I think that I wore that bra once or twice - so uncomfortable. I don't know who told you that you had to wear it as I certainly wasn't told that. After surgery, I went mostly braless because of the pain - it felt like my skin was being rubbed raw. When I did where a bra, it was one of the Kmart Ah Bra knockoffs with the soft form and then later with a knitted knocker (thanks @onemargie). My GP also gave me the large soft non-adhesive wound dressings plus some of the soft feltlike material that they put under casts - I would line underneath the bra with those. Actually, I've just remembered that for awhile, I used to use medical tape to stick a strip of that fabric under my arm because even soft loose clothing hurt. Stroking the area under the arm, particularly under a warm shower helped (or at least made me feel like I was doing something). I should stress that although the area was a little red, I don't think the skin was ever really damaged - it was all about the nerves, and that takes some time to heal. I have never regained the feeling in that area - I have numb spots and areas where the signals get scrambled, but the pain I experienced after surgery has long gone.
