Well, yesterday I found out that my cousin's best friend "Lucy" (not her real name) has Lymphedema. She is having a rough time accepting it. I told her it is a long road to acceptance. I have had it for almost 7 years and I still dont want to fully accept it. I just hate that she has joined the lymphie squad. Not a place I would want anyone to be. So last night it hit me again that I will never be the same. I know God is watching out for me, and only allowed this to hapen to me because I am strong enough to handle it, but it was just a really bad day yesterday.
On a better note I have a new house that my Husband and I have worked our booties off for!
Hoping today is better and praying that "Lucy" can start to find acceptance so she can start trying to manage it. She knows I am here if she needs to talk, but she is not ready yet.
Friday, October 19, 2012
Friday, October 5, 2012
My Story Of Becoming A Lymphie...
Hi!
My name is Lauren Primeaux. I am 26 years old, mother of one beautiful 6 year old daughter, and happily married to my husband Mathew.
I have been searching for people whom have lymphedema and have the same emotional and physical questions/answers that we are all asking and wanting to find. So I decided to start a blog. This is my first blog ever, so please have patience with me as I am learning as I go along.
I was 20 years old and 4 months pregnant for my beautiful daughter when my right leg started to swell. My doctors put it off as swelling due to preganancy. When it kept getting worse, my doctor put me into the hospital at 6-1/2 months pregnant, blaming it on blood clots. I stayed in the hospital for 5 days and they ran many different tests on me. The last test they wanted to run was a dye test, which I was told there was like around a 1% chance of hurting my baby (I cant remember exactly), so of course I sad "Hell No". At that point they allowed me to go home, and stay with my feet up.
1 month later I was back in the hospital because they thought maybe they hadn't caught the blood clot, or maybe I had one this time. (I will say i loved the time off from work, but dang it I hate hospitals!!) I went throught the same tests and stayed for 3 days this time before I was released. They said it was just the way my baby was positioned, that was causing the swelling.
42 weeks pregnant and my beautiful baby was born! 8 lbs 6 oz and 21-1/2" of pure miracle (I was told at 18 I would probably never have children because of my ovaries)!! I had a C-Section, and so had to stay in a day extra, so after 3 days of being in the hospital and not being preganat anymore, my leg went down dramatically! I was thinking, maybe they were right! I was excited that now my life would go back to normal, and I could wear shorts again.....WRONG!!
About a week after being home, I was up walking more and my leg started to swell again. I bursted into tears. "Why God have you done this to me??" is what I said over and over. I couldnt understand what I had did so wrong to be punished in this way. I wanted to stay home all the time. I HATED seeing other women walking around in short skirts or shorts. I was so jealous (I still am sometimes)! But I was told by my mom "God doesnt give us anything we cant handle"!
About a month after I had my daughter, I found a doctor that knew it was lymphedema. He wanted to do surgery and go in to make sure in my groin area it was not lymphoma. Well that little surgery worsened my condition. I then started to do my own research online and tried to find as much information as I could.
When my daughter was 6 months old I started going to physical therapy. They did the drainage massage & wrapping for 4 weeks. It helped so much...... until I took it off and then it was just swollen again. I tried the stockings and they don't work that great on me. Plus they cut into the back of my knee. Very Uncomfortable!!
So now it has been almost 7 years and I am still not completely used to it. It still bothers me many days. I still cry about it, and still get a little depressed about it sometimes. I have been hospitalized with infections in it 3 times already. Mosquitos are one of our worst enemies....and I live in Louisiana.... I can't get away from them!!
What helps me get through it most days is knowing that my little girl was definately a miracle baby and if I have to give up my leg to lymphedema, I am sure glad I have her!
I will be posting on here randomly... please leave me comments and I will be sure to answer any questions I can!
XOXO,
Lymphie Lauren
My name is Lauren Primeaux. I am 26 years old, mother of one beautiful 6 year old daughter, and happily married to my husband Mathew.
I have been searching for people whom have lymphedema and have the same emotional and physical questions/answers that we are all asking and wanting to find. So I decided to start a blog. This is my first blog ever, so please have patience with me as I am learning as I go along.
I was 20 years old and 4 months pregnant for my beautiful daughter when my right leg started to swell. My doctors put it off as swelling due to preganancy. When it kept getting worse, my doctor put me into the hospital at 6-1/2 months pregnant, blaming it on blood clots. I stayed in the hospital for 5 days and they ran many different tests on me. The last test they wanted to run was a dye test, which I was told there was like around a 1% chance of hurting my baby (I cant remember exactly), so of course I sad "Hell No". At that point they allowed me to go home, and stay with my feet up.
1 month later I was back in the hospital because they thought maybe they hadn't caught the blood clot, or maybe I had one this time. (I will say i loved the time off from work, but dang it I hate hospitals!!) I went throught the same tests and stayed for 3 days this time before I was released. They said it was just the way my baby was positioned, that was causing the swelling.
42 weeks pregnant and my beautiful baby was born! 8 lbs 6 oz and 21-1/2" of pure miracle (I was told at 18 I would probably never have children because of my ovaries)!! I had a C-Section, and so had to stay in a day extra, so after 3 days of being in the hospital and not being preganat anymore, my leg went down dramatically! I was thinking, maybe they were right! I was excited that now my life would go back to normal, and I could wear shorts again.....WRONG!!
About a week after being home, I was up walking more and my leg started to swell again. I bursted into tears. "Why God have you done this to me??" is what I said over and over. I couldnt understand what I had did so wrong to be punished in this way. I wanted to stay home all the time. I HATED seeing other women walking around in short skirts or shorts. I was so jealous (I still am sometimes)! But I was told by my mom "God doesnt give us anything we cant handle"!
About a month after I had my daughter, I found a doctor that knew it was lymphedema. He wanted to do surgery and go in to make sure in my groin area it was not lymphoma. Well that little surgery worsened my condition. I then started to do my own research online and tried to find as much information as I could.
When my daughter was 6 months old I started going to physical therapy. They did the drainage massage & wrapping for 4 weeks. It helped so much...... until I took it off and then it was just swollen again. I tried the stockings and they don't work that great on me. Plus they cut into the back of my knee. Very Uncomfortable!!
So now it has been almost 7 years and I am still not completely used to it. It still bothers me many days. I still cry about it, and still get a little depressed about it sometimes. I have been hospitalized with infections in it 3 times already. Mosquitos are one of our worst enemies....and I live in Louisiana.... I can't get away from them!!
What helps me get through it most days is knowing that my little girl was definately a miracle baby and if I have to give up my leg to lymphedema, I am sure glad I have her!
I will be posting on here randomly... please leave me comments and I will be sure to answer any questions I can!
XOXO,
Lymphie Lauren
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