Sloan Memorial Hospital so if you have any concerns please do seek out a specialist. But here’s some simplified advice from: https://www.breastcancer.org/symptoms/testing/types/self_exam (if you want more detail I really recommend their site) from a gal that religiously checks her boobs twice a month.
Start off by looking in the mirror, gwan and give yourself a wee complement and then stand in the superwoman pose with your arms on your hips.
At this point you’re looking for your boobs to be their typical shape, size and colour and for the most part even in shape (does anyone actually tell you that boobs will not always be completely even and it’s normal for one to be bigger than the other...)
If you see any of the above 8 things we mentioned you should bring them to your doctor’s attention - dimpling, bulging, rash etc.
Still at the mirror you’re gonna raise your arms up looking for the same changes but also looking to see if there’s any sort of nipple discharge.
For the next part you’re gonna wanna lie down. Use the opposite hands for each boob to feel them using a firm but smooth touch keeping your fingers flat and tight together. Your pinky will probably just raise like you’re drinking fancy tea, idk.
Go in small circular motions and check your boobs BUT, it’s also important to feel the whole way up to your collar bone, from your armpit down along your side. Not just the squidgies. (I do this in an up and down pattern because it helps make sure I’ve covered all the area).
Then repeat this step when your standing - in the shower’s easiest.
Finding something doesn’t necessarily mean you need to panic - but if you’re concerned make sure you reach out to your doctor.
OH, and don’t forget you have milk ducts in your boobs, so small little lumps and bumps are normal :)
NOW, let’s talk about some things boobalicious. I cringed too please don’t ask me why I didn’t edit that out idk sis.
ALL BOOBS ARE DIFFERENT.
I kid you not when I started getting my breasts I thought there was something wrong with them because they weren’t perfectly circular and sitting perky and together like the celebrities. My poor naive mind didn’t realise their’s were most likely full of silicone. I was always SO insecure about them, I still am. I’m all for body neutrality but I can’t promise you that if someone offered me a boob job first thing in the morning that I wouldn’t say no.
When I put up my Instagram story, the most common insecurities were about shape and size. And as much as it was comforting for me to know that a lot of us struggle with these two things it was also upsetting to know that so many people are affected confidence-wise by this. Like hello, they are little miracle workers, they can literally feed a tiny little hooooman that your body can also hold?? Pretty magical if you ask me.
A few people also said having acne or stretch marks on their breasts and little hair around their nipples. But let us just remember... boobs. are. skin. They’re going to come with all the things that skin does. It’s okay to have a bit of hair there, scars are normal just like if you fell and cut your leg, and it is so common to have stretch marks on your boobs, especially for the big boobed of us or after pregnancy. And a lot of the time they’re held up in a bra, it’s going to get a bit sweaty and that might cause spots. If it can happen to skin on other places of your body, it can happen to your boobs.
We all have different sized boobs. And we can all be insecure about them in different ways. A lot of us want the “other team’s” boobs. As a bigger boobied girl, I’ve frequently wanted smaller because they might sag less or bralettes might look cuter and I wouldn’t have such a struggle finding a nice tight shirt that doesn’t gape at the breast buttons. I can’t advocate for the smaller breasted women because I’m not part of that group, but I have lots of friends who say they’re insecure about their smaller breasts, trying push up bras and wishing for overnight growth.
And sometimes we dismiss the other person’s insecurity because we don’t understand it.
“Breasts define womanhood. All women have breasts.” False, false and false again. There are so many brave women out there who have mastectomies or may not have breasts for other reasons. They’re still women.
Moving on to nipples. Not all nipples are the same either. I hadn’t actually given much thought to nipples for this post until one of my followers reached out and talked about her nipples and after a pretty interesting conversation, I read up on them a bit more.
Again, there is one set image of how a nipple should look. But there are so many different kinds. They can be protruding, flat, inverted, a mix of more than one of these etc. They can be dark or light or big or small. And nipples aren’t always in the same idealised area of the boob. They’re uniquely yours.
Inverted nipples wasn’t something I was really aware of, but if you’re born with them they are normal. And it’s probably more common than you think with 10-20% women having them. You can even still breast feed with them if you decide to start a family and that route’s for you, it might be a bit more difficult at first but they’re still nipples. However, if it happens suddenly later in life, please do get in contact with a medical professional to get it checked out.
You can also have two nipples on one areola- and your nipple isn‘t your areola. And there is a condition where people can be born without nipples called athelia.
Back to the lumps and bumps, did I sleep through the biology lesson where we were told about Montgomery glands? Or areolar glands if you wanna be all sciencey? A.K.A the bumps around your nipple that help keep your boob comfortable by doing some sort of thing that Grey’s Anatomy hasn’t taught me yet?
- I’m pretty sure the only information we got in school was, if you feel or see a lump or bump it means trouble WHEN THERE ARE LUMPS AND BUMPS WE ARE MEANT TO HAVE THAT THEY JUST FORGET TO TEACH OUR YOUNG IMPRESSIONABLE MINDS.
Anyway. So, I haven’t covered all booby issues and don’t sue me for any diagnosis you give yourself from me, I disclaimed that I am in no way a medical professional. But please, embrace your boobs and don’t forget to check them. Early detection can be so vital and don‘t be ashamed to go to your doctor “in case it’s nothing”, I’m not putting statistics in this to give people anxiety but if you have a concern then you can get your mind put to rest at the very least if it results in something you don’t need to medically worry about.
C x
by Caitlin Mussen (Staff Health & Wellbeing Writer)
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