when did you first notice your problem?

[bogieman]

Hi new here and will post my situation. I want to thank everyone involved int his board- it has been very helpful to me- Im a longtime sufferer- since age 13 and Im 41 now- Also wondering if anyone has a case of marijuana induced Gyno- did some research and appears the results are  inconclusive from the studies Ive read- thanks!

[jk_2k8]

I first noticed it one morning back when I was  in elementary school. I woke up and all of a sudden my nipples were noticeably puffy, and my Dad kept telling me to put a shirt on. Gyne really bred a relationship between my mind and my body based on hate.  They are getting smaller and less puffy now, but extremely slowly. I've had it since I was about 12.

[Snake]

I was taking a shower when I was about 12 and felt the lump only on the left side at first.  I freaked out and told my mom thinking it was some kind of tumor or something.  We went to the doctor and they said it was normal, bla bla bla, you all know the bs.

I calmed down, thinking it wasn't a big deal.  Thus, began my slow descent into slumped shoulders, bad posture and reclusiveness.  This was extra devastating to me because I was already naturally an introvert.  I didn't know it even had a name until I was about 18 or 19.

[IlluminaZero]

Girl I had a crush on told me I shouldn't wear such tight shirts in Middle School, didn't know what she meant until I looked in the mirror.

Spent quite a few years trying to "burn" off my breasts thinking they were fat, all while feeling more and more impotent as a man due to my inability to get rid of this one feminine feature. As mentioned earlier, doctors or other professionals were of no help irregardless of how much I mentioned my concern over my breasts; all I heard was stuff like, "it's natural" or "it will go away on it's own" or "just workout more and it will go away."

[soccerplaya]

I thought it was fat too, when I was about 12 I felt the lumps and they were kinda sore when I would touch them, I just thought it was a stage everyone goes through when they develop a "manly chest".

[Midwestdude]

I was about 10 or 11.  The gland under my areolas was swollen and very hard.  My actual nipples were also unusually long, protruding too far out.  Lot's of teasing and the usual BS.

Since puberty, the hardness/swelling went away but the very long nipples remained.

Finally, I had nipple reduction surgery last week. (because after surfing the net and this website...I realized there WAS a remedy.)  Thank God for the unlimited information provided by the internet.

I am 47.

[Grandpa Bambu]

Grade six indoor soccer game at school. It was a shirt/skin game. I was one of the skins . I was in net and I noticed two girls sitting on a bench watching the game giggling and pointing at me. How embarrassing .

John.

[Grandpa Bambu]

Doctors or other professionals were of no help irregardless of how much I mentioned my concern over my breasts; all I heard was stuff like, "just workout more and it will go away."

A medical professional told you this?

John.

[carguy]

I noticed my problem when i was 11 or 12. I was very sore so i put ice on it and it made it stick out even more.
I didnt know what to  do so i kept my mouth shut. Thats when i stopped playing sports and starting hanging out on the computer more. For a while i thought i had cancer. Even tried to mention it to the doc but he said it would go away. He didnt give me a name for it either.  I was so pissed off the whole time. Like i would have a angry face all the time and no one knew why. All i could do was watch my friends play football and i couldnt join them cause 1 it hurt to get hit and 2 it was just plain  embarassing.

[bogieman]

wow- all around the same age- 12 or 13- i was 12 when i started to notice it- pretty painful emotionally- all the stuff you guys mentioned and then some-  anyone get this at an older age? anyone with marijuana induced?  thanks for sharing your painful experiences

[tonysoprano]

I only noticed that my nipples were slightly puffy when I was about 17 or 18, but it was no big deal really. a dab of cold water and they looked like anyones.

but I was 19-20  when I first noticed that I had some degree of small little breasts, which I first thought was just fat from drinking all the time and eating junk.

I am 25 now and had my first (somewhat unsatisfactory) surgery exactly 1 yr ago when I was 24 and a bit.

[tomorrow]

21-22. I'm 30 now.

[IlluminaZero]

A medical professional told you this?

John.

I said "professionals" because I also brought up the Gynecomastia issue during a fitness assessment and would often generally bring it up whenever I had a physical of some sort.

One relatively recent instance that I recollect was taking my physical to enlist in the airforce. The doctor actually told me that I did not have Gynecomastia as men with Gynecomastia have fully developed breasts like women. (I have the puffy nipple kind.)

The ironic thing is that the airforce doctor assured me that he knew what he was talking about because (if I recall correctly) he was trained primarily as a Gynecologist or women's health doctor of some sort.   At this time I knew of Gynecomastia, but wasn't 100% sure I had it because I didn't have a mammogram yet.

~~~~

I should mention what irritated me was the no doctor plainly told me that I had Gynecomastia. Sure, it's one thing to TELL me that "it's natural" but WHY it's natural is a LITTLE important. I just assumed it was fat, which was reinforced by those that either misunderstood Gynecomastia or simply forgot/ignorant of Gynecomastia.

While I was saddened to hear that I had Gynecomastia, it was also a release in many ways as I finally understood my condition... And could work around it rather then ram into it vainly.