How to Check Your Breasts: A 5-Step Self-Examination Guide
Checking your breasts takes about five minutes once a month. The steps below cover looking in the mirror in three positions, then feeling each breast lying down and again in the shower. The aim is not to diagnose anything yourself. It is to know what your breasts normally feel like, so that if something changes you notice it early and get it looked at.
Most changes women find are not cancer. But early detection makes a real difference when it is, and a regular self-check is the simplest habit that supports it.
When in your cycle to check
Breasts change across the menstrual cycle, becoming fuller, lumpier and more tender in the week before a period as hormone levels shift. Checking then is confusing and often uncomfortable.
The best time is a few days after your period ends, when the tissue is softest and least tender. If you track your cycle, set a reminder for around day seven to ten. If your periods are irregular, or you have reached menopause, pick a fixed date each month and stick to it. Consistency is what makes changes visible.
The five steps
You need a mirror, good light and a few undisturbed minutes.
Step 1. Look, arms by your sides. Undress from the waist up and stand facing the mirror. Take in the usual shape and size of each breast. Look for dimpling or puckering of the skin, a dent in the outline, a nipple that has turned inward, or any redness, scaling or rash. Compare left and right, remembering that one breast is often slightly larger.
Step 2. Look, hands on hips. Press your hands onto your hips so your chest muscles tighten. Check again for changes in shape, skin or nipples. Tightening the muscles can reveal a pull or dimple that was not visible before.
Step 3. Look, arms raised. Lift both arms above your head. Both breasts should rise slightly and evenly. Look for any area that does not move with the rest, and check the fold under each breast.
Step 4. Feel, lying down. Lie on your back with a pillow under one shoulder and that arm behind your head, which spreads the tissue thinly. Using the flat pads of your three middle fingers, press in small circles at light, medium and firm pressure. Cover the whole breast in a pattern, either circles working outward from the nipple, vertical strips, or quarter by quarter, including up to the collarbone, out to the armpit and under the nipple. Gently squeeze the nipple and note any discharge. Swap sides.
Step 5. Feel, standing or in the shower. Wet, soapy skin lets fingers glide, so many women find the shower easiest. Raise one arm and repeat the same pattern on that side, then swap. This second pass, with the tissue hanging naturally, catches things the lying-down check can miss.
What changes to look for
You are looking for anything new or different for you, rather than a textbook symptom.
- A lump or firm thickening in the breast or armpit, especially in one breast only
- A change in size or shape of one breast
- Skin that dimples, puckers or looks like orange peel
- A nipple that has newly turned inward, or a rash or crusting around it
- Nipple discharge, especially if clear or blood-stained and unprompted
- Persistent pain in one spot that does not follow your cycle
- Swelling, warmth or redness across a breast
What is usually normal
Breasts are naturally lumpy. General lumpiness that feels similar in both breasts, comes and goes with your cycle and softens after your period is common and usually hormonal. Tenderness before a period is normal, and so is a ridge of firmer tissue along the underside of the breast.
Breasts also change over a lifetime. Pregnancy, breastfeeding, weight changes and menopause all alter their texture, which is why knowing your own baseline matters more than comparing yourself to a diagram. Our post on hormones from periods to menopause explains why so much of this shifts month to month.
If you find something
Do not wait for it to go away and do not panic. Book an appointment with your GP or gynaecologist and describe what you found, where, and when in your cycle you noticed it. Many clinics in the UAE will examine you and, if needed, arrange an ultrasound or mammogram within days.
Most lumps investigated turn out to be cysts, fibrous tissue or hormonal changes. A clear answer is better than months of quiet worry, and if something does need treatment, finding it early is what improves outcomes. If you are a breast cancer survivor with questions about breastfeeding or ongoing checks, your oncology team is the right source of advice for your history.
Screening in the UAE and October
Self-examination is a habit, not a substitute for screening. Mammograms are widely available across the UAE, at government hospitals and private clinics in every emirate, and are often offered at reduced cost during October. When to start and how often to go depends on your age, family history and your doctor's judgement, so ask at your next appointment rather than following a rule of thumb.
October is Breast Cancer Awareness Month, and the UAE marks it visibly with pink-lit landmarks, mall campaigns and screening drives. Treat it as a useful annual prompt rather than a source of alarm. Book the mammogram if you are due, check your breasts, and remind a friend or your mother to do the same. Then carry the habit through the other eleven months, alongside the rest of your everyday intimate health routine.
Frequently asked questions
How often should I do a breast self-examination?
Once a month, ideally a few days after your period ends when the tissue is least tender. If you no longer have periods, choose a fixed date each month. Checking more often than that tends to cause worry rather than catch anything extra.
Is it normal for my breasts to feel lumpy?
Yes, for many women. Breast tissue is naturally uneven and becomes lumpier before a period. What matters is a change from your own normal: a new lump that stays after your period, a lump in one breast only, or any of the skin and nipple changes above. Those should be checked by a doctor.
At what age should I start having mammograms in the UAE?
It depends on your personal and family history, and advice varies between doctors. Mammograms are widely available across the UAE, so raise it with your GP or gynaecologist and follow their recommendation on when to begin and how often to repeat. Monthly self-checks are appropriate at any age.
Small monthly habits add up. For everyday freshness between periods, LiZZOM Organic Daily Liners are fragrance-free and breathable, and every purchase donates a pad to a girl in need.