Breasts are the most sensitive part of the women body. As the age grows many of the girls start feeling increase in their breast size and eventually some of them experience pain in the breasts. A number of women think that it is due to some infection or disease and get worried unnecessarily; it is actually a healthy sign. We are here to guide you through breast growth pain.
Why your breast actually hurts while growing?
As the age increases, many girls start noticing a small button like lump under the nipples area, this is called breast bud. It is little tender which causes the girls to worry but there is nothing like that. It is natural part of the puberty. As the breast bud starts to grow, the levels of the estrogen and progesterone increases in the body. These hormones are responsible for the breast growth in women. Due to increase in these hormones, the amount of fluid in your breast start to change and it forces the breast tissues to expand. As a result, it stretches some nerves which is responsible for growing pains in breast.
Some Common Signs of Breast Growth
When the girls hit the age of puberty, certain things start to change in the body; breast is one of them. At the age of around 9 to 10 years, the breast bud starts to grow, that is the first sign of your breast development. Some other common signs of breast growth are
Everybody reacts to the breast development process differently. Some of the girls don’t feel these symptoms, some feel light soreness and some feel too sore that they can’t even afford touching because it pains a lot. You don’t need to worry at all because this pains are different for everyone. Having different reaction to these symptoms doesn’t mean that your breasts are not developing at faster or slower rate.
How do breast growing pains feel like?
This is different for every woman; some feel intense pain whereas some has little soreness and itching. It sometimes feels as if someone is stabbing your breasts. It goes from the side of the breast and moves towards the center or may be other way round; as said before it can be in any manner varying from person to person. It may happen in one breast or both breasts and is not associated with any kind of infection or menstrual cycle.
The growing pains in breast are not awful and you don’t need to worry about them; they are far away from harming you in any sense. Sometimes due to these pains you may feel sensations and itching in your breast area. The soreness and itching of nipple are also a part of pain which can annoy you very much but don’t scratch that place as it may lead to infection.
3 Stages Of Breast Growth:
The development of breasts in women life is in three different stages; Birth, Puberty and menopause stage. During these stages the breast size changes differently according to the body. Other than that there can be changes in the breast growth during pregnancy and menstruation.
1. Birth
During this stage the development of the breasts begin when the baby is still in the fetus of a mother. After birth, when baby comes to this world, she already has formed the nipples and milk ducts.
2. Puberty
The normal puberty stage in girls ranges from 9 years to 13 years old. When the ovaries start producing estrogen, it automatically affects the breast tissues in a positive way by expanding the tissues and gaining more fats. Due to these fats, the size of the breasts starts to increase and the milk duct also become larger. When you reach the ovulation stage and start having menstrual cycle, the milk ducts form the secretory gland.
3. Menopause
Menopause stage is the stage when the body stops producing as much estrogen as it used to in early years of life. Women reach this stage usually at the age of 50 but it is not necessary for all women. In some cases it can start earlier whereas in other cases it can be a bit late. The lack of estrogen affects the breast by making it less elastic and losing its firmness. This results in decrease size and sagging of breasts. However, the symptoms of breast development can be same as of menstruation during the hormone therapy.
Understand Breast Development process
Breast development process is a long time process that starts with the birth of the baby. Some people think that breasts start to develop when the girls reached the age of puberty but it’s not true. It is lifetime process that keeps on going in different stages. Here we have complete breast development process for your better understanding.
Stage 1
During the stage 1 of breast development, the nipples or papilla, start becoming noticeable above the chest skin. During this stage there are no specific breasts tissues or fats present due to which the chest seems flat. This stage starts to occur between 8 years to 13 years. However, it totally depends on the genetics of the girls.
Stage 2
Stage 2 is also known as breast budding stage. During this period, the milk ducts and fats start to form which cause the breast to slightly rise up along the nipples. If you think that you can clearly feel the difference in your breast size then no because it occurs very slowly that in starting it is not noticeable. However, the nipples can look puffy and little outwards. And when touched, they might hurt a lot. At this stage the breasts can be seen as small round breasts.
