I can’t afford Liposuction for Lipedema!
I can’t afford surgery out of pocket and insurance ain’t paying! What else can I do to help my lipedema?
Expensive surgery is not the only option for reducing lipedema symptoms. Let’s look at some facts!
The Wounds UK Best Practice Guidelines: The Management of Lipoedema publication and Lipedema — The disease they call FAT: An overview for clinicians both have guides to treatment goals for controlling lipedema symptoms. These are both excellent resources.
Lipedema is an adipose tissue disorder first described by Doctors Allen and Hines of the Mayo Clinic in 1940. The condition is still mistaken for ‘obesity’ based on BMI and many patients are advised to diet and exercise to lose lipedema adipose tissue. If more doctors knew about lipedema they would know that advice is ineffective because lipedema adipose tissue is resistant to diet and exercise.
Reich-Schupke, Altmeyer & Stucker (2012) state that the goal of conservative treatments for lipedema are “improvement of the subjective symptoms, prevention of progression of lipedema and prevention of the development of lipolymphedema” Find the entire article ‘Thick legs — not always lipedema’ here: http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1111/ddg.12024/epdf
Conservative treatment can help a person with lipedema to:
- reduce pain and inflammation
- enhance self-care practices and improve the lymphatic pump
- affect psychosocial wellbeing
- guide intuitive eating
- improve mobility and make physical activity a pleasant experience
- improve skin care and protection
Which conservative treatments are you most interested in adding to your self-care practices?
Kathleen Lisson is a Certified Lymphedema Therapist practicing in San Diego, CA and the author of Lipedema Treatment Guide, available on Amazon at http://a.co/6x3HTCz To learn more about lipedema and receive a free lipedema newsletter, visit LipedemaTreatmentGuide.com
