#binding advice

For beginners!

Washing binders is really important. For me personally, I do it about once every two weeks. However, learning how to do this correctly important, otherwise you run the risk of shrinking your binder. Hand washing your binder is important, because using a washing machine shrinks it and makes it unwearable.

- Run lukewarm water in a large container (bath, sink, bucket, etc). Don't fill it all the way to the top, keep it thin but deep enough to sink the binder in.

- Gently swirl in some gently washing detergent. I usually an 18-in-one washing liquid, but any liquid or shower gel will do! Use something preferably gentle, and use about two to three drops,

- Turn the binder inside out, and gently submerge it in water. Swirl it around gently for two minutes, focussing on the areas around the armpits and the front where the sweat reaches the most.

- Leave in the water for half an hour to two hours

- Once you deem it ready (or when you remember it for me), drain the liquid and wash off the soap with cold water. Leave to air-dry overnight, I usually use a clothes hanger and put it on my door and that works.

I'm AFAB nonbinary, and I wanted to try and start binding to see if it's right for me. Could anyone recommend how to buy my first binder, and where to buy it? Some tips for wearing it would be great too, I really want to be safe when I'm doing this because I've heard the horror stories of breathing issues and even broken ribs.

so, a bit of background info: my little brother came out to me as trans last night and told me what name to call him, and i obviously want to support him as best as i can. there's a few things we discussed that i would like to ask other transmasc folk's advice on, as my experience has been different than his and he's a lot younger than i was when i started questioning

binders

he would like to bind, and i have offered him an old compressing sports bra i don't wear very often to use for now. he knows binding is never safe, and understands how to do it as safely as possible.

my concern is: he's 14. is that too young to bind? if he decides to bind, will it affect his growth? are there any special concerns for young people binding that he and i should be aware of?

privacy & secrecy

our parents are... not terrible with acceptance, but definitely not great. i am out to them, and they refuse to use my pronouns and only my mother uses my preferred name. my brother is understandably concerned that given his age and their previous behavior, they will not be as accepting of his identity as he wants them to be.

they also semi-frequently go through his phone and read his text messages, emails, and social media. they did the same to me when i was his age, but they stopped when i turned 18.

so, there are a few main questions i have regarding this:

are there apps (for android) that can help with this? being able to hide/automatically delete messages, hide other apps, etc. i've heard of a few but i'd like to hear others' experiences if possible.

if he uses an old, separate phone to access discord/other means of messaging me and his supportive friends, how could we hide that device from our parents? i'm prepared to explain why it's connected to the wifi if our dad checks, but i'm worried about physically hiding it if they search my brother's room.

he wants to cut his hair, he has a youtuber(?) whose hairstyle he likes (she's a woman) so i think our parents wouldn't be suspicious gender-wise, but they might try to say he's too young to cut all his hair off. does anyone have advice for convincing them to let him cut his hair?

Well, there can be many reasons to get or not to get a binder (to bind or not to bind, that is the question!) While most of the time people bind due to chest dysphoria, that sometimes isn't the case. I do experience chest dysphoria, but some days I wear a binder mostly just to try and appear less like a girl. So, if you have the money and wanna try out a binder to see how it'll look/feel, it might be worth the try. I highly suggest gc2b's binders, and if you've looked into this topic at all already, you might've heard them since they're a pretty well-known company for binders. They've got decent prices ($33-35 and $43 seems to be their most expensive price for a binder) and their binders are pretty well made. The fabric is stretchy enough to allow you to get the binder on, but still tight enough to bind without injury as long as you bought the right size and don't bind for hours (they also have an email address specifically if you need to get someone's advice on what size to get, which is helpful if you're in between sizes).

Now, as for how a binder feels, it'll be a bit of a struggle to get on when you first buy one, but you'll get used to it over time. Look up tutorials on how to put on a binder if you would need help, but if it's too tight or squeezing your body too much as you put it on, it's too tight. But if you get the right size, it should feel snug around your chest, but it shouldn't be uncomfortable. A good binder is tight enough to bind, but not tight enough to squeeze the life out of you. However, it will eventually start to feel too tight after wearing it for hours, so always remember to take it off, especially before you sleep. But other than that, a good binder shouldn't terribly hinder you as you go through your day. Sure, you may need to adjust it occasionally due to movement (I have a large chest so I usually have to adjust myself a couple times a day, but that's the same case if I wear a bra), but other than that, it should be something that you sorta forget that you have on. If you're running or going up a lot of stairs, it'll be slightly hard to breathe, but other than that it shouldn't hinder breathing either. And yes, while there can be health risks to binding, especially excessive binding, like issues with your lungs and breathing ability, as long as you're careful, it should be alright. (But definitely look this up if you're seriously considering binding. It's mostly safe and it's definitely the safest option compared to wrapping in ace bandages and any other method, but it's still an important factor. For me, I felt it was worth it.)

So, should you bind? Ultimately, it's up to you to decide. I'm glad that you don't have chest dysphoria and congrats on getting to this point in your journey of discovering your gender! But of course, not all afab trans/nonbinary people bind. Consider what you want for yourself, and if you truly want a flatter chest to look less like a girl, binding might be the way to go. But if you don't want to spend the money or risk any health problems or just feel like you don't need to bind, then that's okay too! Do what feels right! (Also, if you do buy a binder and find that it doesn't feel right for your gender presentation or it doesn't give you gender euphoria, then you can always see about returning it or even selling or donating it.)

no problem!!! i’m gonna preface this with the fact that this is from my personal experience so it may not all be applicable. i also speak from experience with a gc2b classic half binder. but i’ll answer the best i can!

- okay from my experience if you bind safely it shouldn’t necessarily hurt. there’s definitely soreness afterwards, there’s a reason people talk about binder stretches. i think it should be noted especially if you have backpain because the soreness at least for me happens in my upper back. that being said though, there are lots of different types of binders so different types may be a little less pressure there. i would recommend asking more from other blogs as well, i know @transgenderteensurvivalguide helped me a lot when i first came out so that could be a good starting point!

- i don’t necessarily know what you’re referring to with sports bras, do you mean the method people use to sort of bind with two sports bras and one of them going backwards? i did that before i binded and if i’m remembering correctly, that had a lot more issue with the fabric sort of cutting into my skin and stuff. that’s caused me a lot of pain, hell, more than i’ve felt from binding- but again, this is from my experience, and scoliosis might change that so i think connecting with people that might have that experience could be more helpful for that question.

- special care um.. okay first of all you’ve probably heard this a lot but when people say only bind 8-10 hours and don’t sleep in it they’re serious. generally speaking binding will be comfortable in a way and you may even forget you’re binding but even if you don’t feel it if you wear it for too long you’re going to get hurt. rib and lung damage are very real things when it comes to binding and if you wear it too long it can happen. hell i know people who’ve been affected by it so set a timer but even more so listen to your body. if it doesn’t feel right, take it off. you’re better safe than sorry.

next point with that, when you take it off, cough. it might sound weird but cough hard, i’ve gotten this advice from a friend. when you’re binding your breathing is different so you gotta cough to catch up your breathing to a more.. normal level. i don’t know if i make sense there. stretching is really important too.

finally, i’m gonna put this in bold because i need to do better with this: wash it. generally it’s best to hand wash with dish soap or laundry detergent but i’ve also heard a certain cycle(i don’t know the name!!) + a delicates bag in the washer + air drying works too. germs build up, you’re gonna sweat, that thing is gonna smell BAD if you don’t wash it so please take care of it.