Stage 3
In the third stage of the breast development, the fast under the breast start developing and eventually expanding the breasts. Initially the breasts are in conical shape but as they start to get bigger the shape become rounder. In addition, the areola gets darker; however, the nipples are yet not totally projected.
Stage 4
After the stage three, the areola starts to develop and the stage reached when the nipple shows the projection. This is the stage four, where the contours separate from each other. The breast keeps developing as the tissues grow due to hormonal changes in the body. As the age grows, the body start producing estrogens which is main hormone for developing the fats in the breast which results in the formation of the milk duct.
When the girls start menstruation, the body produces the progesterone which is vital hormone for the milk production in women. The production of milk may result in increased breast size.
Stage 5
The process of breast development from the stage 1 to 4 takes around 3-5 years but in some cases, it can be up to 10 years, that varies from girl to girl. After this the fifth stage of breast development starts. In this stage the areola grows further and nipples are properly projected above the contour of the breast. The breast start becoming curvy and fuller giving you mature look that you are no longer in your teenage group.
The time period of these vary from girl to girl depending on the composition of the body. If you are feeling some delay then there is no need to worry as it is normal.
Other factors which can cause breast pain and soreness
It is not essential that the breast pain can be only due to the growth, there are certain other factors that lead to breast pain and soreness. Some of them are described below:
Menstruation
Each month due to the menstruation cycle, the change in hormonal levels cause changes in your breast sizes. Due to this the breast may become sore during the periods and you can feel the pain the chest area but they become normal once the menstrual cycle is over.
Pregnancy
The pregnancy can also cause certain changes in your breasts. As the breast start to get ready for producing the milk it causes your breast to expand resulting in breast pain and soreness. Other than that there may be other changes that includes
Hormone therapy causes the breast tissues to multiply more rapidly. It causes the breast to expand and grow which in results lead to soreness and pain. This pain is similar to breast enhancement pain but if the pain gets worse then you must consult the doctor as it can be a symptom of breast cancer.
Cancer
After the puberty stage, if the pains don’t become normal then it is a sign of severe infection or even cancer. The soreness around the nipples and the presence of lumps is due to cancer. You should immediately contact your physician.
Infections
Sometimes there can be certain infections in the breast area, which can cause breast pain and soreness. Wearing bra all the time can cause itching and once you scratch it the germs can attack instantly causing the infections.
Some red flags - when to consult your doctor
Although this pain is normal for the teenagers; however, there are some cases when these pains can prove to be fatal. In such cases, you must immediately consult your doctor. Here we have some symptoms that can be bad news so you must be aware of them.
Things to do to manage growing breast soreness and pain
Sometime the growing pain in breasts can be very discomforting and intense that a person feels like crying. That is normal for some girls to experience such pains. In that cases you can do some home remedies to manage the soreness and pain in the breast. Here we have some of tips for you.
FAQs of Breast Growth
What is Breast Bud? Is it Normal?
Breast bud is the little lump right under nipples that is responsible for the breast growth and it is normal part of the puberty. There’s nothing to worry about the breast bud.
Which age is normal to experience breast growing pain?
Many girls start feeling pain at the age of 9-10 years whoever it can vary as per the composition of the body.
Does hormonal therapies cause this pain?
Yes, the hormonal therapies can imbalance the hormonal levels in body resulting in the growth of the breast so it can lead to the pain in your breast area.
I feel pain and lump under my breast, it is normal?
During the teen years when your breasts are growing, it is normal to feel the pain. However, when you reach the fifth stage and then you feel the continuous pain in the lump then it can be taken as a red flag leading to cancer. You must immediately consult your doctor.
I do not feel pain even breast enhancing, is it normal
Yes, it is normal. As discussed before, the intensity of the pain varies from girl to girl so if you don’t feel pain and your breast are growing then there is no need to worry.
Conclusion
The breast growth pain is the normal part of the puberty. Most of the teenagers go through intense pain while some don’t feel any at all. There is nothing to worry about. Other than the breast development, there are certain other factors that can cause the breast pain. If the breast pain goes intense and you feel something is wrong then you must immediately consult your doctor because it can be a sign of some infection or even breast cancer.