During my second week of radiation, I noticed/felt that my right arm was swelling. My Lymphedema seemed to be getting worse. Radiation may have something to do with that. I decided to check in with my Occupational Therapist Elsa. I hadn't seen her since last November. She has taught me about Complete decongestive therapy (CDT). It includes wearing a compression sleeve, Manual Lymphatic drainage (MLD is a type of gentle massage which promotes the natural drainage of the lymph, which carries waste products away from the tissues back toward the heart), wrapping the arm, exercise, and other self care. Pheeww! Learning to manage Lymphedema can be quite a task.
I was right about the swelling. The blue bar in the bar graph pictured above, represents the size of my left arm. The red bar, represents the size of my right arm. The first set of bars shows the difference between my arms when I first went to see Elsa last November. The sixth set of bars was my last visit with her. What a difference!
The last set of bars shows my current edema. I had progressed to 13% which is considered moderate Lymphedema. Elsa suggested that I have John come to my second visit so she could show him how to help me with MLD as well as learn how to wrap my arm. I wore the wrapping on my arm overnight and removed it this morning. My arm looks and feels so much better! I think wrapping will make a BIG difference for me.
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