Before surgery, getting dressed took two minutes. After, it became the hardest part of the day.
For most women post-mastectomy, the search for a bra that actually works becomes an exhausting and expensive cycle.
Order something online. Try it. Have the prosthetic shift by 10am. Return it. Try something else.
And even on the days when something almost works, there is the constant adjusting. The checking. The awareness of everything that has changed.
"I had an expensive prosthetic that my insurance covered," says Carol Manning, 58, from Denver, Colorado. "But nothing would hold it where it needed to be. I spent more money on bras in the year after my surgery than I had in the previous decade. Nothing worked."
The physical discomfort is only part of it. For women who just want to get dressed and move on with their day, it can be very exhausting too.