My mom and I walked into Target that day with a mission: purchasing my first bra. Truthfully, there was no point in me getting a bra. I was 12 years old and my breasts had just barely started to come in, but nonetheless I wanted one. The emotions I had leading up to this extravagant adventure were nothing but excitement.

As we got closer to the wall that displayed those glorious pieces of cloth, I started to get nervous. Why? I’m not sure. I had been so excited to get a bra, the first step to a long path of womanhood, but for some reason I became embarrassed. I panned the area around the bra section, triple checking over my shoulder to make sure no one was looking. Mom looked at the choices and explained to me the differences between cup and band sizes and padded versus unpadded bras as I timidly paced back and forth asking her to keep her voice down. After minutes of intense nerves, I threw a few bras in the shopping cart and got the hell out of there.

The very first bra I ever put on was padded, hot pink with lace trim, size 30AA.

I absolutely adored it. Looking at myself for the first time in the mirror with nothing but my bra and undies made me feel like a woman.

1) You’ve got what you’ve got.

Starting off, I wore a 30AA and by the time I finished puberty at 17 that barely changed.

Without a bra, my boobs were nothing exciting. But with the help of a little extra padding, I could make my baby B cups into sexy C cups. However the moral of the story, wearing a bra made me feel like a chronic liar. For so many years I looked at the girls with big breasts in envy because of the attention they got. I thought big breasts were so beautiful and seductive and desirable, they were all the boys talked about.

But then I went to college and, though still a mostly true allegation in regards to men’s attention spans and breast, I grew out of that naïve mindset and realized, hey. I have small boobs, but guys are still into me.

2) Beauty is pain?

During those years of consistently wearing a bra, I was constantly uncomfortable. Why?

1. It was inevitable that one day an underwire was going to pop through and stab me in the armpit.

2. Constantly I would have to retighten or pull up the straps.

3. Hot days were extra steamy with the sweat trapped between my breasts from the thick padding of my bra. Then that sweat would stain the interior. And of course, the smell of that stained, sweaty bra interior was horrifying.

4. Not one bra has ever been the perfect match. I am petite all around, so bra shopping became the biggest pain. Do you realize how few stores carry a 30B or C? And also, what’s the deal with a 30B fitting one place and a 30C fitting the next?

5. My anxiety was almost always focused on the visibility of my bra or bra strap. I couldn’t last a single class without looking down to make sure everything was in place or running to the bathroom to fix myself. I couldn’t wear a deep V-neck or open backed shirt without my bra showing.

It was a constant battle.

Beauty may be pain, but I’m not sure if this war between my well-being and breast shelter was going to be worth fighting the rest of my life.

3) The Goddamn economy.

Fashion is everything to me. If I want to look and feel cute, everything on my body better looks cute too.

So, Victoria Secret’s was my safe haven. For as far as the eye can see are bras of every shape, size, style, and color imaginable. And then that feeling, oh that feeling, of ripping the tags off your new, beautiful bra and strapping yourself in was incredible.

Seriously.

But each VS bra-shopping extravaganza cost a pretty penny. At least then it was my parent’s pennies instead of mine. It’s funny to think that women are blessed with the feminity of breasts but then are penalized for their God given gift with insane prices of beautiful, high-quality bras.

And do you realize how short-lived bras are? They don’t come with a lifetime guarantee, that’s for sure.

Then came last summer, my last summer before starting college. I thought about how many things my parents used to pay for that I would now have to. Bras were going to be one of them.

4) Bra vs. Me.

Even though it took only a few years for me to realize how many more cons to bra-bearing there are than pros, I continued wearing them at the beginning of my freshman year of college. It didn’t take long for me to notice, though, all of the girls not wearing bras. It was crazy, if girls walked around my high school bare-boobied all hell would break loose; but at my Colorado university braless girls were totally normal.

As classes progressed and 8 am’s seemed earlier each morning, I got lazy. Taking that extra minute or two in the morning to mess with my bra didn’t make sense so I began letting my girls hang freely during class.

It took three days of braless classes to realize that I was never going to wear a bra again. No more pokey wires, constant readjusting or breast size insecurity. My breasts were free, natural and happy.

6) Confidence is key.

For me personally, not wearing a bra has boosted my confidence and love I have for my own body. Growing up I was extremely self-conscious of my small boobies, but as I have aged I have grown to adore them. Not wearing a bra has amplified that adoration.

Though it has only been a year since the last time I fussed with my bra straps, I feel so much more like a woman. Not wearing a bra has helped me to accept myself for who I am: a small lady with small boobs.

My breasts are happy and I am happy.

People are always going to judge. People are always going to disagree with the way you go about your life. But people don’t run your life.

I don’t wear a bra because of all of the reasons you have read, but the main argumentation behind my braless boobies is simply that I don’t want to wear them. I don’t need bras and bras don’t need me. It’s simple as that.

7. Giving back.

Moral of the story, I gave away all of my bras. I don’t have use for them anymore, but there are woman in my community who do. Donating my bras to struggling woman in my community of Denver gave me even more of a reason to feel incredible without wearing a bra and hopefully the woman who buy my beautiful bras feel beautiful wearing them.