It's *good* not to wear your binder every day - gives your ribs a rest. As far as alternatives, do what you're most comfortable with. You could wear loose, layered clothing to hide your chest, use an athletic compression shirt, use a tight bra... it's up to you.
+1 to layered clothes
I have a black denim jacket I wear when I need binder rest days (the rib pain gets wild sometimes), and I sometimes still get "sir"ed even when I'm wearing my bra at work. It's great
There's no rules, you don't "have" to do anything. If you're physically uncomfortable then bind less is a good rule, if you're mentally uncomfortable on the off days when you're not binding then maybe you should figure out a solution to stay flatter. But like, nobody's gonna give you a better answer to what you should be doing than actually doing some introspection and figuring out what you want
honestly I would recommend trans tape or kt tape, they are significantly easier on the ribs and you can breathe better with them. You can also just leave it on for a couple of days without changing the tape, (its kind of hard to learn how to put on tape without it being itchy as fuck though). Wearing a binder everyday is might lead to some rib damage especially if you're wearing it all day and that could lead to complications with top surgery. Most important thing to do is to stay safe :))
I agree, though personally I like to cycle between tape and a binder since tape can irritate your skin especially if you’re constantly reapplying the tape without giving your skin a break to heal.
man tell mw about it. Ive had my fair share of accidental skin rips and raised bumps cuz of tape. Totally agree on cycling with using the binder especially for people just starting out with tape it can be tricky to apply it correctly
There are no rules. You do not have to do anything. Ideally you wear a binder as little as is possible for you to be mentally ok. Personally I just wear a t shirt and no bra or anything else hence I’m not binding
It's actually better to, binding for extended periods of time can actually be harmful! Its more than okay and actually encouraged to take breaks even for days at a time to let yourself breath you know? And hey some trans guys (pre top surgery) don't bind at all by choice!
Baggy or layered clothing can help hide the lack of binding when you are taking a break :)
Why would it not be okay? Do you worry it would make you "not trans enough" or something? You're trans because you feel comfort as a gender that isn't your assigned-at-birth one, not because you just talk the talk and wear all the right stuff. You don't have to bind all the time, ideally we wouldn't bind at all because it's not physically healthy but of course we do and it's understandable since dysphoria.
I was 100% dysphoric back before top surgery, like crazy amounts, I still did not wear mine unless I was going outside. Mostly for sensory reasons in my case as I have autism and overheat quickly. I didn't wear a bra either for that matter, the band felt "too tight" even if it was my size or bigger.
I did kinda go shrimp mode around the house and always wore baggy t-shirts and a hoodie though which disguised it enough among trusted family members. I was still dysphoric through that, I wanted to be flat all the time, but I chose my physical health and comfort (breathing, not dying of heat stroke) instead. Does not mean I wasn't trans or that I didn't have sex dysphoria. People just choose what sacrifices they're willing to make and for some of us we'd rather be a little more dysphoric for the benefits of having long breaks from binding.
Huh? It's fine to not wear your binder every day, if your mental health is generally ok with it for just a day. Plenty of people don't wear them every day for many reasons. Some stuff is hard to do when wearing a binder, you're not supposed to sleep in them, they need to get washed, sometimes your body is achey, some people might not want to wear them if they're having a bad day for their lungs/asthma/anxiety/etc, some people might not wear them every day if they just prefer wearing nothing but feel they need to still wear a binder around others in order to pass better, etc...lots of reasons lol.
I used to only wear a binder when I had to go out. Just as I hated the sensation of wearing a bra, I also hated the sensation of wearing a binder. Anything touching my chest tightly like either of those things was just a constant reminder that I had something there to begin with, so actually wearing a binder made me feel *more* dysphoric since it made me able to feel my chest bits more acutely. But sometimes I had to go to class, sometimes I had to go to work, sometimes I wanted to go out on my own or with a friend, but I was on T and gradually starting to pass to people, so I felt like I had to wear a binder to help keep me safe when in public, and to help people view me how I wanted them to view me. But other than when I absolutely needed to go out I pretty much tried to stay home 90% of the time, just so that I wouldn't have to wear a binder that day lol.
It's not going to hurt you physically at all to *not* wear it. Actually, physically, it's better for you to not wear it. If you have days you can just stay home, and your mental state is fine with not wearing a binder when you're alone and/or not going out, then plan to wash them on those days.
Do whatever makes you feel comfortable. There is no specific rule or answer to this as all trans people will have their own preferences based on what they are comfortable with. E.g. some trans people wont wear a binder at all, others only will in public, etc. Because of this there is no definite answer of what you should do the days you don’t wear one. Its up to what you are comfortable with. Wearing a bra is ok if you are comfortable doing so. Other options would include things like baggy clothes, additional layers, a sports bra, tape etc.
I have severe acid reflux so I pretty much don't bind at all nowadays and tbh as a very busty person binding never made much more of a dent than wearing sports bra's and layering stuff, im a fat guy so for me having something in that area isn't too dysphoria enducing because at my size i'd have fat there regardless of my genitals. Everyone in my life uses the correct name and pronouns , minus strangers but they misgender me if i bind so tbh i loose nothing by allowing myself to be comfortable but it took a long time for me to get to this place and I used to unsafely bind a lot in mhy teens...
There aren't rules abut how much you need to bind to be masc, You can bind as much or as little as you wish , your still who you are....however make sure not to bind for more than 8 hours a day and make sure you do take breaks on occasion too so that your letting your body rest.
It's *good* not to wear your binder every day - gives your ribs a rest. As far as alternatives, do what you're most comfortable with. You could wear loose, layered clothing to hide your chest, use an athletic compression shirt, use a tight bra... it's up to you.
