There are few therapies available to treat lipedema. One is MLD. Also called manual lymph drainage, this is a special type of massage designed to, well, as the name suggests, manually drain the lymph nodes. It sounds yucky. In reality, it's really just a really gentle type of massage. In fact, it's so gentle, that you really don't even feel it. The entire process takes about 45 minutes to an hour. By the end of it, I usually feel a bit lightheaded, dozy and weak, but by the time I get home, I'm mostly just thirsty and tired.
Manual lymph drainage, unfortunately, doesn't really do much for us. In theory, it could keep us from getting worse because it keeps the lymph from pooling around the fat cells. But in reality, we aren't really swelling from lymph alone, so it's not going to cause our legs to actually shrink. It's just going to prevent the disease from worsening -- in theory. I've only had a few of these treatments so far, and for me, it's just a part of the process leading up to surgery.
Surgery.
Even the word, at this point, terrifies me. While I look forward to it on one level because I do believe that it will help me regain a certain degree of activity and mobility, there's another part of me that really dreads it. I've seen a lot of "nonsuccess" stories -- women who have not had great results. They've had lipedema fire up elsewhere in their bodies. They've had worsening swelling in their legs. They've gone on to develop full-blown lymphedema. They have had infections. They've struggled with weight gain and pain. They've not found the happily-ever-after they so desperately wanted.
When you drop $20k on multiple painful surgeries, you want happily-ever-after.
But it's not guaranteed.
So yeah, I'm scared.
Then again, some have found incredible success. They walked a mile the day after surgery. They hopped right back on the horse and got right out there. They lost weight once they got the lip fat removed. They were able to be active again. Some were able to jog for the first time in their lives. Some ran marathons! Some feel like they unbottled the fountain of youth.
Which group will I be in?
So MLD. This is where I am right now. Step by step. Not even one day at a time right now but one step at a time. It's a long, arduous process, and I feel like I'm racing against this demon in my own body. I don't know when the disease is going to flare up again, and I cannot speed the treatment process up any faster. So every day, I wake up, I put on my compression, I eat my RAD diet, I exercise, I do my Flexitouch treatments, I use my bouncy ball for rebounding (good for lymph flow!), and I pray like crazy that I'll beat it.
I will beat it.
I have to.
Manual lymph drainage, unfortunately, doesn't really do much for us. In theory, it could keep us from getting worse because it keeps the lymph from pooling around the fat cells. But in reality, we aren't really swelling from lymph alone, so it's not going to cause our legs to actually shrink. It's just going to prevent the disease from worsening -- in theory. I've only had a few of these treatments so far, and for me, it's just a part of the process leading up to surgery.
Surgery.
Even the word, at this point, terrifies me. While I look forward to it on one level because I do believe that it will help me regain a certain degree of activity and mobility, there's another part of me that really dreads it. I've seen a lot of "nonsuccess" stories -- women who have not had great results. They've had lipedema fire up elsewhere in their bodies. They've had worsening swelling in their legs. They've gone on to develop full-blown lymphedema. They have had infections. They've struggled with weight gain and pain. They've not found the happily-ever-after they so desperately wanted.
When you drop $20k on multiple painful surgeries, you want happily-ever-after.
But it's not guaranteed.
So yeah, I'm scared.
Then again, some have found incredible success. They walked a mile the day after surgery. They hopped right back on the horse and got right out there. They lost weight once they got the lip fat removed. They were able to be active again. Some were able to jog for the first time in their lives. Some ran marathons! Some feel like they unbottled the fountain of youth.
Which group will I be in?
So MLD. This is where I am right now. Step by step. Not even one day at a time right now but one step at a time. It's a long, arduous process, and I feel like I'm racing against this demon in my own body. I don't know when the disease is going to flare up again, and I cannot speed the treatment process up any faster. So every day, I wake up, I put on my compression, I eat my RAD diet, I exercise, I do my Flexitouch treatments, I use my bouncy ball for rebounding (good for lymph flow!), and I pray like crazy that I'll beat it.
I will beat it.
I have to.
Because there's a whole world out there waiting for me.
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