Poll: The age you started binding?

[PurpleWolf]

Feel free to comment & tell more also  !

How old were you when you started binding?
Was your first binder a 'real one'?
What kind of methods have you used over the years?
How many years have you been binding? (Or did bind before top surgery?)
Have you ever stopped binding for whatever reason?
What kind of binder are you using now?

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I stopped wearing a bra at 13 and covered my chest with a leather or denim jacket at first. (Worked pretty well.) At 14 I started binding with a DIY method - a folded scarf...! Worked pretty well too. I did bind at least for 6 years? Until I got fat and finally stopped binding coz it was useless... I had to switch to too tight sports bras/tops which I hated ofc..... they were better than none but not enough obviously. Having a visible chest was plain and simple mortifying. Now I'm finally having a flat chest again (after losing weight) and been using a triple sports tops and on top of them a back support - works pretty well too. Should order a real binder... been thinking about Underworks  .

[sigsi]

How old were you when you started binding? Right after I turned 18 (I found out about Underworks a year previous).

Was your first binder a 'real one'? Yes, an Underworks 997 and 918 (that I layered).

What kind of methods have you used over the years? I usually just wore a sports bra and a lot of baggy layers and hoodies. I didn't know about binding when I was younger, these days I layer with baggy clothes and have a blanket at home.

How many years have you been binding? (Or did bind before top surgery?) All together, 6 years (but I didn't bind for almost 2 years). I'm hoping for Top surgery in the next few years. : P

Have you ever stopped binding for whatever reason? Yeah, when my anxiety and agoraphobia became worse. I didn't leave the house for 2 years and was having unpredictable panic attacks often, so I stopped binding for that time.

What kind of binder are you using now? The same as I did before, layered Underworks 997 and 918.

Extra Notes: For the first few years I used to double bind all the time, changing to lose or old binders for home and sleep. After not binding, I now only bind when I leave the house. I'm hoping to avoid the back pain and weird fat / muscle shifts that occurred when I was younger and wore binders more often.

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Good luck with finding a binder I prefer Underworks, but have been considering a few other brands once I get a job again.

[Kylo]

19-20 when I started doing it regularly.

First time it was anything I could get my hands on, not a real one. This is going back a bit to 1994-1995.

Tape, cling film (once only, lol) cotton material, scarves, whatever in the beginning as a kid, and not in an altogether dedicated way. Later I bought a bunch of compression sports stuff which was a size or two too small which did the trick. After a while I found using two binders - a sports halter and a compression vest over it got the kind of results I was after, although I can see why some people would find that restrictive. I've got used to the feel of it over the years.

I dunno, as it was off and on for a while but... on the whole about 16 years. It didn't have much actual impact on the elasticity of the skin. I heard recently it affects the skin in that way but mine seems to be fine even after doing it for that long. Even the surgeon mentioned it.

I stopped for a bit a couple of years ago. I was feeling sick for a while and it was more comfortable not to. But I went back to it when I got better.

Currently I'm using either a one piece compression vest (can't remember the brand, I cut the label off) or a medical grade compression vest with a front zipper and clips which the hospital gave me after the top surgery which is super compressive, it's a hair off of being one of those medical corsets for the back. I've been wearing the regular vest continuously since 2 weeks ago, washing/drying it every day to get it back to its original tightness and sleeping in it, which is generally more than I would usually wear one but it feels sensible to keep everything pressed in right now.

[Ryuichi13]

Feel free to comment & tell more also  !

How old were you when you started binding?
Was your first binder a 'real one'?
What kind of methods have you used over the years?
How many years have you been binding? (Or did bind before top surgery?)
Have you ever stopped binding for whatever reason?
What kind of binder are you using now?

Its kinda funny, just last week I found the receipt for my binders!  According to the date printed on them, I started binding 4 years ago, so that means I was 52.  I stopped wearing bras when I was in my 30s, and would just wear tight shirts with my hoodie or sometimes an open button-down overtop them.  Luckily for me, "carrying people for a living" (I'm a Paramedic) meant that not only did I need to wear a t-shirt under my uniform shirt, but my pecs became stronger and gave my moobs more "up-standing power."  So up until relatively recently, even with my size D, almost DD chest, I didn't have any drooping to worry about.  I've lost quite a bit of my pecs since becoming disabled.

My first binder was one I made out of a hospital towel, fabric, velcro and hooks and eyes.  I made it after seeing someone online selling something similar.  It didn't work well outside of the house, since the creases from the tubetop-like construction was extremely evident under a t-shirt.  I bought a real binder soon after, when my younger sister took me aside and "politely suggested" I wear a bra, since my nipples were showing.  Funny, up until that day, I had gone without bras for decades.  I guess she didn't notice until then.

