To Bra or Not to Bra - That is the Burning Question...

Bras bug me.

I've been having ye olde bra debate in my head for years now.

And while I understand the practical benefits of bras for ladies who are generously gifted in the boob department, for us mere mortal women who are effectively in no danger of hurting ourselves without one...what's the point?

Ok, I'll admit, they look good.

But man, are they uncomfortable. Unless you take out a small mortgage and get yourself some of those tailor made, high end, made from silk bras that caress you like a soft, feathery kiss and make you feel like Claudia Schiffer.

At least, that's what I assume they do.

Mine have mostly been purchased from the likes of Matalan and Primark.

In my ideal world, bras are an accessory to be worn only when it's 'feel sexy' time. I attempt to be a non-bra wearing citizen on a regular basis. But when I'm running into school because I'm late to pick up the kids, and everything is flapping everywhere it just kinda feels wrong.

Like I'm some kind of brazen hussy displaying my wares for the world to see because I'm that kind of woman.

There was one time when I was in a bra-abandoning phase that my husband and I went out for a meal with my in-laws. Unfortunately the restaurant was annoyingly cold and I ended up going into the toilet and pushing pieces of toilet paper down my top to try and hide my nipples.

Not my finest hour.

But here's the thing that gets me...

What's with this feeling of shame that women have when they're not latching in and locking down their boobs?

It's not like it's the same when we wear short sleeved t-shirts or sandals.

Shit! People can see my arm! What will they think of me?

Oh my god! Everyone can see I've got toes!! Oh the shame!!

At the same time though, as much as I feel that there should be no issue surrounding going bra-less, I've gotta say I was dead set against that (thankfully fleeting) fashion of wearing jeans halfway down your bum in order to display the upper regions of your bum crack.

Although to be fair, that's just because it looks really crap.

I read somewhere recently that wearing underwired bras on a daily basis increases your risk of breast cancer. I have no idea if this is actually true or not, but it does seem reasonable that constantly pinching your boobs in with metal wire isn't going to be good for them.

So what's the answer here?

To bra or not to bra?

The bottom line is, it should be each and every woman's individual choice. No shame, no self consciousness, no problem. I know there are a bunch of cool gals out there who genuinely don't give a crap about this, but then there are plenty more who still have this crazy body shame thing.

Perhaps if more women jumped on the no bra train, in time it really would be less of a thing.

And then we could all go around flapping everything everywhere and feel just dandy about it.