I’ve heard a few reasons. Mrs. Cad was once told it’s unprofessional to go braless at work. Other women I know have told me it’s for support so they don’t start sagging latter in life or they already sag. I suspect part of it is also covering them up so the boobs are not as exposed to the men staring (especially if it’s cold out). So my question to the Lady Dopers is why exactly do you wear a bra?
To protect the ladies from rough & scratchy fabric
Because my boobs get really sweaty without one
Because when they move around too much it’s painful (ie doing sports)
In a formal workwear environment, it looks sloppy if they’re swinging everywhich way
I look a lot slimmer (uplifting the breasts emphasizes the waist)
It helps me have good posture if they aren’t dragging down in front.
I really don’t care if men look.
More than one of these.
Anything more than a fast walk is usually uncomfortable to painful for most women above an “A”. You never know when you’ll need to do something like jog across the street to make it before the light changes.
I personally am not fond of having cold nipples out for the world to see.
Yes, it does look sloppy at work to go without.
Studies show that going bra-less for an hour or two each day when you’re not going to do any exercise will strengthen the ligaments that naturally keep the girls up. But the ligaments are not strong enough to handle anything more than that. Wearing a bra will prevent sag in the event of light-moderate-heavy exercise of any kind.
Really, the pain in event of exercise thing is the most overwhelming one.
I don’t wear one, and never have on a regular basis. Ever since my mom first tried to get me to wear one at age 11, I resisted. I just always found them really uncomfortable. And I’ve tried every style. Right now, about the only one I can just barely tolerate is the Spanx Bra‑llelujah (all-hosiery style) in a size up.
I guess this is one benefit of being small on top, in that it’s not super noticeable. At work, I dress very professionally and I ensure that I don’t show. I always wear a camisole or tank top under my clothing which hides the jiggling, and if need be I add a scarf, cardigan or jacket. Outside of work, I don’t worry as much. While I ensure that I am not flashing anybody, I don’t care if people in my casual life notice any jiggling.
For practical reasons, to be sure, but mostly because walking around without a bra on, especially with bigger than small As, looks unbelievably trashy. Even with a small breast, nipples should not be seen, whether hard as a rock or just an outline of the areole.
I am no prude - I’d join a nudist retreat if I could talk my husband into to - but it’s just trashy in polite company.
For shaping, for support, to stop my nipples from sticking out, to protect my skin from rubbing on my shirt, to catch sweat.
If society told me to not wear a bra, I’d tell society to fuck off.
At the heart of it all is social convention. Social convention says women’s breasts shouldn’t move, our nipples shouldn’t be obvious, we shouldn’t sag. That being said, I’m fine with wearing a bra. I’m comfortable in one and yes, it would be especially painful to do much in the way of activities without one…
I don’t if I’m not at work, but I’m a youngish female college professor and can therefore expect every aspect of my appearance to be scrutinized by eighteen-year-old fashion police. And I’m naturally nerdish and frumpy enough that I don’t need to tempt fate any further.
But God, those three summer months out of harness are glorious. I miss them already.
Because without one I’d probably be tripping over them by the time I was 40.
Even with a bra, it’s uncomfortable to run, without a bra I’d be knocking myself out if I tried.
I wear a lot of clothing with in-shelf bras. You avoid the discomfort of bras, but still have some support.
But if society didn’t force me to wear one, I wouldn’t.
In my youth, it was to stop being teased by my brothers’ friends. The moment I started wearing it, the envious girls in school told the boys I stuffed and they immediately wanted to find out if it was true.
Now, because I need it. I am very large busted. Hello Again racked (excuse the pun) up most of the reasons to wear one. I will add that it is actually more comfortable for me to wear one than not, especially on hot days, due to my breast size.
I chose “society expects me to wear one,” but I would have liked to have chosen both that and “supporting the ladies.”
Well, what exactly are you supposed to do about it if your nipples do get hard?
I normally wear a modest bra and modest clothing, and as such, my nipples don’t usually show. But sometimes, they just gotta do their thing. If somebody notices, so what? They probably already suspected that I had nipples. I really can’t worry myself over something so trivial. And no, I will not wear a padded bra “just in case.” The last thing I need is more volume in that department.
As far as the rest of it–What the hell? There is nothing “trashy” about women’s bodies! Why should we be forced to hide ourselves if we don’t want to? Bras (or equivalent) are expected professional wear, yes, but for casual wear, if a woman doesn’t feel like she has to wear one, good on her.
Women need to stop body shaming each other.
Anyone remember the nipple bra back in the '70’s? It was a way of selling bras to women who had spent years going without - a bra that makes you look like you aren’t wearing one. Fashions change, but when I started high school in '76 in SoCal, bras were the exception not the rule and nobody thought it looked trashy. I think I owned one that my mom made me wear for church.
I wear one now because I got bustier with age and it is just more comfortable.
Sorry guys, I don’t make the rules. Don’t blame me.
And I don’t see it as body shaming - you can look quite professional and have lots of skin showing. It’s more about looking sloppy, like wrinkled clothes. Same as if a man had his junk outlined in his pants - it only looks good if you’re Robert Plant circa 1975.
I am an E cup. Unless I want black eyes, I wear a bra.
You don’t make the rules. You just enforce them.
I don’t feel comfortable going out in public without a bra because I am unable to get past the expectations of the society that I was raised in. I don’t feel like I have a choice, but that’s on me. If another woman doesn’t feel constrained by that, good for her. And frankly, I’m jealous of her by not being as hung-up as I am. I don’t wear a bra at home, and I feel I need to put one on if I need to run out to the car for something. (I live in an apt. house on a busy street, so yeah, people would see me.) I wish I didn’t feel like I had to bother doing that. I wear black shirts most of the time, so it’s not like people would even “see anything.”
I have to agree. I might decide to go to the grocery store or something without a bra, but at work or anyplace I want to look nice, I put my small As away.
Primarily to keep my breasts in the right place. Without a bra, my clothes don’t fit correctly and I look misshapen. Also to prevent sweating and resulting unpleasantness that can develop.
I voted “supporting the ladies.”
I want to support them because large breasts sag and it’s physically uncomfortable to let them hang loose. Gravity hurts, they get sweaty underneath, and I’d like to keep them from drooping all the way to my knees for a few more years.
Plus, as SpoilerVirgin points out, clothes don’t fit right when your boobs are in the “wrong place.”