Good Bras for Large Breasted Women, During Pregnancy and Nursing

Updated on April 29, 2010
J.M. asks from Hudson, WI
24 answers

I am 6 months pregnant and need help finding good, comfortable, supportive bras for the rest of my pregnancy and the next 2 years of nursing. I measure a 40DD but know I'll get even bigger over the next 4 months.

Which bras have you found work well? I'm willing to shop anywhere and pay any price to find comfort and function.

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S.C.

answers from Minneapolis on

I was a 32F after my daughter was born and went through many bras trying to find a good fit, comfort, and functionality. My favorites are the Elle McPherson Intimates from Nordstrom's (I ordered online).

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L.M.

answers from New York on

I've always like playtex bras for support. Try www.jms.com. What I've done is to go to the Hanes, Bali outlet and find a bra I like, then I go online and order several.

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K.M.

answers from Boston on

Bravado bras are mighty comfortable -- I am a D not pregnant, an H when initially breast feeding. I had to give mine away to friends when I was done having kids because otherwise I would still be wearing them right now, and my husband suggested I get some "grown up" bras... sigh, I miss them.

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L.R.

answers from Milwaukee on

I really liked Breakout bras online. Also, I shopped at Allure in Brookfield, WI. I wear a 44H so there were no actual stores that had them big enough for me...jus online. Good luck!

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C.H.

answers from Minneapolis on

I got a great one from A Pea in the Pod which is inside Bloomingdales at the Mall of America. I'm a 40E while nursing, and the one I got has no underwires (so comfy!) and is very supportive.

I also tried two Motherhood bras and did not like them.

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L.B.

answers from Des Moines on

Motherwear has some good bras that come in very large cup sizes (like H, I, J, K). I would try them first.

If you don't mind spending extra money, you can go to a store that does bra fittings and have a normal bra altered to be a nursing bra. That costs about $15 on top of the cost of the normal bra. If you're like me, you'll need to keep buying new bras every couple of months, because your breasts will very gradually start going back down in cup sizes while you are extended nursing.

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R.R.

answers from Los Angeles on

I'll add my vote for Bravado. They make a wide variety of sizes. I'm a 34DD and I got one to wear while I'm pregnant and it should stretch enough to work while I'm nursing too. It seems pretty forgiving and is really comfortable. I got the body silk seamless, but I know some of the others come in many other larger sizes.

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L.B.

answers from Green Bay on

I would suggest Motherhood Maternity. They have very comfortable nursing bra's that are a sports bra type. No under wires and the straps over the shoulders don't dig in like lots of other bras!! They are definitely worth every penny. Heck I am wearing one now and I stopped nursing 3 months ago!! I don't remember them being all the pricey either $20 or $25 each. They will also measure you there and give you an idea what size to look for.

Good Luck:)

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K.B.

answers from Minneapolis on

I got up to a size F with my first pregnancy and got my bras at Motherhood and hated them. The second time around I went to Nordstrom and got a bra I loved. However, I didn't get as big the second time (thankfully), so I'm not sure how large the sizes go there. I spent about $70, but thought it was totally worth it.

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E.I.

answers from Duluth on

chances are good that even the 40DD is not the right size, and good luck finding anything over a DD in stores in this country.

check out www.bravissimo.com - unfortunatly, they are in the UK.
their "perfect fit" section has a video or two about how to be sure you even have the right size, and their customer service is excellent when it comes to helping you get the right size. shipping for any amount of bras was 11.95 or something for me ... and then of course, your total is going to depend on the conversion rate when they process your transaction... but i was pretty happy with their service, even though im now in the process of figuring out why my bras that i ordered didnt fit ; im going to have to send them back for a different size! but, thats what we larger breasted women have to deal with..

some other companies that have larger sizes are barenecessities.com and figleaves.com (which might be british, im not sure, but still has the great sizes)

its a shame that in this country, you cant just walk into a store and get a bra that fits. its actually extremely frustrating :( so do your best. one thing that you should know is that your breasts grow and change year to year anyway, especially while nursing. i know that underwire is not good for nursing moms, and they are probably extremely uncomfortable during pregnancy as well. i know i quit wearing underwire when i was pregnant, and i just went back to them when i bought these from bravissimo, but they still stab me in the underarm, so i dont know if i just cant wear underwire anymore or what.

