A woman was horrified when her breasts suddenly swelled five cup sizes for no apparent reason —thanks to a painful condition that caused people to stare and believe her to be pregnant.
Michelle Sekwena had a petite, 32A-size chest and was comfortable in her body before the shocking change, which took place over several months.
The 25-year-old noticed her breasts were feeling painful and turned a “reddish” color, becoming itchy when she wore bras.
They shot up to a 34G, leaving her struggling to walk more than short distances due to back and knee pain from the extra weight.
“People would think I’m pregnant, and I would get weird stares everywhere I went,” the salesperson told NeedToKnow, adding that she started wearing baggy clothes and hoodies to hide her breasts.
“I lost my confidence. My back and knees were sore, and I had headaches, so I couldn’t rest or sleep properly.
“It was very depressing. People were making fun of me and staring all the time. My confidence was down to zero.”
Michelle was eventually referred to a consultant at a hospital in her native Pretoria, South Africa, to get checked.
There, she was diagnosed with gigantomastia, a rare condition that causes excessive and rapid growth of breast tissue. Only about 300 cases have been documented around the world.
The condition can strike randomly, but may also be linked to puberty, pregnancy, medications, obesity, autoimmune disorders or even hormonal imbalances.
Some cases progress slowly, taking years to develop. Others can escalate in weeks, with some women jumping several cup sizes in just a few days.
But the cost of a breast reduction would set her back more than $8,442 (150,000 South African Rand), which the young woman couldn’t afford.
She started documenting her experience with the condition on TikTok, where her videos have garnered up to 22 million views, and decided to start an online fundraiser.
Incredibly, followers flocked to support her efforts, and she was finally able to fund the surgery, having her breasts reduced to a 34D — the smallest size possible.
Michelle underwent the surgery in February this year, and is now thrilled with her results, saying she has her “life back.”
While she doesn’t know if the condition may reappear, Michelle is remaining optimistic that she won’t have to suffer the same fate again — and is busy embracing her newfound confidence and freedom.
“It feels so amazing,” she added.
While the condition is quite rare, Michelle isn’t the only woman to suffer from it. Thaynara Marcondes, a 22-year-old from Brazil, recently underwent a similar ordeal.
As her breasts got bigger, she quickly outgrew her wardrobe, and eventually had to turn to custom-made clothes when plus-size options couldn’t fit her chest.
“I couldn’t even wear a bra anymore,” Marcondes told local outlet G1. “One day, I tried on eight shirts and none of them fit. I ended up freaking out.”
People were cruel.
“I started going out on the street and people were staring and pointing,” she told CNN Brazil. “Once I went to the supermarket and people even started to think I was stealing products and hiding them in my breasts. Then I got worried.”
It also got in the way of doing everyday things, like running or putting on shoes.
Eventually, she underwent surgery, having 22 pounds of excess tissue from her breasts in a 10-hour operation.
“I look in the mirror all the time and think, ‘Wow, I look so beautiful!’” she told CNN Brazil. “Sometimes I even cry looking at myself because I still can’t believe I did it.”
The same thing happened to Paige Amelia, 29, from Melbourne, Australia — whose breasts have grown to a P-cup.
Though rather than get a reduction, she’s embracing the size and makes $366K a year on OnlyFans.
“The growth is sporadic — sometimes it stops, then all of a sudden they grow a lot in a month,” she told SWNS. “And I have to get my bras custom-made — at about 280 AU$ ($170) each. But I’ve just had to accept it.
“OnlyFans is good — but I don’t like wearing tight clothing in public because I get unpleasant looks, particularly from other women.
“I feel a constant pressure to appease everyone, and I can’t wear what I want because I’m paranoid about people looking.”
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