Breastfeeding and Sagging

I think it depends on the boobs :) I breastfed and was only 23 years old when my son was born. I always had large breasts 38D and they only got larger when engorged. After weaning they went back to a D but looked deflated, lol. I compare them to looking at a bowling ball in a tube sock. Totally worth it in my opinion and I plan on doing it again with my little one on the way. Who knows, I'll probably have to roll them up and cloths pin them to get them to stay up where they belong.

I bf for 18 months and have seen a change, not necessarily sagging but different shape. Not bad, just different. I do work out (throughout preg, bf and after) and wonder if strong pecs and good bras have helped.

But I gotta say, I loved bfing and wouldn't change a thing. I earned these boobies! : )

I breast fed for almost a year and when I was pregnant I was still perky. It wasn't until after the year that I really noticed they sagged.

So for me I think it was the breast feeding and not the pregnancy.

I am 7 months pregnant right now and my boobs sit on my belly when I don't wear a bra. It was not like this with my first pregnancy.

My breasts get HUGE during pregnancy. I'm currently 30 weeks pregnant with my 4th. It's pregnancy that has changed my breasts. Even if you don't plan to breastfeed, your breasts will still produce milk. Engorgement can make them larger. It's NOT the act of breastfeeding that changes the breasts. It's the changes that pregnancy does to them that changes them.

I don't know if it makes them sag more per say, but it sure has done a shrink job on mine. I was never large to begin with, a small B, then got to go to a C while pregnant and nursing. After my second child, I went to V. Secret and actually got fitted, and I was a small A!!! I joke that when I wean the third, I'll be a -A!! I guess because they are so small, I can tell they hang a little lower, but not too much.

Edit: I read some of your answers and the best has to be "deflated", they definitely deflate. :-(

Saggy boobs is genetic, also being pregnant, being engorged (everyone gets engorged whether nursing or not) and age contribute to saggy boobs.

The benefits out breastfeeding far outweigh the possibility of saggy boobs. :)

Hi Birdie-

I was a small b before pregnancy and breastfeeding...I have 7 kids. My mom is convinced I was preggers/breastfeeding for such a protracted period of time for cleavage!! lol

After the 'final wean'...some 11/12 years ago, I was in search of a bandaide SMALL enough to 'support' me...(or a 'concave' bra )lol.

Funnily enough...now...post (and even during) menapause...I put on a little weight (needed)...and I NOW have nice 'c's...go figure!!

I can NOT speak for everyone...but for ME...I love my body so much more now!! And...I know my body so much better now...and...being POST menapause...recreational sex/intimacy is...well...fantastic!!

Having a partner who is caring...understanding...and loves me no matter what seems to help too!!

Best luck!!
Keep the hope!
;)
Michele/cat

I think it's a combination of bra support and genetics. I'm 43, my mom is 73. She breastfed two children, I breastfed none, and hers are still perkier than mine (we are a similar size as well, 34-36 D) , and she's perkier than half my friends. The difference? She's ALWAYS worn a "good" bra when awake, and I'm a bit more lazy with it. Just my 2 cents :) I have also known young women who are a bit saggy, so I think it's partially just the way we're "made."

2 of my SIL's had corrective surgery on theirs once they were done having kids. I didnt breastfeed and have seen no noticable change in mine. My mom breastfed 4 out of 5, and only had boobs when she was nursing, so hers just went back to nothing.

So, in my experience so far, it does change your boobs, but I'm not a doctor.

My breasts look almost exactly the same as they did before my 1st pregnancy and I nursed for 4.5 years. I'm pregnant with #2... tenderness and darker nipples is all I notice at the moment.

I breastfeed for 10 months. I've only had one child, and so far no sagging. The only stretch marks are from teenage growth spurts, not pregnancy related. I went from a 36c to a 38d, then to a 38c. I don't think breastfeeding necessarily causes them to deflate. Like anything else, it probably is related to your own genetic makeup

I think it has a lot to do with
1) how big they get in pregnancy and when the milk comes in
2) how many pregnancies you have
3) your genes (like with stretch marks)

After my 4th, there is some saggage for sure and much more than with #1.

I was not able to breastfeed and my breasts don't sag a bit after pregnancy. My son is 21 months. They are exactly the same as before pregnancy.

