Ok, I know many of you were thinking “What in the world is this about a bra and confidence?” when you first read the title of this post. Let me inform you all now that a bra did do exactly that. It gave me a boost in my confidence that I wished had not been put on the back burner for so long.
After becoming a mother in 2001, my life changed in so many ways. My heart grew a thousand times bigger than I had ever imagined it would, as did my awareness of my insecurity. Overall, I have never worried about feeling insecure. Don’t get me wrong here. Middle school was an extremely tough time for me. That’s a story for another day though. Maybe it was the involvement in sports and other extracurricular activities that kept my mind preoccupied in other areas rather than being fixated on feeling of self doubt when it came to body image.
Pregnancy and all it brings to our bodies.
Things grow (and grow) as we all know when you become pregnant. I absolutely LOVED being pregnant. I have to admit I get all googly-eyed when I see someone with that growing baby bump. I can’t help myself. Then you deliver that beautiful baby and are left with a body that is nowhere near the same as it was before. Maybe some bounce back like nothing ever happened, but that is not the majority. 
I lost the weight, but that didn’t matter when the clothes were removed. I was left with stretch marks, c-section scar, and extra skin that had decided to take up residency. Bras just did not ever fit the same. Three kids later, sports bras have been my go-to when it comes to bras. Fancy occasions were the only reason for removing them and putting on something that was considered more of a bra.
My reality of wearing a ‘real’ bra.
I felt so uncomfortable when replacing my sports bras with a ‘real’ bra. They all had been either too big, too small, or just plain out uncomfortable. A bra is a big deal when it comes to how your clothes fit. Put on a bra that is too big, then those cup lines begin to pucker through your clothes. Put on a bra that is too small, then the result is a upper body with weird cleavage that is in places that it shouldn’t be.
Underneath the clothes, though, is where the true insecurity resided. Why did I have to feel so insecure in a bra? That was until I finally made the decision to head to a local bra boutique and get fitted for a bra that was made for me, as well as have the opportunity to try on multiple bras until the one that actually looked good on me was found.
Like shopping for my wedding dress.
Y’all, I felt like I was shopping for my wedding dress when I was looking for a new bra. Not kidding. Once I found ‘the one,’ I was a new woman. I could not wait to get home to put on my new bra. Having something that made me feel good not only outside my clothes but also underneath was life changing for me.
If you feel like you are in the same boat, do not wait any longer. Go and get fitted for the right bra. I promise you will not regret it.
