Diagnosis
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I got it!
(See previous post for the whole story.) My doctor’s office finally called me back last Monday, and made a telephone appointment for me with the doctor for three days later (on the 17th). I have to say that my opinion was not materially changed by this interaction; in fact, I felt like she was gaslighting Continue reading
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Only in America
Have you ever seen that meme that says something like “what country has ever been able to make universal healthcare work?” and then it lists every single democratic country except ours? (plus a few others—see below) Well, this post is to say, I’m wishing about now that I lived in any one of them, while Continue reading
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It’s a start…?
The Lipedema Foundation has published a blog post entitled “10 things you should know ” in an attempt to raise awareness about lipedema and how it differs from obesity. I have shared it on my Facebook page, and hope that it gives people a clue about what this condition means for those of us who Continue reading
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Cautious optimism
I may have found a doctor who actually gets it and knows what to do about it. Not celebrating yet, but… I went back to the vascular specialist yesterday, only to discover that the lab hadn’t forwarded the results of my CT scan yet (despite having a week to do so). Both I and the Continue reading
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Developments
I’m writing this after what seemed like another endless day at the doctor’s. My cardiologist and my urologist (both specialists I never thought I would own—whatever happened to my robust health?) reside in the same building, so I made my appointments adjacent so as to minimize the wash-up-get-dressed-and-drive routine. I first landed at the cardiologist’s Continue reading
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Myopia
Myopia is the “fancy” word for nearsightedness, a condition in which close-up objects are clear, but things that are farther away appear blurry. Tonight I have been ruminating on the other, less flattering, metaphorical meaning of the word, which is “lack of imagination, foresight, or intellectual insight,” as exhibited by my current lot of doctors. Hell, Continue reading
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Holy plot twist, Batman!
I can hardly believe it’s been eight days since that last post, or what has happened in that time. Turns out I was correct to be concerned about not ridding myself of copious amounts of fluid; after two one-hour sessions per day with the Lympha Press on Wednesday, Thursday, and Friday of last week, I Continue reading
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(Lack of) initiative
I was watching TV last night, and a commercial came on—one of those Big Pharma pitches for some medication that would miraculously clear up whatever persistent condition from which you are suffering—and something about it struck hard. This was the one where the lady has thyroid eye disease and has lived for most of her Continue reading
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A positive experience
Well, the squeamish dermatologist did me a big favor. I mentioned in my previous post (“The indignities we endure,” June 13) that she didn’t seem interested in looking at, touching, or pronouncing on the state of my lower legs, i.e., the lymphorrhea about which I visited her on my doctor’s recommendation…but then she mentioned a Continue reading
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Not what anyone expects
The problem with having a condition, as opposed to an illness, is that it is not what we’ve been brought up to expect. In our childhood we contract various things—from the common cold up to measles, mumps, or an outbreak of salmonella that arrives courtesy of pollution of the city’s drinking water (yes, that happened Continue reading
About Me
I started this blog to talk about a genetic, fibrotic fat-storing (some say autoimmune) condition called Lipoedema, which is something I began to experience in my 60s, although some see early onset at puberty, or post-pregnancy, or at menopause. The other “L” condition from which I suffer is Lymphedema, as a common secondary effect of the fibrosis that blocks lymphatic drainage. Despite the fact that one in 11 women suffer from lipoedema, most doctors have never heard of it, so on top of the pain and embarrassment of this extremely obvious malady, millions of us are out there being fat-shamed for a condition that isn’t contingent on diet or exercise for its growth. This blog was intended to share my reactions.
I have, however, reserved the right to discuss “other stuff” here and, increasingly, since January 20th, 2025, that is politics, because what else, after all, are we legitimately obsessed with in this age of fascism in these United States of America? So while the “theme” of this blog may be confusing, it is my blog, where I can talk about whatever I wish. You are not constrained to read the parts you don’t like. But I feel compelled to write about them.
MEdoubleLL 