I have only one child and I weened her at 2 1/2. I think they probably are a little lower than they were, but I am almost 35...I don't expect then to be 25 yro perky :) I think genetics has a lot to do with it too. I never wore a bra before and HAVE to wear a bra now, but I gained a ton of weight. I am still the same bra cup size, but instead of a 34/36 C I am now a 36/38 C. If you don't see a difference yet, and you ween slowly, I don't think you will see much of a difference... and it is kinda too late anyway ;)

My did after my first. I just started using those demi bras and that seemed to help. =D

Well the reason they say that there is sagging due to pregnancy and not breastfeeding is because whether you breastfeed or not most woman's breast get larger while they are pregnant. Then they get even larger when the milk comes in. Even if they don't nurse their babies and let the milk dry up it has still come in and stretched out their breast. So then once you don't have milk in your breast and have lost all your baby weight yes your boobs will be smaller and a little saggy. For me I was a B cup, once I breastfed they went to a C and once I wean my daughter after a year they went down to an A and yes are a little saggy. But it's not that bad and probably not so bad for me cause they are so small. I just figure I'll get a boob job once I'm done having kids :)

Okay, where did you hear "the official word out there is that breastfeeding does not make your boobs sag."? B/c that is sooooooo not true. I have two kids and I BF only one of them and I went from a full B to a A- and they sag. Welcome to the body of motherhood!

I really dont think its breastfeeding. I think its the expansion of your breasts when you are pregnant, and whether you breastfeed or not, you are going to get milk which makes them expand even more. When they go down, I think thats when they sag. Its really just common sense, its like if you had breast implants and then got them taken out. My boobs have gone up 3 sizes in this pregnancy.

Here is a link from the Mayo Clinics page on this subject (very credible source by the way).
http://www.mayoclinic.com/health/sagging-breasts/AN01995
It states that it is linked more to pregnancy than to breastfeeding. Another study done stated the same findings.
I breastfed for about a year and well the volume in my girls is no more!!.... but I think that is from increasing 2-3 cup sizes during my pregnancy. My petite little B's just couldn't handle the constant growing and if I would not have BF they would have gone south anyways!! I have a 2 very close friends and 2 cousins that did not opt to BF and they to have lots of complaints about thier deflated and sagging breasts. I also know of woman who have perky gals still that had children some BF others not, heck I know woman who never had children that have mentioned a thing or two about gravity taking over!! There are so many factors to take into consideration with this topic. BF is not for everone, as it is a very selfless decision and the possibility of maybe giving up perky breasts might just be part of it.....

I breastfed for a little over two years, I am inbetween a B and C size cup. I'm 53 and my boobs are still quite cute. Gravitiy is taking a toll on my whole package tho... but my boobs had no bad reaction to pregnancy or nursing, not even a stretch mark and they were D's while I nursed. I think everyone is different so it's sort of unpredictable. I've always exercised a little, keeping the muscles behind your boobs in good condition does help keep the girls in place. I have a good friend who had D boobs, had two pregnancies, did not nurse a singe day and her boobs really took it hard. I thought we were usually like our own moms but in my case my mom got stretch marks all over her tummy and I didnt .... so I'm not even sure how much genetics plays into it. We are all individuals ... I suppose that's what it boils down to.

Pregnancy changed mine. Started with my first child. I am 28 and was singing this morning to the song Do Your Ears Hang Low... but changed it to Do your Boobs Hang low Do they Wobble to and Fro Can you tie them in knot Can you tie them in a Bow... Haha

And Yes... I really was singing this this morning. HeheHe.

My opinion, from my experience is that it depends a lot on how much your breasts grow during pregnancy and breastfeeding. I was a 36G when I got pregnant, and a 36H after pregnancy and 6 months of breastfeeding. The girls are not quite as perky as they once were, but I think that since I didn't experience much in the way of growth, I didn't have much in terms of sag. I think that women who start out with a smaller bust and who tend to grow 2 or 3 or 4 cup sizes when they are pregnant or nursing may have more of an issue with sagging. Just my guess.

I went from a nice full D to barely filling a C cup. Not only that they sag like...well lets just say they aren't what they used to be : /
I always felt like when they were engorged from breastfeeding that was going to cause additional sagging because the tissue was being stretched and becoming more slack.
So, I do think BFing causes not some but ALOT of sagging. It's one of the many joys of motherhood!

It's the way you are made - and age. Neither one of which we have all that much control over. I breastfed two kids - two years ago was when I stopped. I also think size has something to do with it. The larger you are, the more you sag, because of the simple law of gravity...

Mine were big (DD) got bigger (enormous) and stayed big (F/G) even though I've lost all but 5ish pounds of the pregnancy weight, and without a bra I feel like I could probably tuck them into my pants. Don't know if it was the pregnancy or the breastfeeding, but I thank heavens for Nordstrom's bras every time I get dressed. Sigh.

I stayed in the D-range after 2 pregnancies and about 2 total years of breastfeeding. I know the fullest point for my breasts was shortly after delivery when mature milk production began, but women go through that engorgement whether they nurse or not, so I do not believe breastfeeding had any affect on that for me. Yes, they are basically a slightly deflated version of earlier, but I also lost a lot more weight than I gained, which can cause breasts to sag a bit, too. I can remember my days of being a C and being depressed over how big I felt, but I can't wait to be back in a D again now. I'll have to wait another year or so for nursing my third. =)