Niamh Shackleton
A mother who 'hates' the way she looks with her 'heavy and saggy' size 40K-cup breasts is fundraising for surgery after claiming that the UK's healthcare systemturned her down at least 20 times over two decades.
Joanna Brice, 52, who lives in Devon, England, said she was 'flat chested' until she turned 13 and it felt like her C-cup breasts suddenly appeared, leaving her 'self-conscious' and the target of teasing at school.
Her breasts grew to a size G in the 2010s, and she is now a size 40K in her right breast and 40HH in her left, experiencing severe back pain, nerve damage and fungal infections on the skin underneath.
Since 2000, she said she has repeatedly requested a breast reduction through the NHS and, despite explaining the physical and mental toll, has been denied surgery each time, leaving her feeling 'deflated'.
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She is now fundraising for private surgery via GoFundMe – involving moving her nipples, removing excess fat and reshaping breast tissue – worth £10,000 (over $13,000) as she hopes to finally be 'looked at for me, not my boobs'.
Joanna, a mom-of-two, told PA Real Life: “I used to go swimming because it was a way of releasing the weight in the water because my breasts act like inflatables – but even that became problematic because I can’t find swimming costumes that accommodate.
“I have to wear a bra under my swimming costume but it would ruin the bras and get even more expensive because I’d have to buy new ones.
“This limits my ability to maintain a healthy lifestyle.”
As well as suffering with things like back pain, there's a financial toll that comes with having large breasts.
She finds shopping for bras 'very frustrating' and struggles to find shops that stock her size. Joanna said that one bra costs her 'at least' £40 ($52).
She added that 'goes through' bras 'very quickly' because of them having to 'hold up the weight' of her boobs. The straps often break and wrinkle, and she said she has 'permanent dents' in her shoulders from her bras, and often needs to wear large plasters.
At the end of each day, Joanna said she always feels 'sore, sweaty and horrible' from wearing a bra, and even develops fungal infections on the skin underneath her boobs.
She added: “I even apply Sudocrem under my breasts every day, otherwise I get paper cuts. As you get older, you lose the volume in your breasts.”
She also finds lying in bed 'uncomfortable' because of her breasts, and struggles to sleep as a result.
Despite the evident discomfort it causes her, the NHS won't let Joanna have breast reduction surgery so if she wants the procedure, she'll have to pay for it herself.
She's set up a fundraising page with the hopes of raising £2,200 (around $3,000), which you can donate to here.