Should breast be soft or hard?

Young women usually have dense breasts because their milk systems might be needed for feeding babies. Sometimes this thickness is felt as a lump or a mass of tissue. As women age, their milk systems shrink and are replaced by fat. By menopause, most women's breasts are completely soft.

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What should breast texture feel like?

Normal breast tissue often feels nodular (lumpy) and varies in consistency from woman to woman. Even within each individual woman, the texture of breast tissue varies at different times in her menstrual cycle, and from time to time during her life.

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Is the breast supposed to be hard?

Normal breast tissue can sometimes feel lumpy, but at times, you may feel a firm bump, nodule or firm or hard feeling in your breast that seems a little different. Breast lumps often have an irregular shape and can be around the size of a pea, or larger.

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How should breasts feel normal?

Get used to how your breasts feel at different times of the month. This can change during your menstrual cycle. For example, some women have tender and lumpy breasts, especially near the armpit, around the time of their period. After the menopause, normal breasts feel softer, less firm and not as lumpy.

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What does it mean if your breast feel hard?

A breast lump that's painless, hard, irregularly shaped and different from surrounding breast tissue might be breast cancer. Skin covering the lump may look red, dimpled or pitted like the skin of an orange. Your breast size and shape may change, or you may notice discharge from the nipple.

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Do your breasts feel softer? What does this mean?

32 related questions found

What does a cancerous breast lump feel like?

A tumor may feel more like a rock than a grape. A cancerous lump is usually hard, not soft or squishy. And it often has angular, irregular, asymmetrical edges, as opposed to being smooth, Dr. Comander says.

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Why are some breasts soft and others hard?

Yes, age contributes to changes in breast density, but some young people have softer tissue and some older people have firm tissue. As with most things, there's no one answer. Breast density is determined by a combination of genetics and life changes like aging, pregnancy and nursing, and weight fluctuations.

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What are signs of unhealthy breast?

If there are ways to figure out healthy breasts, there are also some signs of unhealthy breasts.
  • Sudden appearance of lump. ...
  • Discharge from nipples. ...
  • Retraction or indentation of nipples. ...
  • Changes in size of breasts. ...
  • Redness.

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How do I know if my breasts are healthy?

The skin on your breasts should naturally be more or less flat and smooth. Again, consistency is key. Bumps and birthmarks that are always present are not a problem. A sudden change in the skin on your breasts should be reported to a doctor.

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Does touching breasts feel good?

Stimulating, caressing or simply holding breasts sends nerve signals to the brain, which trigger the release of the 'cuddle hormone' called oxytocin, a neurochemical secreted by the posterior lobe of the pituitary gland in the brain.

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Why is my breast hard as a rock?

What does breast engorgement feel like? Engorged breasts feel like they're ready to burst. They may feel hard like rocks and so tender that it hurts to walk or change your clothes. Your breasts will feel heavier, and simple things like snuggling your baby may be extremely painful.

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Should you press hard when checking breasts?

1) In the Shower

With the pads/flats of your 3 middle fingers, check the entire breast and armpit area pressing down with light, medium, and firm pressure. Check both breasts each month feeling for any lump, thickening, hardened knot, or any other breast changes.

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When I lay down I can feel a lump in my breast?

It's not unusual for a breast lump to only be detected when a person is lying down, Dr. Hughes says. “This is dependent on the size of the cancer, how hard it is (some cancers are softer than others), the location of the cancer in the breast, and how the breast sits or hangs when upright versus lying down,” he says.

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What is the bumpy texture on my breast?

Fibrocystic breasts are composed of tissue that feels lumpy or ropelike in texture. Doctors call this nodular or glandular breast tissue. It's not at all uncommon to have fibrocystic breasts or experience fibrocystic breast changes.

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What is this weird feeling in my breast?

Breast sensitivity is not usually a sign of a serious condition. Possible causes of sensitivity can include hormonal changes, injuries, cysts, and breastfeeding issues. Wearing a supportive bra that does not irritate the breasts can help with many types of breast pain.

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What does a dense breast feel like?

Dense breast tissue cannot be felt by a woman, such as during a breast self-exam, or by her doctor during a clinical breast exam. Only a radiologist looking at a mammogram can tell if a woman has dense breasts.

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How do you know if your breasts are dense or fatty?

The only way to know if you have dense breasts is through a mammogram report, delivered by your radiologist. Your report should also reveal your level of breast density: Level 1: Your breasts are all fatty tissue. Level 2: You may have some dense breast tissue, but most of your tissue is fatty.

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How can you tell if a woman's breasts are natural?

Real breasts are shaped more like pears — fuller at the bottom — than like melons. Many implants have an even distribution of silicon. There are typically four places that plastic surgeons use for access. Scars can be seen above the belly button, under the breasts, around the nipples or the armpits.

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What signs should a woman be concerned about if noticed about her breast?

What Are the Symptoms of Breast Cancer?
  • New lump in the breast or underarm (armpit).
  • Thickening or swelling of part of the breast.
  • Irritation or dimpling of breast skin.
  • Redness or flaky skin in the nipple area or the breast.
  • Pulling in of the nipple or pain in the nipple area.

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What are common breast concerns?

Common breast problems
  • Breast pain. Breast pain is common and usually caused by hormonal changes during the menstrual cycle. ...
  • Hormonal changes. ...
  • Cysts. ...
  • Fibroadenomas. ...
  • Some other common 'lumps' ...
  • Nipple discharge. ...
  • Sore, cracked and itchy nipples. ...
  • Inverted nipples.

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What is the most common breast problem?

Breast problems, such as breast lumps, breast pain or tenderness, nipple discharge or inversion, and changes in the skin of the breast, are common in women of all ages, from adolescents to older women. While it can be frightening to discover a new breast problem, most breast problems are not caused by breast cancer.

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Does soft breast mean empty?

Your breasts will feel softer and less full as your milk supply adjusts to your baby's needs. This does not mean you have low supply.

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What causes a woman breast to be soft?

Aging. As a woman gets older, the ligaments that make up the breast tissue stretch and lose elasticity. As a result, breast fullness is compromised as the underlying support system of tissue and fat diminishes. A change may be particularly evident during menopause.

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Are soft breasts empty?

It is normal for a mother's breasts to begin to feel less full, soft, even empty, after the first 6-12 weeks. Many mothers have concerns about milk supply after the early weeks because they notice a drop in pumped amounts or they notice that their breasts feel “soft” or “empty”.

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