anyway, good luck and THANK YOU for breastfeeding! :):)

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S.M.

answers from Spartanburg on

You might want to check out Break Out Bras too

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K.P.

answers from Phoenix on

I like breakoutbras.com they have a huge selection for the bigger boobed girls with free shipping and their prices are pretty good. They have a wide seletion of nursing bras. Just make sure you order the correct size because most of their bras are European sizes. In american sizes I wear a 38J in european I wear 38GG. Makes a huge diffrence.
Considering your a 40DD you could also try nordstroms they carry up to DD sizes in store any larger they have to order but they do carry up to my size online. Also herroom.com caters to larger breast sizes. Hope this helps.

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J.J.

answers from Omaha on

I'm currently nursing my 5th baby and I love Bravado bra's. I'm large breasted as well. They are very comfortable and give better support. I would look on line to find a local place that sells them. I recently tried the Leading Lady brand and I like them for support, but after a few hours they are not as comfortable as the Bravado bras are.

Personally, for large breast, I do not recommend Medala. I've tried a couple of their bras and they just don't hold up for support. I do, however, recommend Medala for breastpumps.

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S.K.

answers from Los Angeles on

Have you heard of MOTHERWEAR not motherhood
they have the best stuff. Great Quality and amazing service. They Even hava a discount store on EBAY.
Find out your size, They do returns so it shouldnt be a problem and all the Mums modeling are pregnat or nursing :) actual people :)

Also MEDELA is great.
I nursed my 3 kids for a total of 4 years :)

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J.M.

answers from Dallas on

I wear a 44E - found the best (and 1 pretty) bras at Motherhood.

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J.P.

answers from Boise on

Try Bravado bras. They are soooo comfy! mommysown.com has them online and is local to me. She lets me go and try them on. You should be able to find a place near you that will allow the same.

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D.P.

answers from Minneapolis on

The best ones I found I actually bought at Nordstroms. I don't even know what brands they were and I am sure I paid a little more for them but I got 2 or 3 good ones and am so thankful I did it. They had a great selection in store which surprised me. Anything I found elsewhere either wasn't big enough or wasn't supportive enough.

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H.A.

answers from Dallas on

Lady Grace http://ladygrace.com/Default.asp?bhcd2=1272308222

I wear a K cup. If you think it's hard finding a DD, you can imagine what it's like when you wear a size most people think doesn't exist. The carry up to an L cup -- and their prices are very reasonable. I was paying $75 dollars or more per bra before I found them, now I have several supportive bras that I've gotten for about $35.

Of the nursing bras.. I liked the Goddess Comfort Zone http://ladygrace.com/goddess-comfort-zone-nursing-bra/p/2... I was wearing it as soon as I had my son, and the lactation consultant was asking me where I got it.

The have a great staff -- if you call and talk to them, they can help you with sizing, and how to deal with variance between brands.

Lady Grace is my only source for bras now. If they vanish I am SOL. ;)

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L.M.

answers from Minneapolis on

There's a place in Bloomington called Bravo Bras. You have to have an appointment, but they measure and make sure that the bra will fit you comfortably. I bought 2 nursing bras from them, and was quite pleased with them.

###-###-####
8120 Penn Ave S
Minneapolis

Good luck!

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B.B.

answers from Missoula on

One of my favorite sites is breakoutbras.com. They have a fairly good selection of nursing bras in larger cup sizes. Some of my favorites are by Bravado and Freya. They also have a really good section on measuring for correct fit, which I found quite helpful. This may not apply to you, but I think that a lot of stores will try to squeeze women into DD bras because that is the largest cup size they carry. Even if you are an F or G or whatever, they just bump up the band size to get you into that DD.
Good luck in your search, the right bra makes a big difference, especially when nursing.

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S.T.

answers from Des Moines on

i love lane bryant! they are fairly priced, and support is great.

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E.B.

answers from Duluth on

The best bra I found, not a nursing bra, was a Wacoal bra at Herbergers. I didn't buy it because it was 70$. I'm a big stickler for something that shapes AND supports (I'm running after two boys and do NOT want to be jiggling). I have not yet found a good nursing bra, but I had BAD experiences with Motherhood's bras, though I see a number of people here recommended them--I would take it slow if you're going to do Motherhood; I've heard very mixed reviews from people.

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