speaking of busty.......talk about bras

iVillage Member
Registered: 10-13-2004
speaking of busty.......talk about bras
39
Thu, 10-14-2004 - 7:50pm
I'm only a B cup, and gravity is yet to take it's toll - so I don't need a bra. It also so happens that I find them extremely uncomfortable, so I only wear one if my nips are likely to show or the dress really needs some defining shape underneath.

However, I've also read posts where going braless is deemed to be overly sexual. Why is this? Comfort is the only thing in my mind when not bothering with a bra. If anything, I find that a bra - and the defining shape it gives - is way more sexy than slobbing around in no bra.

Thoughts anyone?

Dress Up Games, Doll Makers and Cartoon Dolls @ The Doll Palace
iVillage Member
Registered: 10-13-2004
Mon, 10-18-2004 - 11:58pm
>>I haven't seen a woman breastfeeding in public in years<<

OMG!! Is this everyone's experience with seeing breastfeeding?

Here in Australia it's a very common sight. It's not at all unusual to see a mother feeding in the middle of school assembly or while picking up kids from school. For that matter, feeding in a cafe or shopping centre is no big deal either. But then again, the large majority of our beaches have some topless women on them - so perhaps breasts aren't such a big deal here.

This all may help explain my confusion about why a braless breast is considered sexy - perhaps it's just an American thing - but not necessarily something that all Western people believe.

Dress Up Games, Doll Makers and Cartoon Dolls @ The Doll Palace
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-23-2004
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 7:19am

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bounxh0a-1.gif picture by dillbyrd

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-16-2003
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 7:28am
<<>> double standards then, remember what happened with the whole Janet Jackson "boob"? IT was a huge deal, many said "i dont want my kids watching that". For crying out loud, it is a female breast, get over it should not be made into some nationa-wide scandal...and in general, sexuality in the US is one of the topics people should be hush hush about and I know I am not the only person who knows that

"And I've actually read a poll that stated that Scandinavians view sex more as exercise than an intimate expression of love or desire. Is that true?"-no it is not true in my opinion, but then again everyone is entitled to their opinions...
iVillage Member
Registered: 04-01-2003
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 7:45am
I see nursing mothers all the time. I don't know if it's just a geograpical thing or what, but I also know that many people who look right at a nursing mother aren't aware that she is nursing at that moment. Most nursing mothers don't pop a bare breast out in the food court at the mall but use discreetly and well placed blankets, ponchos, etc. Many people are oblivious to a nursing baby.

I laugh when I read on another board how nursing mothers ought to be in the bathroom or hidden, or just 'use a bottle' when they are out in public (shows how much they know about breastfeeding!) It's EATING and who wants to eat in a restroom??? Americans do have some peculiar hangups, for sure. We can see boobs coming out on the marquee, the Victoria's Secret Special on TV and bouncing across the TV but god forbid you should actually use them for feeding a child and not sexual titillation!

iVillage Member
Registered: 09-29-2004
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 9:33am
I'm NOT oblivious, I know what a nursing mother looks like, covered or not. I know that there are virtually none, compared to twenty years ago(when it was a rarity). I'm in NYC, where are you?
Avatar for katmandoo2001
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 11:37am

Double standard? Not sure what you're referring to there. But people weren't upset that Janet Jackson exposed her boob, the general consensus was that they were upset that she used a sporting event to do so. I could care less about her boob but it WAS an inappropriate time and place. And as an American, I can tell you that sex is discussed openly among most people, on TV, in magazines, on this board and is everywhere you look.

And why should we look to any other country to be a cultural, social or moral model for ourselves? I think we're capable of deciding those things, as a nation/people, for ourselves, whether anyone agrees with our choices or not. And I'm fairly certain that the people of Finland, etc. probably feel the same way.




Edited 10/20/2004 5:20 pm ET ET by katmandoo2001
Avatar for katmandoo2001
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 11:41am
Same here, Tally. If you look, you will see them. Most women just don't feel the need to expose themselves to breastfeed though, not because they're ashamed of what their doing, but simply for their own privacy and comfort. Since when is being modest a bad thing?
iVillage Member
Registered: 09-29-2004
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 12:22pm
Why does one have to be modest? What if one isn't or doesn't want to be? Time and place thingy? Why can't a woman simply be free to feel unreserved about a functional body part at a time when her child is a priority? Why does she need to cover up her breast at all? There will always be women who are more modest and reserved than others, and that's their right to cover-up or not go out in public at all, but why should that be the only acceptable way, when many women don't feel ashamed or that breastfeeding is a private event? Since when is being an immodest breastfeeder a bad thing?
Avatar for katmandoo2001
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 12:25pm
I think the realistic answer is that some would be offended and some wouldn't, in ANY country. I think much depends on one's exposure to breastfeeding PRIOR to seeing it in public and one's personal sensibilities, background, age, and maturity.
Avatar for katmandoo2001
iVillage Member
Registered: 03-26-2003
Tue, 10-19-2004 - 12:34pm

Hmmm. I don't believe I said that anyone HAD to be modest, did I? Or that EVERY woman should feel the need to cover up. But I also don't think every woman wants or needs to make her breastfeeding a public event or to make a statement by whipping out her breast in the mall. But the choice is the individual's to make, not mine.

When I was breastfeeding, I became very comfortable with my breasts being exposed but I was always cognizant that others may NOT be. And since I didn't want to make others uncomfortable, I would often cover myself or go to another room. Breastfeeding is beautiful but I do respect that others of a different generation, background, etc. feel it's a personal act.

BTW, have you ever personally breastfed or is this simply a theoretical discussion for you?




Edited 10/19/2004 12:41 pm ET ET by katmandoo2001