examine the breasts by yourself

How to examine the breasts by yourself at home

To examine the breasts by yourself at home, you should stand in front of a mirror while taking off your clothes and look at each of your breasts separately.

Pay attention to the size, shape, color, borders, and direction of your breasts and nipples.

How to examine the breasts by yourself?

Breast self-examination involves two steps: looking and touching.

* look

In some cases, breast diseases, especially breast cancers, cause changes in the appearance of the breast that can be detected by looking at the breasts.

Therefore, you need to be familiar with the appearance of your breasts to be able to detect any possible changes in them.

 

Looking involves several steps:

• Put your hand on both sides of the body and look at the breast.
• Raise your hand straight up from the side of your head.
• Bend the hand from the elbow and press to the waist (press the hand to the waist and press).
• Pull your hand straight forward and bend slightly forward.

In each of the above positions, look closely at the breast.

Any changes, including sagging skin or nipple, redness or soreness of the breast, scaling of the nipple, nipple deviation, bulge in one part of the breast, or bulge of blood vessels in the part of the breast are important.

Breast asymmetry, if present (congenital, during puberty, or after breastfeeding) is not an important issue, but any recent changes in breast size should be considered.

* Touch

For proper examination of the breasts when touching, it is best to use the end of the last 3 paragraphs of the middle fingers (not the fingertips). This part is called the softness of the finger, which is more sensitive to touch than other parts. Never squeeze the breast between your fingers because you falsely feel a lump. While there really is no mass.

 

What areas of breasts should be examined by yourself at home?

The area between the collarbone at the top, the sternum and armpit at the sides, and two fingers below the lower edge of the breast at the bottom of the undergarment should be examined.

To touch the breast, it is better to lie down.

To examine the right breast, place a small pillow under the left shoulder and the left hand under the head.

Your shoulders should be high enough so that your left breast is in the middle of your chest and is not tilted in any direction.

Always use the left hand to examine the right breast and always the right hand to examine the left breast.

What areas should be touched to examine the breasts by yourself at home?

Touch the whole breast with short circular motions.

To touch, rotate your fingers on the chest with low, medium, and high pressure to make a superficial and deep touch in each area.

To examine everywhere, it is best to examine the entire breast in concentric circles from around to the nipple.

There are other methods, such as dividing the breast into 4 parts and examining each quarter separately.

After examining the entire breast, examine the tail of the breast in the axilla and then the axilla for a breast or underarm mass. Then touch the opposite breast in the same way.

You can also do a breast exam while taking a shower.

In this case, the skin of the breast is less slippery and frictional to the touch, and the examination of the breasts is easier.

If your breasts are small, first place one hand on your head and touch the other side of the breast with your hand.

If your breasts are large, it is best to hold the breast with one hand and examine it with the other.

At the end of the examination, apply a small amount of pressure to the nipple, such as milking, to find any discharge.

After a complete breast examination, be sure to see your doctor if you have any of the following:

– Touching the lump in the breast

– Increasing the size of the mass that already existed.

– Skin symptoms such as sunken skin or nipple, nipple deviation, redness, sores, etc.

-Scaling, redness, and itching of the nipple

-Abnormal discharge from the nipple

When examining the breast, do not forget that if you feel any mass in the breast tissue, you should see a doctor immediately.

What should be done if there is a problem during the breast examination?

If you notice any changes in your breasts during a breast exam, you should see a doctor as soon as possible, whether the problem is on the inside of the breast, the skin, or the nipple.

It is normal to feel anxious at such times, but try to remember that 9 out of 10 lumps in the breast are noncancerous.

Even if the lump in your breast is cancerous, do not doubt that early and timely diagnosis and proper treatment will increase the likelihood of a complete cure.

Hope to find this article helpful about How to examine the breasts by yourself at home.

Author: Maryam Shiani

SEO editor: Samane Nobakhti