A mum claims her 40H breasts are so big they rest on her throat and strangle her when she lies down - but is being forced to raise £7,000 for reduction surgery as funding 'isn't available on the NHS' in England.
Kelly Staples was just 13 and a size 34F when she first approached her GP in 2012 about a breast reduction but says she was told she was 'overweight' and advised to shed a few pounds.
The 23-year-old said she lost three stone hoping her boobs would shrink, but sadly the weight lost didn't drop off her chest.
Disappointed, Kelly says she returned to her doctor two years later in 2014 only to be told that breast reduction surgery 'isn't funded', and was told the same again in 2020.
Kelly's huge one-stone breasts exacerbate the discomfort caused by existing hip and back problems - effectively 'crushing' her spine and causing a neck hump.
The sheer weight of Kelly's boobs causes her posture to be 'completely out of whack', forcing her to pop painkillers just to get through a working day.
The pharmacy dispenser said she feels like she's 'trapped in an 80-year-old's body' and that her big bust also gets in the way at work, making it difficult for her to reach medicine on the shelves.
The mum-of-one is now fundraising £7,000 to have the surgery done privately and is hoping to reduce them to a C/D cup that would suit her 5'1 frame - and give her a better quality of life.
The Kernow Clinical Commissioning Group said it does not routinely commission breast reduction surgery 'unless there is a clinical need'.
Kelly, from Fraddon, Cornwall, said: "I can't breathe when I lie flat on my back. I get strangled by my own chest, it's horrendous.
"If I lie on my back my chest goes up so my breasts sit on my throat.
"I have to lie on my side but even then they go into like a pancake form and still rise up.
"I have to keep my arms pushing them down so they're not anywhere near my throat because I get quite claustrophobic anyway, it's too much.
"Honestly, I'm used to it at this point, it's just not very comfortable."
Kelly claims she first approached NHS England regarding a breast reduction as she was uncomfortable with their appearance as well as the physical discomfort they were causing.
The mum said her breasts finally stopped growing around two years ago after the birth of her son in 2019, but now one is bigger than the other - with her right being an H cup and her left a G.
Kelly said: "When I first went all they really said to me was 'oh, you're overweight' but obviously at this age I was 13 and I was tiny.
"The initial reason they gave me for not giving me a breast reduction was that I was apparently overweight and obviously they hadn't fully stopped growing at that point was another reason.
"They didn't really compensate for my breast size and their heaviness, they're about a stone between them.
"They were like 'you need to lose weight and they'll shrink' so I said 'right, that's fine, I'll give it a go'.
"I developed an eating disorder thinking the smaller I'd get, the smaller my boobs would get, and that never happened.
"They basically just shrugged me off and that was that.
"I never really saw them again because I was scared I was going to be called fat all the time and then from that I developed an eating disorder in which I wouldn't eat.
"When I lost weight the size of my breasts stayed the same."
Kelly lost three stone and claims that when she returned to the doctor around the age of 15 where she was told that the procedure isn't funded.
At her wits' end, Kelly returned for a third time in 2020 only to be told the same thing.
The frustrated mum is also hypermobile, which puts her joints under constant pressure and is painful - making her feel like an 'old woman'.
Kelly said: "It feels like it's taken a massive toll on my body. I can't run, exercise, I can't really do anything.
"I honestly feel like I'm trapped in an 80-year-old's body.
"It's just a lot of pain most of the time. I've been prescribed tons of pain relief and I'm only 23 and I honestly feel like I'm popping pills for days.
"I was born with hip dysplasia and lordosis. The weight of my chest brings me forward but I've got to compensate with my back.
"The way I'm having to compensate for the weight [of my breasts] is crushing my spine.
"I've now got a hunch on the back of my neck from having the weight pulling me down.
"It's like my posture has just gone out of whack completely."
Kelly, who's a dress size 18, is forced to wear baggy clothes that 'drown' her frame in a bid to make her big bust less noticeable.
Not only do her breast affect her appearance and health, but Kelly said they also get in the way while she's at work.
Kelly said: "When I'm trying to reach something on the shelf I can't actually reach because my chest pushes me too far away from the shelf.
"If I'm trying to get down off a ladder my boob just gets caught on the counter.
"We don't sit down in the pharmacy and the weight from my chest, along with pressure on my hips and back, means at the end of the day I have to take co-codamol for the pain.
"I don't like them. I'd rather be a D or anything below that. When people say 'oh, I'd love to have your boobs' I'm like 'no, you really don't, you really don't'.
"I want to get them reduced because I need a new bit of life. I can't be 24 and just in so much pain I feel like an 80-year-old."
An NHS Kernow Clinical Commissioning Group spokesman said: "NHS Kernow Clinical Commissioning Group does not routinely commission breast reduction surgery, unless there is a clinical need.
"The details of this policy are available on NHS Kernow’s website."
You can donate to Kelly's GoFundMe here.