I don't often wear a binder around the house, but that's the only time I go without.

Since my chest is so large, I opted to continue wearing my two Underworks Tri-top binders. My first Underworks binder I actually gave away, since it was a full-length one and I felt it didn't flatten as well as the two tri-tops I currently use.   Since I'm hoping to have top surgery late this year/early next year, these two will probably be the last ones I buy.

Ryuichi

 


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[meatwagon]

I'm currently 28, going on 29 in a couple of months.  i got an underworks several years ago but almost never wore it.  for the past 6-7 years, I think, I've mostly just used sports undershirt things paired with loose shirts and layering, mostly due to the fact that I wasn't on t and didn't pass, so I felt like it wasn't worth the effort to squeeze into an uncomfortable binder.  I only started binding regularly several months ago, around the time I was able to start t.  I was also concerned about binding at work since my job is on the physical side and I can be there for up to 11 hours some days.. but it got to the point where I couldn't stand not binding any more due to dysphoria and the physical discomfort my chest causes me, so I have been binding every time I leave the house for a while now, save for a few quick trips to the store when it's been cold enough to wear layers.
I should also add that part of what led me to bind more was getting a new, more comfortable binder, too.

[November Fox]

I first wrapped it in 2013, not knowing that I was indergoing dysphoria and not knowing binders existed. It was very frustrating. I used a scarf and bandages, really anything I could find.

I found out about real binders in 2015. And quite happy such a thing existed. Even with a binder the dysphoria became a pain in the (...) and so I started using tape instead.

The tape wasn't always good for my skin, I have faint scars, but considering I'm a bear (chest hair) it doesn't really matter.

[Peep]

I was 23 (three years ago), I bought an underworks ultimate tank first but it was too big so i had to fold it, then i got a GC2b halftank which i still use now even though it's going transparent haha

Before that, I tried to bind with other materials like scarves etc but never successfully

then i moved to minimising bras and sportsbras, which also weren't very useful until i lost weight and managed to redce the size of my chest a bit.

at the moment i avoid wearing my binder at all if i can avoid it, because my joints are hypermobile and my binder pushes down on my shoulder joints, but i'm uncomfortable when my unbound chest touches my body too... just can't wait for top surgery 

[Nbj]

How old were you when you started binding?
Was your first binder a 'real one'?
What kind of methods have you used over the years?
How many years have you been binding? (Or did bind before top surgery?)
Have you ever stopped binding for whatever reason?
What kind of binder are you using now?

1. I was 22
2. no, it was some re-sewn and scissor-modified corsage
3. double sports bra, double tight tank top, above mentioned corsage (and tape - NOT recommended!)
4. one year and some months
5. yeah, for like 2 weeks , because I thought that if I'd stop, then my mind would stop too  and then for about 1.5 weeks because I had somehow hurt my ribs from binding too long/tight
6. have been using Underworks for few months now, going to buy some gc2b soon

[Oblivion]

How old were you when you started binding? I was 15
Was your first binder a 'real one'? Yeah I got a gc2b binder
What kind of methods have you used over the years? Proper binders, eBay binders, KT tape and a very small period of bandages
How many years have you been binding? (Or did bind before top surgery?) Nearly 3 years of daily binding plus one inconsistentently
Have you ever stopped binding for whatever reason? Not since coming out
What kind of binder are you using now? Underworks tri-top, it's the most comfortable and causes me the least stress and the neckline is bigger than other binders and doesn't show under clothes

[CursedFireDean]

How old were you when you started binding?
Was your first binder a 'real one'?
What kind of methods have you used over the years?
How many years have you been binding? (Or did bind before top surgery?)
Have you ever stopped binding for whatever reason?
What kind of binder are you using now?

I started binding when I was 13/14.

I did the double sports bras first, then ace bandage was the first thing I tried in public. I only did it temporarily to decide if I wanted a binder. Bought an underworks double front and used that for a long time until I got a tri-top which never fit right. Switched to GC2B long binders when I was 18 and then to short ones after that!

In total I had a binder for 7 years; 2 years were occasional use, 2 were frequently, and 3 were every day. About the last year before surgery I was wearing them 12+ hours a day because my dysohoria was so bad. I got top surgery pretty much exactly on my 21st birthday.

[PurpleWolf]

I got top surgery pretty much exactly on my 21st birthday.

Cool  !!!