Videos for self help

[Genie]

I have stage one lymphedema in my leg, and as my MD thought it did not meet his threshhold for referrals to special care I sought out a video which would show me how to do self massage and exercise.

I got 2 videos from www.bandagesplus.com.

I found the Barbara Feltman video on Lymphedema Home Maintenance for the leg ($40+$!! S&H) to be most helpful. It includes both massage and exercise. It also discusses bandaging, but I am not planning to use that mode of treatment as my left leg circumference is only 1\2-1 inch larger than the other leg.

The other video - Dr Vodder's exercise video ($30) had some good ideas on exercising but it would need to be viewed ony once or twice before it was known.

I did th e exercise 2X a day for the first month. I now do them daily ... while my affected calf is still slightly larger than the other, the rest of my leg is almost equal.

I use support hose only when I'm flying or taking a long car trip.

[joyous66]

Genie, would like to talk to you about your LE since you have it in your leg - I just want to know what your experience is - so I can prepared myself - I was told this pass Monday that I have it - I have an appt. with the PT - 3 times next week.

Could you please write me back with your experience.

Thank you for you attention to this matter.

Joyous66

[valorie]

Hi Genie--Thank you for your info regarding the video. I have Lymphedema in my leg as well. My husband and I were discussing home massage which he would be willing to help with and the video will help him to learn the technique.

Valorie

[wyvernlady]

Where can I get some self help methods of dealing with Lymphedema?

Thanks,
wyvernlady:)

[Genie]

I obtained two videos from got 2 videos from www.bandagesplus.com.

They include some suggestions for self help that I found useful. My lymphedema is mild so I did not do the bandaging...others find it helpful. But I found the exercises and massage depicted on the videos to be helpful

[wyvernlady]

Thanks you for the information Genie
Wyvernlady:)

[bigleg]

Hi Genie - I have leg lymphedema also. In one of your messages, you said you had a mild case. What does that mean? At the worst spot on my leg, my upper thigh, the measurement is 5 - 6 cm larger than the other leg. Is that a mild case? I would love to be able to do exercises and go without the compression garment. Thanks for mentioning the videos and exercises. I will order what I can. Pat

[Genie]

I am not an expert on stages...but it seems to me that it is an early stage...I confess I have never compared the thigh measurements...mostly the calf, knee and ankle. Initially there were at least an inch difference between my two legs...but with exercise this went down...particularly the part of my thigh just above the knee.

When I first had in indication of lymphedema it was several weeks after I had had colorectal surgery which was preceeded by a total hysterectomy (about 5 years before) for endometrial cancer and I had a number of lymph nodes removed then. My left leg swell so much that I could not bend it at all...but it went down over night. It is possible that the swelling gets worse during hot weather. I notice that my aflicted leg seems larger during the summer than it had been during the winter.

I would try the exercise and massage...which I do every morning when I first awake...in the first month I did it in the evening as well.

Good luck

[bigleg]

Thanks, Genie - and it must feel good to be a long-term cancer survivor! Do you worry about/think about cancer returning anymore? Pat

[Genie]

I have an unreal expectation that since both my cancers responded to surgery that that's the way it would happen if it diagnosed again.

I know that women who have had endometrial cancer are at high risk for colorectal and breast cancer. I have had the first and am on the lookout for the other....

My grandmother had kidney cancer and that's harder to catch early but I'm now 73 so my life expectancy is not too long anyway .

I had a cousin who was not a smoker and she was diagnosed with lung cancer that had metastisized to the brain and was dead 3 months after the diagnosis.

So, it is a concern, but I don't dwell on it. I think you have to be more concerned about it with cervical cancer than the two cancers I had.

You had a lot of radiation treatments that can be hard to experience. I understanding it is very fatiguing. You seem to be doing well.

I also make a point of getting regular exercise which helps prevent reoccurence and development of cancers.

I've learned that exercise affects the body at the cellular level,... not must muscles, etc.

Good luck. Genie

[bigleg]

Hey Genie - What do you mean your life expectancy is not that long anyway? You're only 73. You're taking good care of yourself, so you could live another 20 years or so, don't you think? My gramma is 99 and plans to live to be 100. I asked her if she were going to just lie down and die on her hundredth birthday; she said, "Well, then, I guess I'll live to be 101." She lived in her own home until she was 96 or 97.

Thanks for your long reply. I appreciate it. I do exercise daily and try as hard as I can to eat well and keep my thoughts on the positive side. It's really not hard to be positive after a bout with cancer. All of a sudden I am grateful for the smallest of things. I've always been high on gratitude, but there's a difference in me since the cancer diagnosis, and it's not a bad one. Take care of yourself, Pat