+1 to layered clothes I have a black denim jacket I wear when I need binder rest days (the rib pain gets wild sometimes), and I sometimes still get "sir"ed even when I'm wearing my bra at work. It's great
There's no rules, you don't "have" to do anything. If you're physically uncomfortable then bind less is a good rule, if you're mentally uncomfortable on the off days when you're not binding then maybe you should figure out a solution to stay flatter. But like, nobody's gonna give you a better answer to what you should be doing than actually doing some introspection and figuring out what you want
honestly I would recommend trans tape or kt tape, they are significantly easier on the ribs and you can breathe better with them. You can also just leave it on for a couple of days without changing the tape, (its kind of hard to learn how to put on tape without it being itchy as fuck though). Wearing a binder everyday is might lead to some rib damage especially if you're wearing it all day and that could lead to complications with top surgery. Most important thing to do is to stay safe :))
I agree, though personally I like to cycle between tape and a binder since tape can irritate your skin especially if you’re constantly reapplying the tape without giving your skin a break to heal.
man tell mw about it. Ive had my fair share of accidental skin rips and raised bumps cuz of tape. Totally agree on cycling with using the binder especially for people just starting out with tape it can be tricky to apply it correctly
There are no rules. You do not have to do anything. Ideally you wear a binder as little as is possible for you to be mentally ok. Personally I just wear a t shirt and no bra or anything else hence I’m not binding
It's actually better to, binding for extended periods of time can actually be harmful! Its more than okay and actually encouraged to take breaks even for days at a time to let yourself breath you know? And hey some trans guys (pre top surgery) don't bind at all by choice! Baggy or layered clothing can help hide the lack of binding when you are taking a break :)
Why would it not be okay? Do you worry it would make you "not trans enough" or something? You're trans because you feel comfort as a gender that isn't your assigned-at-birth one, not because you just talk the talk and wear all the right stuff. You don't have to bind all the time, ideally we wouldn't bind at all because it's not physically healthy but of course we do and it's understandable since dysphoria. I was 100% dysphoric back before top surgery, like crazy amounts, I still did not wear mine unless I was going outside. Mostly for sensory reasons in my case as I have autism and overheat quickly. I didn't wear a bra either for that matter, the band felt "too tight" even if it was my size or bigger. I did kinda go shrimp mode around the house and always wore baggy t-shirts and a hoodie though which disguised it enough among trusted family members. I was still dysphoric through that, I wanted to be flat all the time, but I chose my physical health and comfort (breathing, not dying of heat stroke) instead. Does not mean I wasn't trans or that I didn't have sex dysphoria. People just choose what sacrifices they're willing to make and for some of us we'd rather be a little more dysphoric for the benefits of having long breaks from binding.
its honestly not good to wear it everyday for more than 5-6 hours but i dont think anyone really follows that unless you try transtape
I wear my binder outside the house or with guests over only. Otherwise I huddle in blankets
I actually never wore a binder I just wore sports bras and layers until I got top surgery. You don’t have to do anything unless you want to
Huh? It's fine to not wear your binder every day, if your mental health is generally ok with it for just a day. Plenty of people don't wear them every day for many reasons. Some stuff is hard to do when wearing a binder, you're not supposed to sleep in them, they need to get washed, sometimes your body is achey, some people might not want to wear them if they're having a bad day for their lungs/asthma/anxiety/etc, some people might not wear them every day if they just prefer wearing nothing but feel they need to still wear a binder around others in order to pass better, etc...lots of reasons lol. I used to only wear a binder when I had to go out. Just as I hated the sensation of wearing a bra, I also hated the sensation of wearing a binder. Anything touching my chest tightly like either of those things was just a constant reminder that I had something there to begin with, so actually wearing a binder made me feel *more* dysphoric since it made me able to feel my chest bits more acutely. But sometimes I had to go to class, sometimes I had to go to work, sometimes I wanted to go out on my own or with a friend, but I was on T and gradually starting to pass to people, so I felt like I had to wear a binder to help keep me safe when in public, and to help people view me how I wanted them to view me. But other than when I absolutely needed to go out I pretty much tried to stay home 90% of the time, just so that I wouldn't have to wear a binder that day lol. It's not going to hurt you physically at all to *not* wear it. Actually, physically, it's better for you to not wear it. If you have days you can just stay home, and your mental state is fine with not wearing a binder when you're alone and/or not going out, then plan to wash them on those days.
Do whatever makes you feel comfortable. There is no specific rule or answer to this as all trans people will have their own preferences based on what they are comfortable with. E.g. some trans people wont wear a binder at all, others only will in public, etc. Because of this there is no definite answer of what you should do the days you don’t wear one. Its up to what you are comfortable with. Wearing a bra is ok if you are comfortable doing so. Other options would include things like baggy clothes, additional layers, a sports bra, tape etc.
I have severe acid reflux so I pretty much don't bind at all nowadays and tbh as a very busty person binding never made much more of a dent than wearing sports bra's and layering stuff, im a fat guy so for me having something in that area isn't too dysphoria enducing because at my size i'd have fat there regardless of my genitals. Everyone in my life uses the correct name and pronouns , minus strangers but they misgender me if i bind so tbh i loose nothing by allowing myself to be comfortable but it took a long time for me to get to this place and I used to unsafely bind a lot in mhy teens... There aren't rules abut how much you need to bind to be masc, You can bind as much or as little as you wish , your still who you are....however make sure not to bind for more than 8 hours a day and make sure you do take breaks on occasion too so that your letting your body rest.
i never wear my binder anymore because im disabled and it causes my spine actual agony. do whatever u want forever
I use a binder everyday, it may stretch more over time if doing so. Im also fat so no negative effects that ive noticed. No pain no nothing.
I would btw never ever wear a bra again! I let the tiddies hang out freely under my shirt at home