"Baby got back" fat. Really?

"It gives me back fat" "You can see my back fat" "I hate my back fat" " You can even see my back fat from the front"

What the actual fug is back fat?! WHO decided that women needed another area to worry about putting weight onto? I mean, really? It's a myth. That 'stuff' on your back is flesh, and funnily enough, we all have it. Unless you are what medical experts would class as obese you will not have back fat.

If you're getting the little rolly bits at the top of the back band, loosen the shoulder straps and drop the band lower, so that it's straight around your middle. Likewise, if you're getting fleshy bits under your arms at the front, slacken the straps and double check that the wire is not too small.

If the back band is the right size your bra should sit right around you ribcage, i.e your least 'back fatty' bit. If your are getting this mythical fat it means the band is too high.

Apparently a well-known store that offers bra fitting (I'll give you a clue "This is not just bra fitting, this is *** bra fitting") have been telling their customers that when you buy a bra you should always start on the tightest hook. Why, I hear you wonder? So that "when you feel uncomfortable or have eaten a lot you can loosen the band". I'm sorry, what? I'll admit, there have definitely been times (normally on or around Christmas) when I've had to unbutton my jeans but my bra? I don't put weight directly on them, much as it saddens me. Nor do I find my ribcage expanding at random. What rot.

If you are wondering what to look for in a proper fit remember to check out Rocket Science for a wee refresher ;)

Ninja, x

Also, this week House of Fraser are having a sale in their underwear department and across their store in general to celebrate the Jubilee weekend! Rule Brittania! Spotted, the Freya Jolie with 20% off! Amazeballs!

Marks and Spencers, I'm pissed at you.

I have been meaning to start this blog for a while but wasn't entirely sure when or how to start. I wanted to start with an upbeat tale of fitting. Which I suppose could be my own...in short I was 'fitted' at a 36A/34B for years. Then I got a job in lingerie store and was promptly fitted, correctly, at a 32E. WHOOP. But that's not the story I've brought you here to read. "I was fitted at Marks and Spencers" has long been a phrase qualified bra-fitters loathe to hear. It's like saying Macbeth in the theatre. It's met with a sympathetic smile and an encouragement to get in the fitting room. It's a situation we make light of. "It's okay, we've all done it!" And then proceed to inform the customer after an in-depth and informative consultation that they are, in fact, a 32F. "Silly M&S!" Yes, silly, but no harm done.

Something happened yesterday that made me see past red, onto purple. I felt so angry I had to go sit in my stockroom to calm down. And I felt powerless to do anything. Then I remembered I needed a story to open my underwear blog with. Read, and share it. Not for me, but for the thousands of women affected by this. A customer wandered into my department and asked if we stocked any 40 backs. She was between a 14/16 I could see so I knew immediately the back size was wrong. She proceeded to tell me she needed a 40A. 'Hmmm' I thought, 'she doesn't look sizes with Mike Tindall but we'll roll with it'. "I have a prosthesis; Marks and Spencers fitted me at a 40A". I felt rage gnawing at me. A 40A?? A 40A!? I asked the customer her dress size and, as suspected, she was a 14/16.

"They sold me one a while ago but it hurt me" More rage. "I went up a size in my prosthesis but I still couldn't make it work" Deep breaths. I managed to get her into the fitting room and into a 36. The back was fine but on this occasion I didn't have any non-wired bras. I could see clearly that the customer was a 38E/ 36F. I showed her what she was looking for in a fit and listed on paper brands she should look out for. I advised her on her size and made and appointment for her at the nearest Bravissimo. They are, like me, fully trained in dealing with post-mastectomy patients and know exactly how to fit and advise according to the stage they are at in their recovery. And, if a sales assistant didn't know what to do, I have no doubt that they would've asked for help.

She told me that the Glasgow Western Infirmary had advised she go there (three cheers for the GWI!). She told me she'd just 'always gone' to M&S and trusted them to know what they were doing. Even now, I feel enraged by this. This woman has gone through something traumatic. She has physically LOST part of her body. And by proceeding to fit her badly M&S are literally hurting her further.

Marks and Spencers should not be allowed to fit post-surgery customers if they are not properly trained and equipped to do so. It's not fair. It's adding to her trauma. It's inhumane if you consider she has to expose herself to a stranger, trust that stranger, and be fitted into something that doesn't support her, doesn't aid with recovery and instead HURTS.
REALLY?

If you, or someone you know has gone through this surgery and needs advice on what to look for in aftercare bras, please get in touch. It's a part of my job I have also really enjoyed. Getting women back to being comfortable in their own skin. In their own underwear! Making bra shopping something to be enjoyed and not feared! There are plenty of bra fitters out there who know what to do in these situations. But those that don't, need to be honest, hold their hands up and say 'I'm going to get a more experience bra fitter to help you, but may I watch so I can learn?'

Furthermore, if you have had bad experiences after surgery with a bra fitter, please let me know! Similarly, if you felt well cared for tell me who they are too!

So that's the first post. I'm still mad, but we're at a low simmer now.
Back soon, Ninja x